When you’ve finished your novel, it’s time to present it to the outside world. To do this, you need a synopsis. It’s important to write your synopsis correctly to meet the needs of agents and editors.
When you’ve completed a novel and want to get published, you need to prepare a package containing a query letter, a synopsis, and an excerpt of the novel. This could be the first three chapters, about 10,000 words or 30-50 pages, depending on the agent.
The synopsis is one of the key elements of the package, because it tells your story concisely. Agents and publishers expect synopses to be written in a very specific way, which may seem at odds with the way you’ve written your novel. It’s important to prepare it according to the following guidelines.
Who the synopsis is for
A synopsis is mainly for agents and editors, though it might be used during the entire publishing process. It may be used at acquisition meetings, it can be distributed to the marketing team, who will create their own shorter synopsis to sell the book to retailers and the general public, and it may be given to cover designers to help them understand the book.
Editors may simplify or edit the synopsis to keep it to an appropriate length for the above uses and to take into account changes made to the book during the editing process.
What a synopsis is and isn’t
A synopsis is a concise summary of your novel, covering all the main characters, plot points, and events. It is not a marketing blurb, designed to entice readers; that’s part of your query letter. The query letter should hook the reader – the agent or editor – while the synopsis breaks down the plot so the reader knows what happens from beginning to end.
Your synopsis must include spoilers. It should tell whether the protagonists live happily ever after, who done it, or whether the CIA or MI5 agent saved the world from destruction. This is necessary so agents and editors can understand how the novel is constructed, how characters develop, and whether the denouement is satisfactory.
How long a synopsis should be, and how it should be formatted
The publishing industry is a stickler for simple formatting, mainly because people throughout the publishing chain read so many documents that it makes sense for them to be standardized. As with any submission, you generally create documents in 12-point Times New Roman, and, while manuscripts are usually requested double-spaced, synopses should be single-spaced.
A synopsis should be around 500 to 1,000 words, or one or two pages. Its goal is not to be literary; it is a breakdown of the main plot points of a novel, a roadmap of where it starts and where it ends up. Different agents may have different preferences, so it’s a good idea to create two synopses. Start with a 1,000-word text, then create a second, shorter one-page version.
What writing style to use for a synopsis
A synopsis is not meant to show off how you write. It should be a straightforward document presenting your characters and story. It should be written in the third person, present tense, and active voice, regardless of how your novel is written. You should introduce your protagonist in the first sentence, and character names should be capitalized with their role described (SHERLOCK HOLMES, consulting detective).
Your document should have a structure of "this happened, then this happened, then this happened." It should start with the inciting incident, cover all major plot points with no gaps (but not focus on subplots that aren’t important to the main plot), discuss character development, and explain emotional stakes that motivate the protagonist and other main characters. And it should reveal how the novel ends.
Don’t skip plot twists, which are important for agents and editors to see how readers will experience the story. If your novel has multiple point-of-view characters, make sure each one is clearly mentioned and their storylines are explained.
How to go from final draft to synopsis
If you’ve written an outline for your novel, you can use this as the starting point for your synopsis. It should contain all the important elements mentioned above, and you can use this framework to flesh out the synopsis.
If you’re a pantser, you can use your Scrivener Binder or Outliner to start creating the structure of your synopsis. If you haven’t named your chapters in the Binder and haven’t added synopses in the Inspector, this is a good time to do so. Write a one-sentence synopsis for each chapter; if you have multiple scene files in chapter folders, write the synopses for the chapter rather than individual scenes, unless they are pivotal.
Paste all of these into a new document in order, and identify the major points of the story arc. Start writing your synopsis, and check off each plot point and character as you progress. It will take a while to pare this down to 1,000 words, and as you do so, you’ll realize which are the most important plot points that an agent or editor needs to know.
When you’ve done this, create a second version around 500 words. You’ll need to cut a lot, especially if your novel is long, and it may be difficult to cut this much, but remember, this is a roadmap, not a short story.
Once you’ve completed the synopsis, it’s time to start looking for an agent.