SUPERHUMAN SYNOPSIS

So...You’ve finished your 120 page movie screenplay or your 300 page novel manuscript...and you probably think the writing process is complete...right?

Uhmmm...No!

Most novice authors personally believe that at the end of the script - the writing is done. That is as far from the truth as Earth is from the Andromeda Galaxy (2.5 million light years!).

Actually, the REAL writing is just about to begin. Now you must take that “blockbuster” screenplay or manuscript (that you have labored over for months) and cut it down to a few juicy paragraphs - that fit onto ONE mouthwatering page!

And if that doesn’t freak you out - maybe this will...those paragraphs need to have all the EYE-POPPING excitement of the complete script! The industry term for this particular one-page document is a...SYNOPSIS.

Hey...don’t get mad at me...you wanted to be a writer. You
should have picked an easy gig like professional boxing.

In my opinion (as a published author) the quality and content of your synopsis - is more important than the complete script. The synopsis is one of the major things literary agents and book publishers will utilize to determine whether (or not) you work gets “green-light” consideration or tossed in a pile with the rest of the
“to be recycled” paper.

Agents and publishers read two things before they read your completed script:

1) Your Query Letter

2) Your Synopsis

They do this to get an idea if the complete script is worth their valuable time to read. And your completed script could be John Gresham(ish) - but they will never find out unless your synopsis is like Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes...you know what I mean??? Grrrreat!

Look at it this way...Do you know how many books and movies hit the market yearly? THOUSANDS! Obviously, the authors of those works had something more going for them then the contents of their scripts. What I mean is - something prompted the movie prod-co exec or publisher to read the entire work...and it was probably a slamming synopsis.

(Okay Supreme...you talking all this crap about writing a great synopsis...HOW DO I DO IT?).

Yeah...I heard you...relax!

I’ll tell you this first...I’m not in the business of promoting OPB (Other People’s Books) - but I suggest you get a copy of Michael Hauge’s “Writing Screenplays That Sell” by any means necessary. Mr. Hauge offers advice that works well for book manuscripts and movie screenplays. One of the things he suggests is that you use a 3-Act paradigm (pronounced para-dime).

Always write in three-acts (Act I/Act II/Act III). It is an efficient way to get to the two most important words in your script - THE END. The paradigm-method is a good idea too - a scene-by-scene list of characters & actions - easy to reference when you need to make changes (and trust me - there will be changes).

How does all this relate to your EYE-POPPING synopsis?

Well...when reduced to its lowest common denominator - a synopsis is nothing more than a post-game highlight reel of your written work. Now that you have a chronological listing (paradigm) of the scenes - spread out over three acts - you can select the most exciting parts and meld them together to tell the “short-version” of your story.

Be sure that your synopsis makes sense. Remember...you will be “cherry-picking” data from your paradigm - and may find it necessary to manufacture slight wording changes - so that the scenes connect. You may even have to change the order of occurrences especially if you use a lot of “flash-back” and/or “flash-forward”.

My first published novel - “THE TIMECODE RAILROAD” - is a science fiction story that is set in the future - but most of the drama takes place in the past. I did a lot of damage to the space-time continuum with that piece - and had to resolve some of those “flash” issues while formulating the synopsis.

READ IT FOR YOURSELF:

“The Timecode Railroad”

SYNOPSIS: THE CIVIL WAR AS IT HAS NEVER BEEN TOLD BEFORE! The Timecode Railroad is a science fiction story that is set in the future but takes place in the past. General Lee and Confederate rebels are victorious over the Union Army at Antietam (Sharpsburg), the bloodiest battle of the conflict. Lee’s rebels quickly advance to Washington D.C. In the White House library, President Lincoln signs the Article of Surrender. The Confederate State of America is born. Jefferson Davis declares himself President. His initial executive order slavery is legalized above and below the Mason-Dixon line. Five hundred years later The American slave trade flourishes but there is much opposition! Colonel Menelek Armstrong commands a corporate-funded band of mercenaries, the H.A.R.D. Corps. They specialize in covert ops behind enemy lines stealing downtrodden slaves from maximum security plantations. Michele Fox is CEO of Maplesoft, a multi-billion dollar electronic empire headquartered in Quebec, Canada. The Canadian economy can no longer absorb mass emigration of runaway slaves from the Confederate State. Fox is eager to continue the work of her late husband, abolitionist William J. Fox. She contacts H.A.R.D. Corps and lays out an ambitious plan that will change the course of American history!

It’s Short – YES
It’s To The Point – YES
It’s Eye-popping – YES
All the elements a Superhuman Synopsis should contain.


So...put a couple of Pop-Tarts in the toaster...and grab a cup of Swiss Miss Cocoa. Return to your seat in front of the computer...and get your finger moving on that keyboard.
You got work to do...Copy That?
Cool!

If you have questions or comments - send me an email

nightwriterblog@yahoo.com


“THE TIMECODE RAILROAD”

The American Civil War Like its Never Been Told Before

Available at:

www.amazon.com/Timecode-Railroad-SUPREME/dp/1413714285

Write On!

A. SUPREME