FEAR THE SYNOPSIS NO MORE

The two most common questions I get regarding synopsis are 1. What goes into it? and 2. How should it read?

In the following pages, you'll find guidelines to help you answer those questions, as well as a copy of the synopsis for a book I called Wedding Cake Dreams, but which was published by Zebra as Perfect Fit. (You can read an excerpt from the book elsewhere in the website)

Have a look through the guidelines and the synopsis, taking note of how it reads (like a story, in logical order), the information given and the format. Note too, that all of the subplots and secondary characters are not included. When you're writing a synopsis in any genre, you should focus on the story the editor will be looking for. In this case, the book was to a romance, so the romance was the focus of the synopsis, period.

The book itself had a subplot involving the hero (because he needed something to do other than soaking up sun on the beach) but it didn't need to be in the synopsis. Naturally, if you're writing a romantic suspense, you'll need to put in the suspense plot. But be careful. You don't want the action plot to overpower the romance, and you want your synopsis to make the focus clear. The same holds true for any genre. If you're writing a mystery with a romantic subplot, don't let that subplot get out of hand in your synopsis. Let the editor know that you're well aware you are writing a mystery.

As for secondary characters, unless they are vital to the main plot, leave them out. Too many story lines and secondary characters in the synopsis can be distracting, and leave an editor shaking her head and making "no" sounds.

You're probably also wondering how long a synopsis should be. The quick answer is 1 page for every 10,000 words. For instance, if you're writing a 75,000 word book, your synopsis will be roughly 7.5 pages long. You can go a page or two above or below that, but don't submit a 15-20 page synopsis. Keep it simple and concise.

That's it. Hope you find the guidelines and the example helpful. If you have any questions, please drop me a line.

STAY ON TRACK!

1. Know your story before trying to write the final synopsis.
2. Check the target market tip sheets.
3. Use proper manuscript format.
4. Tell don?t show! Don?t use dialogue.
5. Simplify the story.
6. Use narrative, present tense, omniscient point-of-view.
7. Don?t keep secrets from the editor
8. Show the goal, motivation and conflict in first page.
9. Edit and Polish.

WEDDING CAKE DREAMS - SYNOPSIS

Nobody knows weddings like Rachel Banks. It's love she's not sure about. In her cottage on Madeira Beach, Rachel whips up wedding gowns to order and dreams of making one for herself. But if she'd known that putting a piece of wedding cake under her pillow would conjure up her worst nightmare in the form of blue-eyed, slim-hipped, so-sexy-you-want-to-smack-him Mark Robison, she'd have stuffed that cake into her mouth instead.

Mark Robison figures his neighbor's prissy little cottage tells him everything he needs to know about the woman inside: sweet, prim and boring. Not exactly vacation memory material.

He?s in town for his sister's wedding, on leave of absence from his job as field cameraman. He'll give away the bride, relax at the rented beach house, and try to figure out what he's going to do after that.

Mark is recovering from a wound received when a sniper opened fire on the news team in the Middle East. Two died, including his best friend, throwing everything Mark knows into question. He?s had doubts before, but the emptiness, the longing for something he can?t even name, has never been so strong.

Not yet ready to consider what that means, he throws a party that has Rachel out of bed and racing across the sand. As official house-sitter, that cottage is Rachel's responsibility.

She's tall with real hips, a narrow waist and full breasts. Mark is almost speechless watching her run. Prissy could be good.

Pretending to be as appalled by the party as she is, Mark marches up the stairs, winks at the friend who opens the door, and orders an end to the noise.

Rachel is suitably impressed by the bearded stranger as the guests leave--until they stop to thank him for a lovely time. Rachel huffs across the sand to her cottage. He smiles and waves when she looks out the window. Something hits the wall inside the cottage and Mark laughs out loud. Ruffled curtains aside, there's a wild side to Rachel that's worth investigating. He climbs his stairs, a smile still on his lips, feeling lighter than he has in a long time.

Next morning, Rachel is late with a delivery. Mark kept pushing into her dreams all night long, even after she ate the damn cake. And now her old clunker won't start. It can't be officially dead. In her pocket is an entry form to the New Designer Showcase--the biggest competition in the state. If the car needs major repairs, she'll miss it again.

Mark offers a lift. Rachel hates jeeps, beards and him. But can she wait for a cab? Not when it?s Senior?s Day at the mall.

Her client is ecstatic. While the gowns are beautiful, they?re not what Rachel really wants to make. Her ideas are simpler, cleaner. But women come to her with pictures and dreams. Who is she to argue?

To be a big name, Rachel would have to move. What would she do in Miami or New York? And what if she is nothing more than a seamstress? Enough talent to get by, but not enough to make it? Does she really want to know?

Mark invites her for coffee. She's tempted--by his eyes, his lips--which means she can't. Wedding cake dreams aside, Mark Robison is not for her. Mark sees the hesitation, feels the draw. They'll have more than coffee. He's sure of it.

Two Mark-free days later, Rachel prepares for a fitting. The scones are baked, the table set. Taking tea at the final fitting is usually her favorite moment. Except this time. She frowns at the gowns on the forms. Those dresses are pure Jane Austen hell.

Her client, Julie Cross, eight months pregnant and looking every minute of it, enters with a man who is not her fiancé. This man is taller, broader. Although, there's something familiar about those blue eyes. Julie introduces him as her brother, Mark Robison. Rachel groans. Why did he have to shave?

Julie is hot, can't breathe, and still unsure about the wedding. Mark is tender, solicitous, and obviously worried about his sister. More touched than she wants to be, Rachel turns up the air conditioning and tries to avoid Mark?s legs under the little table.

Mark loves the way the shop smells; loves the soft muted colors. He'd forgotten what it is to live with beauty. The Mozart concerto is working on Julie--she's finally relaxing. But if those gowns are any indication of Rachel's skills, The Bridery is doomed.

It's a cameraman's nature to look beyond the obvious. When Julie and Rachel disappear behind a screen, Mark doesn't hesitate to give a swinging door a push. He spots an easel with sketches of gowns that are nothing like the dress Rachel made for Julie. He flips through the sketches, figuring Rachel?s only input into the ugly dress was at the sewing machine--the rest is pure Julie.

He props the drawings up, filling the tiny room with Rachel?s work, finding the one that takes his breath--simple and alluring in palest gold and cream. The face is Rachel--no other would do.

She demands to know what he's doing. He has no witty comeback. Can only ask why she's wasting her talent. She can?t answer. Never has she seen her work displayed so openly, so wantonly. Feeling completely exposed, Rachel gathers the drawings, tells him they?re only doodles.
He sees the lie in her eyes and suggests she's afraid--of the risks, of failure, of herself. He won?t let her laugh it off. He's discovering what it is to ignore part of yourself. To cling to the familiar, out of fear of the unknown.

He kisses her, making her acknowledge what she wants in this, at least. Rachel drifts, drinking in this man she knows so little about, but who somehow knows too much about her.

Julie waddles into the studio in tears. Her maid-of-honor has broken a leg. It's an omen. The wedding is off. She looks hopefully at Rachel. Unless she could find a stand-in.

Rachel has sworn off weddings. And she hates that dress. But Julie?s fiancé will be devastated if she cancels the wedding again. How can Rachel say no?

Frazzled and hot, Rachel is ripping out seams on the ugly dress when Mark knocks on her door the next day. Can he borrow some coffee? Rachel hands him the jar and closes the door.

He knocks again, asking for sugar. She gives him the bowl. He knocks again--needs a spoon. Would he like her to make it for him too? He walks past her and sits down. Rachel smiles for the first time that day. But she leaves the door open. Coffee to go.

Spotting the Design Contest entry form, he challenges her to enter with the gold and cream wedding gown. She says she?s too busy, won't admit that she can't afford it now. The car needs a ring job.

She escorts Mark to the door. He finds he?s not ready to leave. He wants to sit at her pokey little table and watch her work. Wants to eat scones and jam, and make love to her in the wrought iron bed he knows is just through the door to the right.

He pulls her close. She softens and he kisses her. She fills him up somehow, makes him feel alive. Makes him wonder if what he needs is right in front of him. Would she come to London if he asked? Unlikely. She?s found a contentment Mark has never known. Yet he can't imagine routine and simplicity being enough, just as he can't imagine Rachel surviving without them.

Rachel breaks the kiss. With hands that long to pull him inside and lock the door, she hands him his coffee, knowing she's in deep trouble if he comes back for cream.

At Julie's wedding, Mark looks fabulous. Rachel feels like a frump. He tells everyone she made the gowns. He?ll stop if she enters the contest, but Rachel won?t budge. A red-haired tart sporting a huge diamond and a randy senior takes Rachel?s number. Mark smiles. Another wonderful gown coming up. Rachel grits her teeth. A paying customer beats an expensive contest any day.

Mark understands. He offers to buy the gold and cream dress. He'll pay for the fabric and the contest entry fee. Rachel is caught. Afraid of failure, of success, of finding out that she's no more than a seamstress on the beach. But he?s got a deal.

Julie crumples on the dance floor. The baby is coming early. At the hospital, Mark holds Rachel's hand tightly. He's torn between joy for the baby and worry over Julie. He has no words, no way to understand or express what he feels. He pulls Rachel to him, pouring everything into the kiss, daring her to take it or back away now. She holds him fast. Mark is lost and falling fast into a love he's not sure either of them wants.

Julie's labor was a false alarm. She can't go home, but she'll be fine. Mark takes Rachel home. He enters her house, needing the beauty, the peace, but most of all needing her.


Rachel longs to take him inside and hold him there forever. But he?s leaving soon and she doesn't need a broken heart. She makes him leave, not certain if she's more angry with herself for being a coward, or with him for making her face it.

Four days later, Rachel blows up at a bride, refusing to sew another forget-me-not on her dress. The bride bursts into tears, the wedding party walks out, and in the middle of it all, a notice from the Designer Showcase and a check arrives. Mark sent the entry. He needs the dress in one week. Rachel swallows her pride.

She knocks on his door, asks to borrow some coffee. He hands her a jar and closes the door. She knocks again. Needs sugar. He gives her the bowl and closes the door. Before she knocks again, the door opens. He?s got the spoon, but they both know why she's there.

They race to her house, the place they both love. Her bed squeaks, making them laugh even as they take each other higher. Love in Rachel's house is playful and warm, passionate and intense, wrapping around him and filling him as completely as he fills her. Mark?s been searching for answers. He?s stuck between worlds with no way to go back and no way to go forward. All he can do is hold on tight and love her, trusting that he?ll make the right decision.

Rachel won't cling or ask for promises. When the time comes, she'll let him go, knowing that a part of him will always belong to her.

One week to the contest. Rachel sews while Mark answers her phone, holds pins in his mouth and bakes inedible scones. Her clients love him as much as she does. Will she be able to sit at the table, or sleep in her bed once he?s gone? For the first time, Rachel thinks she could leave Madeira Beach--all he has to do is ask.

His agency calls--he's expected in London. Rachel's heart breaks at the thought of him going back to that life, but he's growing restless. She sees it in the way he walks the beach. Part of him is already gone.

The morning of the contest, Julie goes into labor. Rachel insists Mark be with his family. He won't be anywhere but with her. Mark is spellbound as Rachel takes to the runway in her wedding gown. He knows what he has to do.

Rachel?s heart breaks as he leaves, but she keeps smiling. He has a plane to catch. London is waiting. She earns honorable mention at the contest, but it?s enough that buyers are interested in her designs. She knows now that she doesn't want the frenzied world of a top designer. She wants her cottage, her clients, even the odd ugly dress. The only thing missing is Mark.

She's alone backstage, still in her gown. Mark enters carrying a box--cigars. Julie had the baby, a girl. Rachel doesn't understand why he?s still here. She asks for an address so she can ship the dress. He scribbles on a scrap of paper. The address is her own. Her eyes sting as he lays down a marriage licence. A local station needs a cameraman. Mark knows he won't be easy, won't be the husband she has in mind. But if she'll give him a chance, he'd like to share her life, wants her to share his. He wants a baby, wants to celebrate life and stop chasing death. He needs the kind of peace that only Rachel can give him. If she?ll have him.

Rachel kisses him, laying claim to this man who is so very wrong, and so absolutely right. The man she'll promise to love and cherish. The man of her wedding cake dreams.

WORKSHOP ARCHIVES

Weaving in Back Story
Character Arc
Let Yourself Write