mandwmagazine-blog

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New book review! Link in the description. #bookstagram #bookreview #yafiction #amreading #bookreviewer #2019 #books #bibliophile #fiction #brooklyn #anotherbrooklyn #newyork #jacquelinewoodson #bookworm. #loverofbooks #bookrecommendation #readers #reading #nyc #bookshelf https://www.instagram.com/p/B0grcjNFx5-/?igshid=1ou9ztxd4iab0

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What I try to live by and follow. The magazine and posts are coming back. #notmine #inspiration #poetry #amwriting #shortstories #poc #qpoc #lillysingh #bawse https://www.instagram.com/p/B0fMT5bFJde/?igshid=11lpbep4evefe

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it’s ok to start your novel if you don’t have every single plot detail already worked out. 

It’s ok to start if your world building still consists of vagueness like “fantasy realm based of ancient Slavic mythology”.

it’s ok to start if you don’t know what brand of marmelade your ocs like the most.

it’s ok to let these things come to you as you write. put words on paper, put in placeholders instead of names, write “and then they fought” instead of detailed fight choreography. yes, do your research, make mood boards and playlists, come up with lore and convoluted histories, but don’t obsess over the details and lock your novel inside your mind forever. especially if you’re a young writer on your first project.  immerse yourself in the story, discover it as you write. let yourself make mistakes, because you can fix them, but you can’t fix an empty page. 

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Deadline: February 15th

Looking for stories (#fiction and #nonfiction) limit 7,000 #words , poetry and #art by people of color. Dm for any questions. #poetrylovers #poetry #writers #flashfiction #shortstories #august #writing #oppurtunity #submissions #latinxwriters #browngirlswhowrite #nativewriters #litmag #mandwmagazine #micropoetry #artistsofig #drawingwhileblack https://www.instagram.com/p/BstjhewhgqN/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1t9ephwv69o87

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Deadline: February 15th Looking for stories (#fiction and #nonfiction) limit 7,000 #words , poetry and #art by people of color. Dm for any questions. #poetrylovers #poetry #writers #flashfiction #shortstories #august #writing #oppurtunity #submissions #latinxwriters #browngirlswhowrite #nativewriters #litmag #mandwmagazine #micropoetry #artistsofig #drawingwhileblack https://www.instagram.com/p/BstjhewhgqN/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1t9ephwv69o87

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New book review! This week we shine a light on #americanpanda by Gloria Chao. Link in the description. What should we read next? #books #bookreview #bookstagram #bookreader #loveofreading #loverofwords #loverofbooks #amreading #yafiction #review #yalit https://www.instagram.com/p/BoPQKanBYMm/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=10295q7lxug92

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Poetry entry by @daskhagen1963 Dm or tag the account to be featured. ・・・ MY IDENTITY WILL BE KILLED ................................................ K.C.Das ............. I've been sanctioned only one chance, a particular period of time to survive, And once the time is over, my hope, my desire I can't revive. I've a kingdom ; I'll lose it, again it I can't build, Yet, as a poet, never should I yield. My identity will be killed, With it my earthly pain and anxiety will be healed. Though temporal pain Attacks me like a shower of rain, My life and experience always train Me how out of pain something I can gain. It's true, I'm not permanent, But my pen has a power dominant, With its help what behind me I leave Will be everlasting, in it I will live. ........................................................ Written for @mandwmagazine #mandwmagazine. ........................................................ Photo:_____By me ........................................................ Few are tagged, open for participation. Please follow the page of @mandwmagazine to have a clear idea about the rules to be followed. THANK YOU ALL ........................................................ #spilledink #poetry #poetrylovers #writing #identity https://www.instagram.com/p/BnjBi8qlUv7/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=dn4dlhc5umav

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New review! This week we reviewed 'Lets Talk About Love' link in bio. What should we review next? #books #amreading #reading #bookstagram #bibliophile #booklover #review #bookreview #bookreader #letstalkaboutlove #pageturner #beautiful #yafiction #fiction #booksofinstagram #bookrecommendations

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How to Write a Synopsis

Back when I was doing my MA program, I typed up a guide to writing query letters. It’s the post from this blog that I’m most proud of: a thorough step-by-step guide that combines days and weeks of research, dozens of sources, into a neatly packaged in an 1800 word post.

And I have to admit, I didn’t write it for tumblr. I wrote it because I was taking a publishing class, and as part of that class, I needed to write a query letter and I wanted to make sure I wrote a damn good one.

Now, I need to write a synopsis for my literary agents, and I need this to be damn good, too, so I thought I would make a similar post, making a similar post not only for my own sake, but for you as well.

But first…

What is a synopsis?

A synopsis is a 1-2 page summary of the events that transpire in a book, either proposed or already written. It’s used to give people who haven’t read your book a quick overview, so they know the story that’s being told in the book without having to read it.

When is a synopsis necessary?

Some literary agents request synopses along with query letters. More often, they’re used slightly later on in a writer’s career, when they have an agent or an editor and they need to submit a proposal for a new idea or project. A synopsis can also be used later on, in situations that don’t involve the author. For instance, when an editor pitches the book to the marketing and publicity team, who may not have time to read every book they’re working on. Unlike a query letter, the book doesn’t necessarily have to be written when you’re submitting its synopsis.

Basic Style

The job of a synopsis is to lay out the story with little fuss and no frills. They let the person you’re pitching know what they’re going to find in that giant stack of pages on their desk or in that obscenely long Word document (or else in the Word doc they’ll eventually receive).  

Most professional synopses follow these rules:

They’re told in third person

They’re told in present tense

Characters’ names are CAPSLOCKED at first mention.

They are double spaced.

They tend to avoid descriptions longer than this sentence.

They focus on the central conflict and the protagonist’s emotional journey

They spoil the ending

They should be 500 words or less. (That is 1 page single-spaced, 2 pages double-spaced.)

HOW TO WRITE YOUR SYNOPSIS

The plot

Writing your synopsis, you have one goal: to tell a 50,000-100,000 word story in 500 words. It can be a little difficult to do this right. A great way to do this is to identify the key turning points in your protagonist’s story.

Do you remember those little plot roller coasters you’d make in elementary school? They’d usually be pointy witch’s-hat shaped things labeled with the terms: “beginning, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.” 

Those turning points are the events you should be including in your synopsis.This is the structure you want to emphasize to your reader. You want to make abundantly clear that your story works like a story, that the events of your book have a beginning, a middle, and an end, that there’s an intriguing beginning, an exciting climax, a satisfying conclusion. You don’t want to just list out the events of your novel, but highlight the function of those events. X moment is important because it’s the inciting incident, the moment that takes the protagonist from their normal life and throws them into the story.

There are tons of great story roadmaps out there, that go into more specific story elements. The Hero’s Journey is the most famous example of a detailed, and mostly universal, story structure. There’s also the three-act structure that’s famous among screenwriters.

Find a structure that fits your story the best and use that to identify the events of your story that need to make it into your synopsis. I’ll link to different sources at the bottom of this post that will give you variations of story structure.

If you can correlate key scenes in your novel to the descriptions of these plot points, you’ll find an easy roadmap to navigating the many events of outlining your novel.

Your protagonist’s journey

Your protagonist is the heart of your story, and should be the heart of the synopsis, too. The protagonist’s emotional journey may not string all of these plot points together, but it’s going to be what makes them matter to the reader. The human element of your story has to be represented in your synopsis.  

There’s no room for long descriptions, so you’ll have to be smart about finding a few terms that not only tell your reader who the character is, but what their story will be. For instance, if your story is about someone trying to get their critically-panned paintings in the Museum of Modern Art by breaking into the museum and installing the pieces themselves, you may want to introduce them with a sentence that begins like so: “When IGNATIUS, an ambitious and untalented struggling artist, discovers his work is rejected from yet another gallery…”

In addition to these descriptive terms, you should spell out what your protagonist wants (or wants desperately to avoid) and their stake in the events of the story. 

Along the way, tell us how these key aspects of their persons change due to the events of the story, or else how they influence the events of the story. Tell us about how after raving reviews for his DIY MoMA exhibit came in, Iggy realized that though he still liked painting, his talents actually lay in performance art. Untalented to talented, struggling to successful, all because his ambition pushed him to try new and daring things.

Tips:

As in query letters, you only name the most important characters and locations outright. If you’re writing a synopsis for Harry Potter, you’ll want to use Harry’s name in the query, but most other people and places can be referred to by their function in the novel. Ex: Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon can be “his cruel relatives.” Hermione and Ron can be “his friends.” Even Hogwarts can be a “school for people with magical abilities.” This makes it easier for a reader to understand what’s going on in your story. Too many names in such a small amount of space can be overwhelming.

All telling, no showing. This is one piece of writing where you’ll want to tell, instead of show. You need to get to your point as quickly, as clearly, and concisely as possible; this isn’t the place for creative storytelling.

Oftentimes, synopses are given along with other materials, such as pitch letters and sample pages. While a synopsis should be captivating in-so-far that it’s well told, and it should maybe be a little stylish, being captivating and stylish aren’t its main goals. Additional materials like sample pages and pitches have more room for creative flourishes and can do a better job of selling the story, while the synopsis focuses on telling it.

Your synopsis should show that you know how to tell a story. While a synopsis doesn’t sell a story like a query, it should still illustrate the fact that you have an interesting, unique and well-structured plot. When finished, your reader should be able to think to themselves “that’s a good story. I want to read that.”

Your first draft will be too long. Your first draft of a synopsis will always be at least a page or two longer than it should be. Identify the sentences and paragraphs where you explain why a thing happens and ax them. Identify sentences where you repeat yourself and ax them. Identify descriptors that aren’t vital to understanding of the story and ax them. Once you make your first painful cuts and see that the story still makes sense without those things, you’ll start to get a better understanding of what can and cannot be taken out of your synopsis.

Bibliography:

6 Steps for Writing a Book Synopsis

How to Write a 1 Page Synopsis

The Hero’s Journey

Learn How to Write a Synopsis Like a Pro

How to Write a Novel Synopsis

The Secrets of Story Structure

Three Awesome Plot Structures for Building Bestsellers

7 Ways Write Plot Outline

Synopsis for “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”

How to Plan Your Novel Using a 3 Act Structure - ex. “The Hunger Games”

Story Structure by Plot Point for “Raiders of the Lost Ark”

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Tips For Writers Who Want To Share Their Work Online

❋ Keep an eye out for plagiarism on sites like Wattpad. 

❋ Store all of your work on a document that’s secure, in case your post gets deleted, your blog gets hacked, or you decide to take down your blog. 

❋ Only post things that you would be okay with your friends finding out about, because they will, I promise.

❋ Be open minded when it comes to constructive criticism and readers’ questions. Not all criticism is “hate”.

❋ If you are going to express your opinions {social, political, etc.} online, be ready to back them up with facts, evidence, etc. from valid sources. If you make an idiot of yourself on the internet, it will never go away.

❋ Edit all of your work before you post it. It’s worth it.

❋ Don’t become obsessed with the numbers. They’re only numbers, and whether you get 1 like or 100,000, be confident in your own writing and focus on the passion, not the rewards.

❋ Market your writing and use what you have. If you have a blog with 10,000 followers, refer them to your writing. If you have 300 friends on Facebook, post the link to your writing account. Do what it takes to advertise your work.

❋ Be transparent with your readers. If you write a sponsored article or something like that and they ask about it, be honest with them. There’s no harm in trying to make a profit off of what you’ve worked hard on, but if you’re lying to your readers, you may come off as a sellout. 

❋ Give it time. You won’t gain 10,000 followers right away. It may be a year before you even get 100, but stick with it and work hard because if you create quality content and get it out there for people to see, they will notice. 

❋ Be consistent. If you tell your readers that you will be posting a new short story, article, etc. in the next day or two, live up to your promises. Having your readers’ trust is imperative to being an internet creator, and it’s very easy for them to click “unfollow”. It’s alright to make a few mistakes along the way, because that’s life, but be honest and apologetic to your readers.

❋ Make it easy to find/share your work. Create links to other places to find you and other things you’ve created. Remind them to share your work and like you on Facebook. Organize your work into an easily navigated format that they can use to find work they’ve already read and enjoyed, or discover new work that you have created. 

Request a prompt list/writing advice/playlist/study help post here

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GROWTH

INSTAGRAm + Website + MERCH

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GROWTH

INSTAGRAm + Website + MERCH

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#1 place to be on a Sunday ❤ #booklover #booklr #bookstagram #stories #books #poetry #writing #writingprompts #prompts #amreading #reading #spilledthoughts #bibliophile #loveofreading

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Poetry submission by @daskhagen1963 Dm or tag the account to be featured ・・・ FORBIDDEN LOVE ............................. K.C.Das .............. We've been loving each other for thousands of years ; since birth, Sun knows this ; it's felt by Earth. Sun and Earth are in love, deny can't we it, Attract they each other, but they're not allowed to meet. Look at that rose in the evening and that star, They try to meet, try vainly to come closer and closer. They're the victims of forbidden love and they have accepted it, Eager they are to meet but their desire they are to beat. Perhaps our love, too, is forbidden, So we can't show it, it's kept hidden. The way to success our Love can't lead, We're destined to love though our souls bleed. ....................................................... Written using "forbidden love" for @mandwmagazine #aprilwritingchallenge #nationalpoetrymonth#books #poetry #writing #writingprompts #prompts #amwriting #reading #spilledink #spilledthoughts #bibliophile ........................................................

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Deadline: August 31st Looking for stories (#fiction and #nonfiction) limit 7,00 #words , poetry and #art by people of color. Dm for any questions. #poetrylovers #poetry #writers #flashfiction #shortstories #august #writing #oppurtunity #submissions #latinxwriters #browngirlswhowrite #nativewriters #litmag #mandwmagazine #micropoetry #artistsofig #drawingwhileblack

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Poetry entry from @daskhagen1963 Dm to be featured ・・・ POET'S PEN ................... K.C.Das .................... None can overlook the strength of a poet's pen, it can't be strangled, Though, in controversy, it's, sometimes, entangled. It likes to look at things with an microscopic eye, It speaks the truth, and it doesn't want to lie. It disdains everything going against humanity, and loves this creation, loves mankind, It expresses its view in its own style and reads every mind. It values everything, belittles nothing, in ashes it grows flowers, Never does it sleep or rest, its head it never lowers. It's free, fearless, adventurous and optimistic, It looks ahead, can't be bent or misled, it's always realistic. ....................................................... Written using "Strength" for @mandwmagazine #aprilwritinhchallenge #nationalpoetrymonth #books #poetry #writing #writingprompts #prompts #amwriting #reading #spilledink #spilledthoughts #bibliophile ........................................................