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Wednesday, August 16, 2023

Writing - part xxx412 Writing a Novel, Seoirse, Marketing Materials, 1000 Word Synopsis

16 August 2023, Writing - part xxx412 Writing a Novel, Seoirse, Marketing Materials, 1000 Word Synopsis

Announcement: Delay, my new novels can be seen on the internet, but my primary publisher has gone out of business—they couldn’t succeed in the past business and publishing environment.  I’ll keep you informed, but I need a new publisher.  More information can be found at www.ancientlight.com.  Check out my novels—I think you’ll really enjoy them.

Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.

I’m using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I’ll keep you informed along the way.

Today’s Blog: To see the steps in the publication process, visit my writing websites http://www.sisteroflight.com/.

The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:

1. Don’t confuse your readers.

2. Entertain your readers.

3. Ground your readers in the writing.

4. Don’t show (or tell) everything.

     4a. Show what can be seen, heard, felt, smelled, and tasted on the stage of the novel.

5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.

These are the steps I use to write a novel including the five discrete parts of a novel:

 

1.     Design the initial scene

2.     Develop a theme statement (initial setting, protagonist, protagonist’s helper or antagonist, action statement)

a.      Research as required

b.     Develop the initial setting

c.      Develop the characters

d.     Identify the telic flaw (internal and external)

3.     Write the initial scene (identify the output: implied setting, implied characters, implied action movement)

4.     Write the next scene(s) to the climax (rising action)

5.     Write the climax scene

6.     Write the falling action scene(s)

7.     Write the dénouement scene

I finished writing my 31st novel, working title, Cassandra, potential title Cassandra: Enchantment and the Warriors.  The theme statement is: Deirdre and Sorcha are redirected to French finishing school where they discover difficult mysteries, people, and events.     

Here is the cover proposal for Cassandra: Enchantment and the Warriors




Cover Proposal

The most important scene in any novel is the initial scene, but eventually, you have to move to the rising action. I am continuing to write on my 30th novel, working title Red Sonja.  I finished my 29th novel, working title Detective.  Writing number 31, working title Shifter.  I just finished 32nd novel, Rose.

How to begin a novel.  Number one thought, we need an entertaining idea.  I usually encapsulate such an idea with a theme statement.  Since I’m writing a new novel, we need a new theme statement.  Here is an initial cut.

 

For novel 30:  Red Sonja, a Soviet spy, infiltrates the X-plane programs at Edwards AFB as a test pilot’s administrative clerk, learns about freedom, and is redeemed.

 

For novel 31:  Deirdre and Sorcha are redirected to French finishing school where they discover difficult mysteries, people, and events. 

 

For Novel 32:  Shiggy Tash finds a lost girl in the isolated Scottish safe house her organization gives her for her latest assignment: Rose Craigie has nothing, is alone, and needs someone or something to rescue and acknowledge her as a human being.

 

For novel 33, Book girl:  Siobhàn Shaw is Morven McLean’s savior—they are both attending Kilgraston School in Scotland when Morven loses everything, her wealth, position, and friends, and Siobhàn Shaw is the only one left to befriend and help her discover the one thing that might save Morven’s family and existence.

 

For novel 34:  Seoirse is assigned to be Rose’s protector and helper at Monmouth while Rose deals with five goddesses and schoolwork; unfortunately Seoirse has fallen in love with Rose.  

 

Here is the scene development outline:

 

1. Scene input (comes from the previous scene output or is an initial scene)

2. Write the scene setting (place, time, stuff, and characters)

3. Imagine the output, creative elements, plot, telic flaw resolution (climax) and develop the tension and release.

4. Write the scene using the output and creative elements to build the tension.

5. Write the release

6. Write the kicker

          

Today:  Let me tell you a little about writing.  Writing isn’t so much a hobby, a career, or a pastime.  Writing is a habit and an obsession.  We who love to write love to write. 

 

If you love to write, the problem is gaining the skills to write well.  We want to write well enough to have others enjoy our writing.  This is important.  No one writes just for themselves the idea is absolutely irrational and silly.  I can prove why.

 

In the first place, the purpose of writing is communication—that’s the only purpose.  Writing is the abstract communication of the mind through symbols.  As time goes by, we as writers gain more and better tools and our readers gain more and better appreciation for those tools and skills—even if they have no idea what they are. 

 

We are in the modern era.  In this time, the action and dialog style along with the push of technology forced novels into the form of third person, past tense, action and dialog style, implying the future.  This is the modern style of the novel.  I also showed how the end of literature created the reflected worldview.  We have three possible worldviews for a novel: the real, the reflected, and the created.  I choose to work in the reflected worldview.

 

Why don’t we go back to the basics and just writing a novel?  I can tell you what I do, and show you how I go about putting a novel together.  We can start with developing an idea then move into the details of the writing. 

 

Ideas.  We need ideas.  Ideas allow us to figure out the protagonist and the telic flaw.  Ideas don’t come fully armed from the mind of Zeus.  We need to cultivate ideas. 

 

1.     Read novels. 

2.     Fill your mind with good stuff—basically the stuff you want to write about. 

3.     Figure out what will build ideas in your mind and what will kill ideas in your mind.

4.     Study.

5.     Teach. 

6.     Make the catharsis. 

7.     Write.

 

The development of ideas is based on study and research, but it is also based on creativity.  Creativity is the extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to present old ideas in a new form.  It is a reflection of something new created with ties to the history, science, and logic (the intellect).  Creativity requires consuming, thinking, and producing.

 

If we have filled our mind with all kinds of information and ideas, we are ready to become creative.  Creativity means the extrapolation of older ideas to form new ones or to present old ideas in a new form.  Literally, we are seeing the world in a new way, or actually, we are seeing some part of the world in a new way. 

 

The beginning of creativity is study and effort.  We can use this to extrapolate to creativity.  In addition, we need to look at recording ideas and working with ideas.

 

With that said, where should we go?  Should I delve into ideas and creativity again, or should we just move into the novel again?  Should I develop a new protagonist, which, we know, will result in a new novel.  I’ve got an idea, but it went stale.  Let’s look at the outline for a novel again:

 

1.      The initial scene

2.     The rising action scenes

3.     The climax scene

4.     The falling action scene(s)

5.     The dénouement scene(s)

   

The initial scene is the most important scene and part of any novel.  To get to the initial scene, you don’t need a plot, you need a protagonist.

 

I’m now writing Seoirse, and since I retired from my day job, I’m back to a chapter a day.  I could likely write two chapters a day, but my brain gets tired.  I think it’s important to report again on how to write a novel.  Let’s start at the beginning.

 

I already developed the protagonist for this novel: Seoirse Séamas Wishart.  That is his name in Gaelic.  His common or English name is George James Wishart.  Why the difference.  It all has to do with the worldview of my novels.  The worldview is reflected and therefore the supernatural exists.  We are mainly writing about the common and mythical supernatural in the world.  I’d like to say that whatever the basis for the usual supernatural in human thought exists in the reflected worldview of this and my novels.  Thus there are vampires, werewolves, fairies, the Fae courts, dragons, gods, goddesses, and other mythical creatures.  They aren’t the world.  They world of my novels is the world you see around you.  The supernatural aspects are generally unseen, unknown, and rare.  They exist like the supernatural exists in the world today: generally unseen, unknown, and rare.  That’s the basis of the world in my novels.

 

This is where I am with Seoirse.  I’ve been writing a chapter a day.  That means I’ll likely have a completed novel in less than a month.  That’s what I usually do when I have an idea and a novel to write.  I’m also writing pretty exclusively when I should be working on a publisher or an agent. 

 

I’ve titled my most recent novel, Seoirse: Enchantment and the Assignment.  I think it’s time to start on the marketing materials.  I’m still editing, but I’m reaching the end stages of that.  I know I went through marketing materials not that long ago with Rose, but that seems like the right way to go, plus, that will force me to work on them—I’d really rather be editing.  That’s the most fun for me.  Reading your own work and fixing the large and small details to make it as perfect as possible is the best part ever of writing.  I’d have to say, writing it in the first place is a close second, but when you see the completed novel on your screen, and you experience the interplay of characters and plot, that’s makes life worth living and writing worth writing.

 

I do need to write this again.  I write to entertain.  The number one person I’m trying to entertain is me.  If my novels aren’t entertaining to me, how can they be entertaining to anyone else.  Further, I write what I love to read.  When I produce a novel, it’s because I love the ideas in the novel.  I craft it to be as entertaining and exciting as possible.  Now, on to marketing materials.  Here’s the basic format I use.  I’ll explain this as I go and as I populate it.

 

Title of Work:

 

Seoirse: Enchantment and the Assignment

 

Author(s) Name:

 

L. D. Alford

 

Type: Either Screenplay or Book

 

Book

 

Length: Either # of words for books, or # of pages for screenplays

 

130,790 words

 

Keywords and Market Focus:

 

Fiction, military, military training, intelligence operations, adventure, supernatural, Fae, fairy, Scotland, Rousay, Britain, United Kingdom, Monmouth, MI6, goddess, Dagda, organization, the King; will fascinate anyone interested in mystery, intelligence operations, and the Fae—will appeal particularly to those who enjoy mystery and magic realism novels.

 

Genre:

 

Magic Realism Mystery

Author Bio: Approximately 120 words

The finest entertainment in fiction is an escape into a real and inviting world—so asserts L. D. Alford, a novelist who explores with originality those cultures and societies we think we already know.  He builds tales that make ancient and modern people real to us.  His stories uniquely explore the connections between present events, history, and the future—he combines them with threads of reality that bring his fiction alive.  L. D. Alford is familiar with technology and cultures—he earned a B.S. in Chemistry, an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, and is a graduate of Air War College, USAF Test Pilot School, and Air Command and Staff College.  He is widely traveled and has spent long periods in Europe, Asia, and Central America.  L. D. Alford is an author who combines intimate scientific and cultural knowledge into fiction worlds that breathe reality.

 

Synopsis:  Approximately 1000 Words

Seoirse Wishart, the handsome, accomplished, witty and gentle second son of Lady Azure Wishart, Chancellor of the Book of the Fae, graduated from Eton and is on his way to Cranwell to achieve his dream to become a pilot officer in the British Air Force and eventually the Chancellor of the Book of the Fae.  Unfortunately, his boss, Ms. O’Dwyer calls him to a special meeting.  Seoirse works for the Organization, a group under the MI structure, and for Stele, the branch under the Organization that protects Britian from the supernatural.

The very special meeting is all about Lady Rose Tash, who is also present.  Rose is half-Fae, wondrously beautiful, a lady of the Fae, and elevated by the King to be the Lady Tash.  She is the only person in the world who can handle certain supernatural girls under Stela training at Monmouth Haberdasher’s School for Girls in Wales.  Rose encountered some difficulties during her last semester at Monmouth while caring for Robyn.  Robyn is an accidental Goddess of Light and a precocious nine-year-old.

During the last semester, the Chinese Communists attempted to capture Rose.  An emergency recall thwarted them but took Rose out of commission for a month.  That problem was resolved, but Ms. O’Dwyer wants Seoirse as Rose’s protector and handler.  That isn’t the end of both their problems.

Also, at Monmouth, for oversight are four other dangerous girls: Sophie, Phoebe, Sveta, and Klava.  Sveta and Klava are the future Goddesses of Light and Darkness, and Sveta has the beak about everything.  The brilliant but immature, Robyn has been incessantly jabbing at Sveta.  The situation and Rose’s assignment is to take care of these five girls, get them through their year of schooling, and prevent them from harming themselves or others.  If Rose can accomplish this, she can have her house and property back.  Seoirse must oversee Rose.

All begins reasonably well, and Rose engages her aristocratic tea party strategy.  It worked with Robyn and their class last semester, it should work with these girls.  Only it doesn’t.  Sveta discovered the truth about Rose: her background, her assignment, her training, and her weaknesses.  The anger of dozens of years bubbles out of Sveta, and she attacks Rose.  When Robyn steps in to protect Rose, Sveta takes the opportunity to rid herself of Robyn.  That’s when Klava, the sister Sveta abused all her life, acts to stop Sveta and Robyn.  That’s also when Rose moves to save them all.  Rose stops and protects, all of them.  In the process, her hands and arms are injured and her clothing is burned completely away.

Rose lost everything—she was injured, the classroom was ruined, and all her plans, literally, burned up in Sveta and Robyn’s fire.  She runs away and causes one of the greatest catastrophes in Stela’s history—the loss of one of their most powerful and dangerous agents.  That’s where Seoirse comes in.

He must find and return Rose.  He must also figure out how she and the Organization can succeed.  It isn’t just about five dangerous girls anymore—it’s about the most powerful half-Fae being who can control them.

Seoirse finds Rose on the Caledonian Sleeper.  She’s using glamour to hide and happens to be in the same state as when she left.  He brings clothing and a fake ID for her.  Seoirse takes Rose captive.  They travel back to London where Ms. O’Dwyer renegotiates Rose’s contract. 

In the aftermath of the incident at Monmouth, Rose takes every piece of advice Seoirse provided.  She makes Sveta her vassal and renames her.  She forces the other girls to change their lives.  She sets up training for them through Seoirse and the Organization.  She creates a new military training program—one she knows these rejects from previous Stela training will covet and desire.  Rose is their leader and overseer.  Seoirse is the conduit and the means.  At the same time, Seoirse has fallen in love with Rose.  He wants to be her boyfriend.  Meanwhile, Rose is trying to make everyone’s dreams come true.  She’s willing to take any pain and suffering on herself to achieve her goals and theirs.

Rose and Seoirse take the five dangerous girls to the Isle of Shadows for training in military and intelligence subjects.  At the same time Rose has worked out training for Seoirse.  He doesn’t fully understand everything Rose means for him to do, but she’ll beat that into him.

The training goes well, but there are complications.  How can there not be with five dangerous girls and their very dangerous trainer?  Seoirse just has to keep it all it control.  In the end, two field trips go well, and the dangerous girls are on their way to success at school and with others.  Then the real crisis occurs.

During a visit to Briarashe, Rose demands Lady Wishart allow her to marry Seoirse and make him the Chancellor of the Book of the Fae.  They quarrel.  Rose steals the Book of the Fae, and that unleashes another crisis.  Lady Wishart demands a trial. 

Seoirse escorts Rose to the gathering of the Gaelic gods and the Fae to determine the succession the Book of the Fae.  During this encounter, Rose is found to have stolen the Book.  Her right hand and arm are injured from illegally writing Seoirse in as the Chancellor of the Book.  Meanwhile, when Rose throws herself at the mercy of the Courts, Titania, the Queen of the Fae makes a startling confession.  Rose is her illegitimate child, a Princess of the Fae.  That doesn’t resolve all the problems, but Lady Wishart agrees to allow Seoirse to continue as the Chancellor of the Book, Rose may marry him in the proper time, but Rose must face a bare bottom spanking as decreed by King Oberon.  For stealing the Book and writing in it, ten swats to be applied by Seoirse.  When the punishment is complete, so is this tale, but there is obviously more in store for Rose and Seoirse.

 

For almost every submission you make, you will need some type of synopsis.  I say, just go for the jugular and write the ones you’ll need.  The first, for me, is the longest and the easiest to write.  The reason is, for me, going shorter is easier than going longer. 

I suggest writing the 1000 word synopsis first.  Because it is the longest, you don’t need to worry much about the word count until you get ready to finalize it.  My first draft of this synopsis was 1,340 words.  I had to shave it down by 340 words.  It wasn’t easy, but it wasn’t hard either.  Now, about writing the synopsis.

I’d like to think I’m an expert in writing a novel.  I haven’t had a bestseller yet, but I’m still working toward that goal.  Although I think I’ve got what it takes to write novels with six published, two that were on contract, and a total of 32 completed, the synopsis isn’t my forte.  What does a publisher or an agent want in a synopsis, really?  I’ve read all their advice and suggestions, but unless a publisher actually give you some corrections or help, how do you know exactly what they want. 

They say they want an idea of the main plot of the novel to the resolution, and they want a feel for the protagonist and the antagonist.  In fact, here is a quote from a well-accepted source:

A novel synopsis should include: your premise/hook, the overall plot (all of the major plot points), an introduction to your main characters, plot twists and spoilers, and character development arcs.

I don’t necessarily disagree, but I can assure you, you will not be able to achieve this with any reasonable synopsis for a 100,000 word novel.  What can you achieve? 

If you look at my novel synopsis for Seoirse: Enchantment and the Assignment you will see, it starts with the protagonist (main character).  It continues to the initial scene and the protagonist’s helper.  The initial scene is what they mean by hook/premise.  That should make everything clear, at least from that standpoint. 

So, I always start with the protagonist, that is Seoirse for this novel.  I give enough information to bring in the reader and set up for the initial scene.  In this novel, the initial scene is a meeting.  That’s a little bit of a letdown, I understand well, but it is also the meeting of the protagonist and the protagonist’s helper (of antagonist).  The initial scene sets the assignment for Seoirse and for Rose. 

Now, they want all the major plot points.  If you can do that in a synopsis, it would be the size of one of those cheaters for the classics—like fifty pages or more.  What they obviously mean by major plot points are those places where the plot shifts or moves in the direction of the resolution.  Here’s an example from the synopsis I wrote:

Major Plot Points:

1.     Seoirse meets Rose in the meeting about their assignment

2.     The details of the assignment – that’s the initial scene (Rose must look after the five dangerous girls, and Seoirse must support her)

3.     Rose tries the strategy that worked last semester, and it fails terribly – Rose runs away

4.     Seoirse finds and returns Rose plus gives her advice on training the girls—use a military strategy

5.     Rose uses the military strategy to train the girls

6.     Rose, from almost the beginning wants to make Seoirse’s dreams come true, just as she is making the girls dreams come true

7.     Rose steals the Book of the Fae

8.     That causes the climax of the novel—remember, this novel is about Seoirse even though it’s also Rose’s assignment

Point being, you might has many plot points, but the major ones are what we are looking for. 

Again, if you put in all the characters development arcs and the spoilers, I’m not certain a synopsis could contain a 100,000 word novel.  In any case, they are telling you to not hold back the spoilers or the resolution of the plot.  This isn’t a teaser, it’s a synopsis so a potential publisher or agent can assess the potential for your work.  You obviously want to excite the reader.

That’s something the little quote above misses completely—you want your synopsis to be filled with some excitement and entertainment.  Don’t waste words, but put the ones you use in as exciting and entertaining a fashion as possible.  Remember, you are telling a synopsis instead of showing.  I hate that part about the synopsis, but you want to convey the excitement and entertainment of your work.

That’s about all I know about a good synopsis.  I’ll show you how I cut them down and get into more details, next.             

Synopsis:  Approximately 500 Words

 

Synopsis:  Approximately 200 Words

 

Concept of the Work:  Approximately 250 Words

 

Registration: WGA, ISBN, or Library of Congress, Write the number.

None

Other Information:  If you have more work, a website, anything interesting and professional, especially any awards or recognition.

 

Blue Rose: Enchantment and the Detective www.LumiereNovel.com, the child of a Fae is discovered and trained to become a powerful asset in British supernatural intelligence.

 

Deirdre: Enchantment and the School www.HestiaNovel.com, the child of a Fae secretly attends a girl’s boarding school until Deirdre discovers her.

 

Sorcha: Enchantment and the Curse www.GoddessoftheHearth.com, a cursed woman becomes a deadly spy at the hands of a dangerous mistress.

 

Essie: Enchantment and the Aos Si www.HearthGoddess.com, a matron rescues and educates the Queen of the fae.

 

Lilly: Enchantment and the Computer www.GoddessofLightNovel.com, a math genius girl gets a boyfriend and becomes a Japanese goddess.

 

Valeska: Enchantment and the Vampire www.GoddessofDarkness.com, a British agent accidentally becomes involved with a vampire. 

 

Khione: Enchantment and the Fox www.GoddessNovel.com, a graduate student discovers a demigoddess in modern Boston.

 

Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon www.AksinyaNovel.com, a Russian princess calls a demon to protect her family.

 

Dana-ana: Enchantment of the Maiden www.Dana-ana.com, the mystery of Dana-ana Goewyn.

 

Hestia: Enchantment of the Hearth www.EnchantmentoftheHearth.com, the misadventures of archeologists in modern Greece.

 

Antebellum www.AntebellumNovel.com the mystery of a house that has been missing since the American Civil War and the girl who is called to it.

 

The Second Mission www.TheSecondMission.com is a historical fiction novel about ancient Greece published in 2003 by Xulon.

 

Centurion www.CenturionNovel.com published January 2008 and Aegypt www.AegyptNovel.com also published in January 2008 are historical fiction novels from OakTara Fiction www.OakTara.com

 

The Chronicles of the Dragon and the Fox is a science fiction series published by OakTara Fiction

              The End of Honor (published, July 2008) www.TheEndofHonor.com

              The Fox’s Honor (published Oct 2008) www.TheFoxsHonor.com

              A Season of Honor (published Nov 2008) www.ASeasonofHonor.com

 

Ancient Light is a suspense series published by Broadstreet, Eleutheria, September 2014 in a three-in-one www.AncientLight.com.

              Aegypt (second edition published by OakTara Fiction, 2014) www.Aegypt.com

              Sister of Light (published by OakTara Fiction, 2014) www.SisterofLight.com

              Sister of Darkness (published by OakTara Fiction, 2014) www.SisterofDarkness.com

 

More information is available at www.ldalford.com  

 

L.D. Alford has more than 70 technical papers published in international journals on flight test, military policy, flight safety, space, and cyberwar.  His military aviation writing is featured as Military Aviation Adventures on www.wingsoverkansas.com.

 

Reviewer’s quotes.

 

1.  No more than 3 sentences about the content of your manuscript.

 

2.  One sentence about successful works similar to yours.

 

3.  No more than 2 sentences about yourself. (use 3rd person)

L. D. Alford is a novelist whose writing uniquely explores the connections between present events and history—he combines them with threads of reality that bring the supernatural alive.   

Dr. Alford is a scientist and widely traveled author who combines intimate scientific and cultural knowledge into fiction worlds that breathe reality.

4.  No more than 2 sentences that include “other,” i.e. any reasons, relationships, or other factors that might make your work more attractive.

 

Rose: Enchantment and the Flower continues the magic realism themes introduced in L.D. Alford’s Enchantment and Ancient Light novels.  It is a standalone novel.

 

Rose: Enchantment and the Flower is exciting magical realism mystery fiction from the celebrated author of Blue Rose: Enchantment and the Detective, Deirdre: Enchantment and the School, Sorcha: Enchantment and the Curse, Essie: Enchantment and the Aos Si, Lilly: Enchantment and the Computer, Valeska: Enchantment and the Vampire, Khione: Enchantment and the Fox, Dana-ana: Enchantment of the Maiden, Hestia: Enchantment of the Hearth, Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon, Antebellum, and published novels: Centurion, Aegypt, The End of Honor, The Fox’s Honor, A Season of Honor, Sister of Light, and Sister of Darkness.

 

I left in generic information which I’ll likely modify a little in the development of the marketing materials.  I’ll go over each second and try to be consistent with what I’ve written before, but who knows what jewels a little creativity will produce.

 

I want to write another book based on Rose and Seoirse, and the topic will be the raising of Ceridwen—at least that’s my plan.  We shall see.

 

More tomorrow.

For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:

http://www.ancientlight.com/
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com  

fiction, theme, plot, story, storyline, character development, scene, setting, conversation, novel, book, writing, information, study, marketing, tension, release, creative, idea, logic

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