Hi, I'm in a panic because I've just booked for Winchester Writers' Conf and, tho' it's not till mid-June, I need to send off material next Monday, including a synopsis and my first 3 chapters, which need revising! I have never written a synopsis!

So I have been cram-reading about how to write synopses, but one thing I haven't yet found the answer to is how best to handle the synopsis when you have, say, 3 different viewpoints.

My viewpoints read like parallel narratives until about 3/4 of the way through, when they all come together and the protagonists meet. From the start to the finish of the novel the 3 viewpoint characters are struggling with the same danger, but they have been affected in different ways.

(So I don't think they actually count as parallel narratives, strictly, but at the start they may appear that way.)

I alternate them, ABCABC etc.

So, my question is, should I write the synopsis as follows:

A does this.

B does this.

C does this.

...or should I write A's story, then B's, then C's?

If I alternate them in the synopsis, should I alternate as much as I do in the book, ie, by chapter, or in much larger chunks, so as not to seem bitty in the synopsis?

Any help gratefully received since I am truly panicking here (because of needing to rewrite 3 chapters as well as write a synopsis from scratch, in just 3.5 days... eeeek!).

TIA!

Deb

Are there any guidelines on how long the synopsis has to be?

I'm not an expert, and I loathe synopses, but I think most of the advice tends to be whatever suits the heart and style of the story best (which isn't desperately helpful, I know...)

How about something along the lines of 'For X, this means..., while Y, still struggling with...'

Which do you feel instinctively would work better? Have you tried starting both ways and seeing which flows more easily?

Thanks Astrea.

Ummm, I have tried various starts, none of which I like, but I think that's due to panicking because of the short timescale. And also, I am completely new to writing synopses. My instinct is to write it quite differently from as suggested by Nicola Morgan's e-book on writing synopses, and I can't ignore advice that much, I feel...

I think you're right that I should intersperse, but not as strictly as the way it's done in the novel. I will try that. Many thanks again.

Deb

Tell it in the order that it happens in the novel. And concentrate on the main bones of the story, not exactly how it's played out chunk by chunk.

Use handholds: "Meanwhile, in Winchester, A is getting ready to poison the well". "It's three days before B gets the toxicology report, by which time A is..."

And yes, this kind of thing

'For X, this means..., while Y, still struggling with...'

is very useful for showing how the stories do connect up thematically, while still telling the story in novel-order. Don't forget that PoV in the strict, technical sense isn't the point: it's characters-in-action that matter.

Good luck!

Ohh, thanks, Emma!! Much appreciated!!

I hate doing things like this in a hurry. Serves me right for never having attempted one before, I suppose. I was going to wait till I'd finished the novel.

Been working on it for a couple of hours.... still some way to go.

Deb

Sympathies! Best of luck with it!

And I feel your pain; I'm trying to put one together for the WIP...

Thanks! Atm is it shaping up a bit, using your suggested method, but is a bit long at 900 words so will need to cut a little.

What stage are you at with the WIP? Good luck with your synopsis, too!

Deb

Okay, I have now posted my latest attempt at the synopsis in the Synopsis & Outline group, but it should be visible to all WW members. I'd be grateful if anyone has time to have a look.

Because I have a very tight deadline I won't have time to do massive changes, but obviously it would be great to know roughly what works and what doesn't so I can tweak and improve before sending off. Many thanks to anyone who has time.

Deb