Synopsis-again

I'm sorry I wish I knew. I know that synopsis' are supposed to be in present tense, but that's all I know. I'm a 3rd person pov kinda gal.

Synopses are usually in 3rd omniscient, present tense. A synopsis is a summary of the plot -- it doesn't have to have the "mood" of the novel, and it really doesn't matter what POV the novel is written in.

Look, Ray, you and I are gonna tangle. We all know you should only write in 3rd limited. And anyone who says different is just WRONG.

I'm always wong.

And I'm always White. But then I am English.

seun said:

Look, Ray, you and I are gonna tangle. We all know you should only write in 3rd limited. And anyone who says different is just WRONG.

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And all these years I've been writing second person omniscient pluperfect. Why couldn't you have said something earlier?

I think I'd find it a little too cute if I got the synopsis in 1st person--I like it when some of the author's/narrator's personality creeps into the synopsis, but I don't want a personal letter from the character, as it were. I need the synopsis to be a quick read that reassures me the end of the book holds up. I'd err on the side of fewer flourishes rather than more.

E.M.Sterling said:

So, if I write it in the style that I did the novel do you think an agent will entertain it.

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You might find one that will entertain it, but why go through all that rejection to find that one? Write the synopsis according to standards, which are pretty much what Ray said, 3rd person omnscient, present tense.

My novel is first person and I struggled to write the synopsis in 3popt, so I understand your reluctance. First person would be so much more entertaining. But it's a business and they like things a particular way. Why rock the boat? You'll just annoy everyone and make the agent seasick.

Crinklish said:

I think I'd find it a little too cute if I got the synopsis in 1st person--I like it when some of the author's/narrator's personality creeps into the synopsis, but I don't want a personal letter from the character, as it were. I need the synopsis to be a quick read that reassures me the end of the book holds up. I'd err on the side of fewer flourishes rather than more.

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I agree. If I read a synopsis in the form: "I did this, and then I did that, and by the end, I got the girl" (worse, if it's in present tense), I'd probably think "this guy doesn't know what he's doing.

I mean, imagine you have to tell an agent, face to face, about your story and plot -- say, in an elevator. That's pretty much what a synopsis is. It would be really weird if you start by: "So I jump off the cliff and break both my legs..." It suddenly sounds like a real, biographical story... it may work, but I probably wouldn't chance it personally.

And yeah, you may find an agent who entertains it, but chances are they won't, and why risk more rejections?

maestrowork said:

Synopses are usually in 3rd omniscient, present tense. A synopsis is a summary of the plot -- it doesn't have to have the "mood" of the novel

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Agree with the first point but not the second. A plot summary is just too darned boring. I like to give an agent a sense of my writing style, the mood of the piece, a cameo of what they might expect when they request the FULL.
Linnea

ishtar'sgate said:

Agree with the first point but not the second. A plot summary is just too darned boring. I like to give an agent a sense of my writing style, the mood of the piece, a cameo of what they might expect when they request the FULL.
Linnea

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That's what your first 3 chapters are for. The purpose of a synopsis is to reveal the plot. It's not supposed to be a writing sample. Now, there's nothing wrong with putting your personal touch on it. But don't over do it -- be precise and effective, not cute and "writerly."