I've been putting it off (my other versions weren't so great), but I finally wrote a presentable "blurb" for my WIP. Got some perspective and came back to it. So far it's the best I've managed to come up with. Here's what I have:
Voi Román is in a pickle. Suffering from a rare psychophysiological condition known as emelesia, she faces a grim fact of life: By her twenty-fifth birthday, the urche supplements she takes will not be enough to manage her condition; soon, she will need to be admitted to a mental asylum. Well, she’s twenty-four and a half now, and to make matters worse, her aeroplane tour company, AeroTaxi, has undoubtedly seen better days.
Running on her last drop of optimism, a possible solution presents itself when a questionable government agent visits her home. He claims there is a cure for her condition, though it comes with a price. Work for us, and we’ll work with you, he promises.
Tentative at first, Voi embarks on a journey of self-discovery. Before she knows it, she is swept up in a whirlwind of arcane occult practices, experimental aerocraft technology, aerial espionage, and international intrigue. It’s enough to make a girl go mad. Though, Voi’s sanity is not the only thing she risks losing…
It's at 169 words, which I hope isn't too long. I've got a shorter version that's only a sentence long under my "Element 7" tab, and maybe that one could be a little shorter, too. Not 100% sure of length guidelines. (I've heard anywhere between 75 to 200 words for blurbs, at least.) Anyways, I was hoping to put this one up there, as well, to give folks (and myself) a better idea of the story. I hope that isn't too preemptive of me, considering I'm still in the editing process (halfway through now, not including rewrites). >_<
Any suggestions? :D
Cool! I like to write one half way through the writing process to keep on track while I write the rest of the book, so no I don't think it's preemptive(thought it might change).
ReplyDeleteSome questions to maybe make this a bit clearer:
What is the effect of her condition? In what way is she's losing her mind? Hallucinations? Drifting in and out of reality? It's implied but not explicit. Also, why would a government agent pick her (what makes her special) out of everyone?
LOVE the last 2 paragraphs. Enough to intrigue. Sounds like an adventure :D
By a "blurb" do you mean something that would be used on the back cover of your book? If that's the case, it needs to be shorter.
ReplyDeleteIt looks like you sort of combined a very short synopsis with a blurb. A blurb is really meant to draw a reader in...it screams "Choose me!"
The blurb will intice a reader to choose your book over the others. It should promise the reader that the book is awesome, exciting, fun...whatever it takes to get them to read it.
I really can't imagine a 200 word blurb, as people's attention spans won't give a book's very quick one-over 200 words.
Your third paragraph is by far the strongest. Sounds promising! You book sounds like something I would love to read.
Theresa: Thanks! I love that it's making you ask those questions, because those are exactly the things I want to you to wonder about! Guess I'll have to finish this thing and get it out there so you can read it and find out, huh? ;)
ReplyDeleteJay: Thanks for the feedback!
I guess I'm confused as to the definition of "blurb." It seems some people mean synopsis when they say that, and others mean the one-liner selling point. I meant the bit that might be on the back cover, which to me seems to be somewhere between the one-liner and a synopsis.
Heh, okay, aim for shorter. What would you say is a good range for the length? (By the time I'm done with this exercise, I should have plenty to choose from! lol)
I would say maybe a sentence or two added to that third paragraph's size. That would be long enough to allow you to snag the would-be-reader's attention and short enough for a fast review.
ReplyDeleteHm...the thing is I don't want the "action" to be the main focus. I mean yes, it's in there for fun and to appeal to that crowd, too, but believe it or not it is secondary to Voi's "journey of self-discovery." It would be ideal to succinctly combine both elements in the blurb, but...
ReplyDeleteEven then, taking out unnecessary details, I've only been able to get it down to 122 words. -__- (Hey, that's 47 less, right?)
Oh! I got my one-liner down to 17 words: "An aviatrix with a rare psychophysiological condition discovers herself when a government agent offers her a job."