Blurbs and log lines..

Good morning, I hope your weekend is going well!

Okay, so you're down to the final stretches and you're gearing up to send your book out the door and in the hands of an editor/publisher. You've double-checked all on your list and things look great! The only thing left is your blurb. Let's say, you are not published yet and you're thinking, do I really need to write a blurb and send it out with this submission? Probably. But why?

Writing blurbs and log lines are really great practice, for a few reasons...

First, you'll learn how to hit on the most important details/hooks of your book. This will come in handy when you're sitting at a table with an agent and she asks about your book. Or, you're in a pitch meeting with an editor and she wants to know about your book 'before' she has even seen any of your work.

Blurbs can be sticklers at times to write, but they really do help with nailing down the 'grabbing' parts of your story. If you've never written a blurb, the easiest way, I think, to get the hang of writing them is by using your synopsis. Now, I realize your synopsis is long, but we're gonna start there. So, go through it and take the most important parts and jot those down. You may end up with a few paragraphs or more at first, that's ok. From those paragraphs, dwindle it down even more, just like you did... until you have one or two paragraphs.

Now, we're tightening up the main points/hooks of your story! Then, you'll narrow it down to one paragraph. If you're having a little trouble at first getting the hang of writing a blurb, just pick up a few of your favorite books and turn them over to the back cover.. read the teasers/blurbs. That's the goal we're trying to get to..

Second, once you've sold, more than likely you'll need to write a cover blurb and send it to your agent/editor/publisher.

And last, practicing this will help you nail down a log line..which is really a one-liner hook. As if writing a synopsis, cover, and blurbs aren't hard enough, now you need a one-liner?! lol ;) Sometimes, yes! They come in handy when you're doing promotion, or you literally have less than one minute to tell someone about your book. Practicing these now may come in handy if there is ever a time when you're in any of these situations :)

If this is a first time writing them it may be easier to break them down and write them in chunks. Start with your synopsis and then put it aside for a day or two. Then, go back to it and lean it down to a few paragraphs, and set it aside for a bit and so on.. until you end up with a one-liner!

Tip: If you're having a little trouble using your synopsis, try writing blurbs and log lines by using your cover letter with the steps mentioned above.. if you do though, because a cover letter holds more than 'just about the book info' make sure when you're practicing, you only use the parts that are of the book.

Hope this helps :)  Happy Writing!