Please Query With A Short Synopsis

Nothing can strike more fear in the mind of an aspiring writer than the phrase please query with a short synopsis. For the aspiring writer (like myself), it literally triggers the debilitating disease called "writing by paralysis".

Working in a business environment, I can generate reams of thoughtful and concise business correspondence. In my off time, I could write a reasonably fluid short story or blog posts that make sense and refreshes the brain cells. But ask me to explain in great detail about what my story is about, and I quickly develop "writing by paralysis". Doesn't matter if it was a short story, a piece of flash, or something longer, I literally could not get a grip on a pen to put words down on paper.

The only reason that I can come up with as to why, is that somehow in my mind, I equate queries and synopses with job interviews. As a rule, I interview very badly for potential jobs, unless I actually know the person I am interviewing with. Same goes for querying. The only magazine (or in this case, e-zine) that I felt comfortable querying was Beat to a Pulp. And that was due to the fact that I had gotten to know both David and Elaine over the past year and a half or so, through their respective blogs.

Now if you thought I was having a major panic attack while just writing a simple query, then writing a synopsis literally made me run away from my computer for about 2 1/2 weeks. The main reason as to why I had a problem writing a synopsis is this: I didn't have the confidence and know how to condense a 90,000 word manuscript down to about 8 to 10 pages (one rule of thumb I learned early on, was to write one page of synopsis for every 20 or so pages of text).

So here I am, an aspiring writer who after a three-year hiatus has decided to have his ego battered and bruised again. Unlike last time, when I was really clueless on how to write a query letter, let alone a synopsis, this time, I have a basic idea on how to write a query letter. Instead of trying to figure out how to do it from a couple books, I found one good agent blog (Nathan Bransford) that is as informative as all get out.

If a newbie like myself can't get any good tips and ideas from a blog run by a respectable literary agent that has as a minimum, 120 commenters per post and has recently set up a discussion forum for all things related to writing, then I might as well call it a day, shut down my blogs and crawl back into my spacious cave to while away the hours until I die from a lack of get-up-and-go.

As for having an idea on how to write a synopsis, that is all different animal altogether. I think that this time, I have a better grasp of the concept called "synopsis", because I now realize that a synopsis is nothing more than a 4,000 to 8,000 word short story. If I approach it like I'm writing a short story (not too difficult of a concept for me to grasp), then I shouldn't have a problem in doing it. I think one idea that most of these writing books could explain more clearly is that a synopsis is nothing more than a good short story. If you approach it like a short story (complete with a basic outline) it should be a snap to write.

A synopsis is pretty much the same concept as a short story: the basic plot; the beginning; the slow build up to the middle; the middle itself where some of the action takes place; the buildup to the ending; and the ending itself. If you can write a short story (and using me as an example, I've written all types ranging from 2 to 32 pages in length), you could write a synopsis. Shoot, if you can write a basic outline and create a storyboard, then you've got 50% of the problem solved. The remaining 50% is simply filling in the details that explains your novel from beginning to end. The key is not to get too wordy while doing it.

So as you can see, I managed to present to myself (and to the world at large) a pretty rational and concise argument on writing a query and a synopsis. In the coming months, we shall see if we can successfully pull this dual animal off, and like previously with my self publishing ventures, I'll be bringing everyone along for the ride.

Of course, the key to any successful querying/synopsis writing endeavor, is actually having a finished product to show everyone.

Now where did I put that pesky manuscript......