I’ve said it before—perhaps a dozen times or so—that when it comes to the book publishing process, editing is my least favorite part.
However, my second is writing the “blurb” aka the book’s description.
I cringe just thinking about it. The urge to run and hide from this particular task is not just self-ingrained by now—it’s instinct. Yet, As I inch ever closer to finishing A Soulmark Series, I want to face my weak points head-on and conquer them (and yes, that includes the ever-dreaded editing too).
Normally, my husband plays a large role in helping me write the blurb as I have trouble reining myself in. I want to give all of the details of the story—and he knows exactly how to tidy up my word vomit. What I’m about to attempt is a very rough draft of Lunaria’s book blurb, so please bear with me.
Also, In the interest of conquering and timeliness, I’ll be using Reedsy blog’s “How to Write a Book Blurb: A Guide for Novelists” that conveniently takes only four steps. At the end of this post, I’ll try and smoosh everything together and make something semi-presentable. *fingers crossed*
1. Introduce your main character(s)
At its core, novels are a storytelling medium, and that means your blurb has to be about characters. Consciously or not, readers check out the synopsis to see whether they want to spend time with your main characters. They don’t need to know their entire backstory, though — just enough to understand how they figure into the story’s primary conflict…
Hmmm, this seems easy enough. Let’s give it a shot. Here’s a snapshot of the main characters.
Main character #1: Luna the Fairy
- Innocent/naïve
- Surprisingly powerful
- Lacking certainty and self-confidence
Main character #2: Adrian the Rokama
- Wselfwulf thug
- Broodier than Xander
- The equivalent of a souped-up lycan
2. Set the stage for your primary conflict
The primary conflict is what drives your story. It’s Harry Potter doing battle against Voldemort and his minions, FBI Agent Clarice Starling negotiating with Hannibal Lecter, or Captain Ahab’s obsessive vendetta against a whale. Without a real-world conflict, you don’t have a story readers can sink their teeth into.
It’s tempting to talk about “interior journeys” in your blurb, but that’s something best avoided in most cases. While a character’s compelling internal conflicts might turn out to be an aspect that reader enjoy once they read your novel, they make for terrible blurb-fodder.
[Cue me staring at the above paragraphs for 5 minutes and….]
Right, conflict. Lunaria is stacked with the stuff, as it should be. I would be doing a disservice to the characters and you, my amazing readers, if I didn’t bring down the long-awaited hammer.
Conflict #1: Luna vs. Adrian
That awkward feeling you get when your supposed ‘fated love’ runs all the way to a new (human) world, just to get away from you.
Conflict #2: Adolphus Pack vs Wselfwulf Pack
The finale. War.
Sub-conflict: New age vs Old ways
Need I say more?
3. Establish the stakes
Without consequences, a conflict lacks drama. A blurb that says “Jack Ryan has 24 hours to rescue the Russian ambassador,” isn’t as impactful unless we know what’s at stake: “…his failure will result in certain nuclear war.”
To show your story’s full potential, the reader must be aware that something hangs in the balance for your characters.
Erm… I hope by the final book in the series, my readers are aware of the stakes. However, for the sake of new readers who might see Lunaria before any of the other books, let’s define the stakes:
Stake #1: Homeward Bound or Stuck for Good
How will Luna return home? Will she be stuck in the human realm forever?
Stake #2: Love Struck or Strike Out
Can you outrun fate? Can you outrun a Rokama twice?
Stake #3: War Winners or Losers
Will the Adolphus pack and Trinity coven triumph over the Wselfwulf pack?
Winning—earns them their freedom to live as they wish, and in harmony with other supernaturals
Losing—will cost them their lives
4. Show the reader why this book is for them
Most readers have an idea of the book they’re looking to read next. A well-tuned blurb won’t try to sell everybody on the book — it will help people who already want a book like yours see that it’s for them.
“It’s important subtly highlight how your book is familiar by including elements that readers are already excited by,” says Sione Aeschliman, an editor who regularly helps querying authors through events such as #RevPit. The key is to imply similarities between comparable books without sounding derivative: ensure you also distinguish what makes your book unique.
Introduce your main character, establish the primary conflict, lay out the stakes and let fans of the genre see that this book is for them. If you stick to this formula, you won’t go far wrong. So now that you’ve got a kick-ass blurb adorning the back of your book, let’s see how you can adapt it for online retailers.
All together now…
Spoiler: This is going to be bad. I am not aiming for great. I am aiming for something to work with and shape. Got it? Don’t judge me, please.
Here. We. Go.
Lunaria was never meant to exist in their world—the human world—but fate had other plans. Now, over a year later, the fairy is more determined than ever to find a way home and avoid the coming war. If only said war hadn’t forced Luna and her friends to stop in the middle of the road. Now the fairy must finally face the truth she has kept buried since her arrival as they stare down the menace in the street.
Lunaria’s existence in the world was no chance of fate… but a desperate attempt to outrun her own.
Adrian wanted nothing to do with the war the pathetic creatures of the human world sought to fight. He sought only one thing, to capture his heart’s content, Lunaria. There is but one hitch to the Rokama warrior’s plans: the Wselfwulf pack.
Shackled to their bloodthirsty whims, Adrian’s honorable ways must be put to rest in order to escape with Lunaria and return home. No matter how much blood must be shed.
Together they are caught in the clutches of the pack war, each at opposite ends. In order to survive one of them must break, for if they don’t… finding their way home will be the least of their troubles.
Like I said: this isn’t good. It’s not horrendous either, but I think this is something to work with and can be improved upon. I’ve introduced my characters, set the stage for my primary conflicts, and I gave some stakes—albeit not a very catching one.
I’ll be interested to see how much of the above will make it to the final cut, and I hope you are too! Be on the lookout for Lunaria’s full and final description in the weeks to come.
Cheers!
Rebecca