See also:
Your Title
by Your Name or Pen Name
The synopsis is a one-page summary of your book. It is like the back cover blurb except that you don’t want to keep the agent or editor in suspense. You explain the conflicts and how they are resolved, showing how the characters change as they confront their deepest fears.
The synopsis is written in present tense, third person (she), even if the book is written in first person (I).
- Beginning
- Middle
- End
Getting the gist of your story into one page makes the strong points of the story clear to you as well as to editors. If there are weaknesses in the plot, they will show up in the synopsis, and you will know what to fix before you submit. Writing a synopsis is difficult, but it is well worth the time and skill that it takes.