The Take Back - Query

I am a gleaner, harvesting information from all those around me. I am so new and unfamiliar with the 'business' side of writing: The query, the synopsis, blogging, cover letters, etc. I have learned SO much from my critique partners as well as those of you who follow our blog and whose blogs I follow! Thank you for your gems of wisdom ... I have truly benefited.

So, can I impose upon you all once again? I know Angie threw her query out to you a while back and received some incredible feedback. I'd like to do the same, if I may. I've written a YA/Urban Fantasy novel topping off at 94,000 words. I would greatly appreciate any and all feedback!! Thank you and good luck to you all in your own writing pursuits whatever they may be! Here goes ...

Life energy can be stolen—days, months, years of life snatched with nothing more than irritated eyes to show for it. The Takers are waiting, committing the perfect crime, so they can live forever.

Seventeen-year-old Abby Crawford thought she was the only one with a secret—seeing the death of strangers and friends in her dreams. But when she flees her home town, ashamed of her ability, she discovers people who know not only of her power, but her family and destiny, too.

Will never believed the far-fetched stories about his life, but once Abby arrived, he couldn’t ignore that her gift might confirm his greatest fear: that he’s a Taker. Now their fates are bound together by Abby’s gift and Will’s dark past.

Abby and Will are all that stands between humanity and the Takers. But the Takers have a secret that could leave the world defenseless—forever.

Ta-Dah! That is the Take Back in a nutshell. Thanks to Angie and others who have already given me a lot of guidance with this. And thanks, in advance, to you who take the time to post a comment/critique. Happy Tuesday everyone!

--Sara Bulla

The Evil Evil EVIL Synopsis!

Do you feel like this when you think about writing a synopsis? I know I do!

• I’ve written a manuscript.
• I’ve polished a manuscript.
• I’ve written a query letter.
• I’ve polished a query letter.
• I’ve researched agents.
• I've weeded out agents.
• Now all I have left (what I’ve been putting off for months) is the EVIL synopsis.

I am aware that some agents don’t want it, but better safe than sorry. And I’m not capable of whipping out a synopsis on a whim. So if you are like me and need to tackle the synopsis, I’m going to share what I’ve learned:

Keep it simple. Stick to just the main plot. Leave out all characters but the main ones. Leave out subplots. Leave out as many proper names as you can. No themes. No symbolism. No flowery description. Simple. Simple. Simple.

Use story structure as your guide. I stole this from Janice Hardy’s blog (read her post on writing a synopsis) and it really helped me. A synopsis is structured something like this:

1. Opening Scene
2. Inciting Incident
3. Act One Crisis
4. Act Two Revelation
5. Mid Point Reversal
6. Act Three Disaster
7. Climax
8. Wrap Up

I used this to decide what should stay and what should go.

Use tension and conflict to your benefit. Use paragraph breaks to act as mini cliffhangers to propel the synopsis forward. Make us bite our nails wanting to know what is next.

Don’t be afraid to write a terrible synopsis. You have to start somewhere. And thanks to the magic of computers—you can always edit :)

Spoil the ending. A synopsis in NOT a hook. It is meant to show agents that you know how to construct a story. So throw it all in; twists, surprises, cliffhangers, and a well executed ending. Don’t use the synopsis as a teaser.

Get a second opinion. Once you think you have it down let someone who hasn’t read your MS read your synopsis. Does it make sense to them? Are the stakes clear? Do they want to continue reading from paragraph to paragraph?

There you have it. Sadly that is all the synopsis knowledge I possess. What about you? Does anyone have any great tips?

-Angie

Sarah Goldberg, assistant to Agent Suzie Townsend, has a great post on the EVIL synopsis :)