Friday, May 7, 2010

Friday Round-Up - #98

Larry Brooks, at Storyfix, discusses the thin line between the author and the protagonist.

Debbie Roome, over at PixnPens, gives tips on manuscript layout and how to write a synopsis. Have you taken the leap and written a synopsis yet? If so, what helpful hints did you discover along the way?

Don't forget: tomorrow is the last day to enter the drawing for Mary Connealy's book, "Golden Days." Have a great weekend!

20 comments:

Jessica Nelson said...

I've written a few synopses now and by far Camy Tang's class on it was the most helpful thing! I loved it! Highly recommend her class. ;-)

Karen Lange said...

I've not written a synopsis yet, so I appreciate the links. Thanks! Have a great weekend:)
Blessings,
Karen

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Jess -

I wrote one for the Genesis Contest. Like everything, it takes practice.

Blessings,
Susan :)

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Karen -

I think there's a misconception that a synopsis is a summary of the entire story. How do you condense a 90,000-word book into two pages?

Reading various articles showed me the difference and made the task much easier.

Blessings,
Susan :)

Rosslyn Elliott said...

Susan, has anyone told you that the top part of your posts is disappearing? I'm using Firefox, and maybe that has something to do with it. But I like your posts, and I don't want to miss half of each!

Bess said...

I should pop on over and read about the synopsis. I confess that I'm uneducated about them.

Have a great weekend and Mother's Day, Susan!

Unknown said...

I definitely need to read Debbi's post. I've written several synopsis', but I sure don't enjoy writing them. A synopsis for me is like vegetables to a kid. Yuck! LOL

Jaime Wright said...

Susan,
hop over to my site and check out today's entry ;)
(I misplaced your email - again!!!)

http://thejaimereports.blogspot.com

Nancy said...

Larry Brooks article was informative and somewhat scary. I didn't realize that even when you hide things, people can guess the truth. Definately food for thought.

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Rosslyn -

Several people have problems because of their browser. Most wait until the next post comes up. Then, they can view the previous one.

I had a problem with this in IE. I was able to change the view to an older browser, and it worked. BTW, I'm totally non-techy, but have lots of techy friends. :)

Blessings,
Susan

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Schmologna -

It's better to familiarize yourself with a synopsis before you need one. The stress level for getting my manuscript ready for the Genesis Contest almost wiped me out.

Blessings,
Susan :)

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Nancy -

People who know you well will pick up on your traits. When I read one of my close friend's books, I could "hear" her speaking. She's a big-time punster, and her character used puns.

Blessings,
Susan :)

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Jaime -

I just got home a little while ago. I'll pop over ASAP.

Blessings,
Susan :)

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Sharon -

Query letters, synopses, and book proposals all fall into that category for me. The learning curve on them is steep.

Blessings,
Susan :)

Jeanette Levellie said...

Yes, I've written synopses for both of my books, and they are tough to navigate!

Thanks for the links and Happy Mother's Day, Susan!

Jen

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Jen -

Happy Mother's Day to you and all the moms out there!

Yes, a synopsis is a bear. We writers are not known for our brevity. LOL!

Blessings,
Susan :)

Patti Lacy said...

Cool images here! Sigh. I am just finishing up a synopsis. Still not my favorite thing...

Have a great weekend!
Patti

Shannon O'Donnell said...

Synopsis writing is soooo hard.

Have a great weekend! :-)

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Patti -

I thought you were in China. Anyway, it's always nice to see you. :)

Oh no, you mean writing a synopsis doesn't get easier? I hoped with practice I'd be able to tame the monster.

Blessings,
Susan

Susan J. Reinhardt said...

Hi Shannon -

Apparently, synopsis writing gives a lot of people grief. I hope the link gives you some insight.

Blessings,
Susan :)