The Dreaded Synopsis

The Dreaded Synopsis

Thought I was ready to send out those query letters, but in reading the synopsis—four hundred pages of a novel smushed into two pages (yeah, right)—to a few people, it became clear that the synopsis wasn’t. People looked very confused. I think I fixed it, though much of the novel couldn’t be fit in. I kept to the most important inner conflicts of the main character, her journey to overcome a self-reliance stemming from distrust rather than a healthy need to be independent and put in only the main antagonist and the plot points concerning him.

Agents and publishers look at the query (one page only) to see if they are interested in reading more, the synopsis, which supposedly tells them whether the novel is something they’d be interested in and helps them decide if they want to read the few pages they allow you to send of the story itself. If they feel hooked by the first few pages, they may ask to see the entire manuscript. Don’t quite see how the synopsis can be much help when you have to leave so much out to fit their page requirement.

Basically, I think it gives them an idea of your voice, the tone or feel of how you write, and of your skill level. Some recommend hiring an editor to go through your novel before submitting it, but I can’t afford that. I’ve done my best to learn everything I can about grammar, sentence structure, and story structure. I hope it suffices or that my writing shows enough promise that the agents reading my material will send back specific constructive criticism rather than a form rejection.

The Goal

Being asked for the whole manuscript is like hitting the jackpot. While no guarantee that the agent will decide to represent you or that the novel will be accepted by a publisher, it is rare to be asked and proof that you are at least on the right track. Of course if someone wants to represent you, you are likely to jump at the first chance in fear that no one else will offer. Best thing is to do your homework on the agent before submitting to them to get an idea if you might be a good match. There is also good advice out there on questions to ask to help you decide. Wouldn’t it be something to have more than one interested?

Prayers appreciated.

The Lost Sheep

The Point of the Gospel

Parables con’t

Parable of the Lost Sheep {Matthew and Luke}

{Luke} Tax collectors and sinners gathered to hear Jesus, and the Pharisees and teachers of the law muttered against him for sitting with them. {Matthew} Jesus said, “See that you don’t look down on the little ones. I tell you, their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father.”

Personal Thought: wonder if this is one of the passages where the idea of guardian angels comes from.

{Matthew and Luke} “If a man owns a hundred sheep and one wanders away, don’t you think he will leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go look for the lost one? {Luke} And when he finds it, he joyfully drapes it over his shoulders and goes home to tell his friends and neighbors, ‘Rejoice with me. I have found my lost sheep.’ {Matthew} He is happier over the found one than the other ninety-nine who did not wander away. In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that any of the little ones should be lost. {Luke} There is more delight in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who never strayed and therefore have no need to repent.”

Parable of the Lost Coin {Luke}

Jesus continued. “Suppose a woman who owns ten coins loses one. Will she not light a lamp, sweep her house, and search carefully until she finds it? And when found, she calls her friends and neighbors to rejoice with her. Just so, the angels rejoice when one sinner, sorrowful about his sins, changes his behavior.”

My Novel

Status Update

I’m ready to start sending out queries to agents, asking them to represent my novel again. I’ve read that to become proficient at something, you have to spend 10,000 hours working on it. That’s about four years, working full time. I’ve spent three and a half years writing at least eight hours a day, often more, and reading about the publishing industry and the craft of writing. I pray it pays off.

The most frustrating part of the novel for me has been the first chapter. It took a while to get the ending I think works, but I’m still second-guessing myself on the beginning. Most agents only want to see the first five, sometimes ten, pages of your manuscript, which they may read if your query letter interests them. If you don’t hook them in those few pages, they will often not bother to answer let alone ask for the rest of the manuscript. I have faith in the abilities God gave me and am willing to work hard, so we’ll see what his plans are.

Books I’m Reading

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett came in at 973 pages, but the only boring part he should have trimmed was the endless description of how to build cathedrals in the 1100’s. A few descriptive details having to do with how the characters felt would have sufficed. The characters held my interest throughout. The only other complaint I had was that the villains got their due only after they became old and too feeble to cause any more harm—anticlimactic.

Even more interesting because it wasn’t deliberate, I next read Heather Graham’s Come the Morning, which was set in the same time period and talked about the same historical people, though they were more important characters and more integral to the story in Follett’s novel. The romantic conflict wasn’t particularly plausible but the tension in the ending pages kept me turning them.

In Donald Maass’s book, The Breakout Novelist, he recommended his client, Anne Perry. She writes historical mysteries. I read Seven Dials, which is part of a prolific series. The story stands alone by itself, though I thought the characters weren’t as fully developed as I’d have liked, probably because they have been in previous stories. Set in Victorian England, the historical elements were interesting, and I like her writing style.

The Kingdom of Heaven

The Point of the Gospel

Parables con’t

{Matthew} Jesus continued to speak in parables about what the kingdom of heaven is like.

A Hidden Treasure

Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again and joyously sold all he had and bought the field.”

A Perfect Pearl

“Or the kingdom is like a merchant who searched for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he sold everything he had and bought it.”

A Catch of Fish

“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a lake full of fish. The fishermen lower a net into it and retrieve the full-to-the-brim net. They drag it on shore, place the good fish in baskets, and throw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them in the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Have you understood all this?”

“Yes,” they replied.

Jesus said, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has been taught about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings new treasures as well as old from his storeroom.”

Personal Thought: this goes again to Jesus being the fulfillment of the law. Everything he taught was to be added to the old laws and sometimes replace them. The old laws by themselves would no longer suffice. The new treasures, Jesus’ teachings, were worth giving everything you owned to possess them.

Sick and Alone

Sick and Alone

Dealt with a horrible flu this past week that really wiped me out. Still not one hundred percent but on the mend. I had no energy to cook or clean or even take a shower. But I have a husband and son still at home who took up some of the slack. They waited on me when they could, made sure I didn’t starve or get dehydrated and no doubt would have called the doctor had I gotten worse.

I have a friend I’ve known over thirty years who lost her husband to cancer several years ago and is disabled with a congenital immune system problem that causes rheumatoid arthritis and widespread neuropathy. She also has COPD. She was very sick with one thing after another this winter, some of her own making simply because she didn’t follow through with a doctor. Dealing with everything herself, she becomes overwhelmed and shuts down.

You offer to help and she usually refuses. After a while, you give up and let her do what she wants. You certainly can’t make anyone do what they don’t want. I must admit that sometimes letting go was a case of losing patience with her and not wanting to be bothered. Being sick myself and feeling helpless to alleviate the situation brought me a better understanding of how lonely it must be to have to deal with life on your own.

Ways to Help

You still can’t take over other people’s lives but you can encourage, badger a bit, and hope they choose to get the help they need to take care of themselves. Cook some soup and bring it over, call and make sure the person is functioning okay, offer to drive them to the doctor. I couldn’t have driven myself during my worse symptoms. Call an ambulance if you believe the person’s health is at risk. They won’t necessarily thank you at the time, but when feeling better and able to think more clearly, they will.

Obviously you don’t want to get sick yourself, so take precautions—hand washing, a mask if necessary. The elderly are especially vulnerable and likely to lose cognitive function when sick. If you have family or neighbors on their own, take care of each other.