The Road Map

This is another writerly-type post, but I'll make it short and stinky.

I have to write two synopses this week.

One synopsis will be 'easy' as the book is already written. All I have to do pull out the pertinent parts the story, chapter-by-chapter --inciting emotional incident, what the main character wants, turning points, road blocks, conflict encounters, the high point of thinking the character is 'winning' only to discover they've been taken for a fool, the 'all is lost' moment, and how the story ends.

*whew* Easy-peasy, right?

Not right.

Even when the story is written, it's hard to write a condensed, exciting map of your story in 500 words--that's like two pages, people, double spaced. Period. This first story is 66,000 words. Yikes!

The second synopsis will be easier and harder. I have an inciting incident. I have drama. I have about the first three to four chapters worked out, and I have an ending. And let me tell you, this ending has more of an emotional bang than the end of TROLL! Yeah, it's that good. But I have about 50,000 words of emptiness between inciting incident and emotional ending.

To write this synopsis, I'm basically pulling manure out of my head and throwing it on a page to see what sticks--image courtesy of a monkey or pooka throwing poo.

*Yes, I'm trying real hard to keep this a G-rated blog.*

I have no clue as to what is going on with this story. I think I know where it's going, but I really don't. The key to good synopsis writing is to fool everyone into thinking you have it all figured out.

After all, writers know how to tell a good lie, right? It's what we do. We make you believe there really is a Hogwarts, a Middle Earth or dragons. We lie for a living.

I just have to remember that because I wrote the road map for this book in a synopsis, it doesn't mean I have to follow it in the story. I can meander off road to visit the Aurora Borealis to see where faeries live, or discover largest living giant, or become friends with the school bully.

Anything is possible.

I just have to write it.

Later, Peeps!