Character summary?

seun · Jan 9, 2011

I've got my eye on a particular publisher who are open to submissions. Their subs page says they require the first five chapters and...

We require a brief (two pages max) summary of characters, plot and your intentions/inspiration

Correct me if I'm wrong but this isn't the same as a synopsis, is it? Talking about inspiration and intentions isn't a problem at all, but how to handle the summary of characters and plot? Do I write it along the lines of -

CHARACTER A: Married with one child. Age 35 etc...
CHARACTER B: Married to A...
CHARACTER C: Best friends with B...

Or is this more of a A has been married to B for the last ten years; they have a baby daughter while C is single and lives alone...

alleycat · Jan 9, 2011

Yes, basically. You just need to list the characters and their relationship to the storyline, starting with the most important. You can include a brief physical description if it's needed, but it's not really required. Two or three sentences about the main characters should do it, and maybe one sentence about important but minor characters.

It sounds like they want what is sometimes called a "short synopsis".

You could list your intention as "Have the book become a best-seller and make me a million dollars!" (I'm kidding!)

seun · Jan 9, 2011

alleycat said:
Yes, basically. You just need to list the characters and their relationship to the storyline, starting with the most important. You can include a brief physical description if it's needed, but it's not really required. Two or three sentences about the main characters should do it, and maybe one sentence about important but minor characters.

It sounds like they want what is sometimes called a "short synopsis".

You could list your intention as "Have the book become a best-seller and make me a million dollars!" (I'm kidding!)

Cool. Thanks. Writing a synopsis is hard enough. Throw this into it and I'm about ready to tear my hair out...uh, wait a sec...

alleycat · Jan 9, 2011

There might be some information in Share Your Work / Query Hell about writing a good synopsis. I'm not sure; I didn't go look. There are some stickies at the top of the forum.

You don't have to go overboard on the character summary; just say who they are, their relationships to other characters, and how they fit into the story. You can probably do it in half a page.

seun · Jan 9, 2011

Yeah, I got some good tips on a synopsis over there. I've got to be honest, this character summary thing is a new one for me. Most agents/publishers I've contacted want a straight synopsis and the first few chapters. Still, I've got a good feeling about this publisher so I want to get it right.

alleycat · Jan 9, 2011

I understand, and the general rule is do whatever they ask for. Many publishers and agents seem to have something quirky they require in a submission. I know one of the children's book publishers I've submitted to wants "Exclusive submission" written all over everything, including the envelope you mail it in.

seun · Jan 9, 2011

alleycat said:
I know one of the children's book publishers I've submitted to wants "Exclusive submission" written all over everything, including the envelope you mail it in.

I love this business.

Mr Flibble · Jan 10, 2011

As I'm hoping to sub to the same publisher...*takes notes*

It's the inspirations/intentions that's bugging me...'I had the intention of writing the best story I could....' or 'I wanted to write something that wasn't a romance'. I'm also not sure if 'A random comment about the Madeleine McCann case' is really what I should put for the inspiration, but it was.

ETA: My character summary isn't much better as yet. 'Rojan is a bit of a wanker'. I may need to expand that.

Anne Lyle · Jan 10, 2011

Hmm, can't imagine who you're thinking of...

When I get home I'll have another look at what I sent them back in September - it's on my other laptop. It got me an R&R, so it can't have been too far off the mark!

seun · Jan 10, 2011

IdiotsRUs said:
As I'm hoping to sub to the same publisher...*takes notes*

It's the inspirations/intentions that's bugging me...'I had the intention of writing the best story I could....'

That was harder than I thought it would be. Everything I've come up with so far just makes me sound like a bit of a prat.

Anne Lyle · Jan 10, 2011

I think it's a roundabout way of asking where you see your book fitting in the market, and whether this is a standalone or an intended series. When I pitched to Marc in person, I talked about fantasy noir and how I liked it but found a lot of it overly macho and violent - I think at one point I may have said my book was "more Bogart'n'Bacall than Sin City"

So, I guess you really need to write a more business-letter version of the way you would pitch the project.

seun · Jan 10, 2011

Anne Lyle said:
I think it's a roundabout way of asking where you see your book fitting in the market, and whether this is a standalone or an intended series.
So, I guess you really need to write a more business-letter version of the way you would pitch the project.

Interesting. That helps. Makes it more of a challenge, as well, but still a help.

Anne Lyle · Jan 10, 2011

Also, as far as I can remember, I didn't write separate character summaries. I just made sure that when I introduced each main PoV character in the synopsis, I did that as a whole paragraph, not just a name-and-occupation sort of thing.

PinkAmy · Jan 18, 2011

Why not try to put some of the character's voice into the summaries? That will give the agent a better idea of the voice of the book and how well rounded you've made them.

Jane Doe- Thirty-five year old Jane always wanted children--until she became a kindergarten teacher. With her husband pressing for fertility treatments, how can she tell him she's changed her mind, especially after their first pregnancy ended in miscarriage at eight months. If he only knew just how glad she was to send the little rug rats home at the end of the day, he's understand she's not cut out to be a mother.

John Doe- John is losing patience with his wife. It's been three years since Jane's miscarriage and he doesn't understand why she seems to be pussyfooting around getting pregnant again. After five years of sobriety, he's drinking again and hiding it from his wife. He can stop any time he wants. Once Jane gets pregnant, he'll put the bottle down for good.

seun · Jan 18, 2011

PinkAmy said:
Why not try to put some of the character's voice into the summaries? That will give the agent a better idea of the voice of the book and how well rounded you've made them.

Good idea. Will give it a go. Thanks.

Anne Lyle · Jan 18, 2011

Personally I would fold the name into the paragraph:

PinkAmy said:
~~Jane Doe-~~ Thirty-five year old Jane Doe always wanted children--until she became a kindergarten teacher. With her husband pressing for fertility treatments, how can she tell him she's changed her mind, especially after their first pregnancy ended in miscarriage at eight months. If he only knew just how glad she was to send the little rug rats home at the end of the day, he's understand she's not cut out to be a mother.

~~John Doe-~~ John Doe is losing patience with his wife. It's been three years since Jane's miscarriage and he doesn't understand why she seems to be pussyfooting around getting pregnant again. After five years of sobriety, he's drinking again and hiding it from his wife. He can stop any time he wants. Once Jane gets pregnant, he'll put the bottle down for good.

That's what I did in my synopsis. Just don't put them in caps like a screenplay.

ETA: One rug-rat I could cope with, no problem. Thirty of the little buggers? Not so much

PinkAmy · Jan 18, 2011

Anne Lyle said:
ETA: One rug-rat I could cope with, no problem. Thirty of the little buggers? Not so much

But you get the give the 30 back at 3:00, you have to keep the 1 24-7

.

Anne Lyle · Jan 18, 2011

PinkAmy said:
But you get the give the 30 back at 3:00, you have to keep the 1 24-7 .

But thankfully if they're your own, they're only rugrats for a short while - if you do it as a career, you're stuck with them permanently.

Sorry - completely derailed the thread there!

Mr Flibble · Jan 18, 2011

But thankfully if they're your own, they're only rugrats for a short while

And they go straight from rug-rats to pubescent Kevins that grunt when spoken to....

Anne Lyle · Jan 18, 2011

IdiotsRUs said:
And they go straight from rug-rats to pubescent Kevins that grunt when spoken to....

But at least they can make their own breakfast, etc by that age. Much less hassle from a writer's point of view

Mr Flibble · Jan 18, 2011

Well yeah - but then they moan about it a lot, about how it's so unfair! and that's distracting.

At least they're at school a fair bit

However the cost of clothes when they grow an inch a month...

seun · Jan 19, 2011

Anne Lyle said:
Personally I would fold the name into the paragraph:

That's what I did in my synopsis. Just don't put them in caps like a screenplay.

Damn. I have some changes to make to what I've come up with so far.

Anne Lyle · Jan 19, 2011

You've still got another six weeks before you can send it in, seun. Pity poor me, who is aiming to have her R&R with them by the end of January, to give them some time to read it before they disappear under that avalanche of partials

seun · Jan 19, 2011

Anne Lyle said:
You've still got another six weeks before you can send it in, seun. Pity poor me, who is aiming to have her R&R with them by the end of January, to give them some time to read it before they disappear under that avalanche of partials

I pity you not at all, woman. :LilLove:

Anne Lyle · Jan 19, 2011

seun said:
I pity you not at all, woman.

Character summary?

Horror Man

Still around

Horror Man

Still around

Horror Man

Still around

Horror Man

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Fantastic historian

Horror Man

Fantastic historian

Horror Man

Fantastic historian

New kid, be gentle!

Horror Man

Fantastic historian

New kid, be gentle!

Fantastic historian

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Fantastic historian

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble

Horror Man

Fantastic historian

Horror Man

Fantastic historian