Marketing: Book Blurbs

Posted on by

Reading Debby’s post on book blurbing as well as Jack Eason’s post on the same subject I got to thinking about the blurb I’m currently writing for my novella, Not By Design and that got me searching the internet.

Here’s what I found

  • Finally, consider why your book is different from the others – what is unique about your book and make sure to include it.

(Silverwood. How To Write an Inviting Cover Blurb For Your Book)

  • When writing a novel, there are few selling tools as important as writing a solidly written blurb. Sure, the cover design creates intrigue, but, if you have caught a potential reader’s attention, the blurb is what will sell your book—and convert readers. 

(Milena Canizares: writing-blurbs-for-novels.)

  • “… when writing a summary, make it snappy. Less is more. Don’t tell them everything, just the dramatic core of the story.

(Beth Bacon: 4 Easy Steps To An Irresistible Book Blurb)

  •  try to encapsulate the tone of your book in your blurb so that a reader can instantly tell what genre your book is.

(Silverwood books: How to write an inviting cover blurb for your book)

Joanna Penn offers a superb video on book blurbs.

 

Of course, I’m not going to pass up this opportunity for a pre-publishing sales pitch. 🙂

Not By Design: A Feel Good Novella

In a life turned upside down, Felicity finds joy is sometimes just around the corner.

Ever since she first appeared in Getting To Mr. Right, Felicity Starr has been struggling to find her own kind of contentment. Now, at thirty-five and living in Rome, Felicity is about to break into the world of fashion design, and caught in a flurry of plans for her wedding when calamity strikes.

Her father’s sudden death brings into question the whole meaning of success. Then Marco, the man she’s about to marry, leaves her when he learns of her Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis.

Forced to return to Montreal, Felicity finds her life thrust into unexpected turns. As she confronts the on-going challenges presented by her disease, she gains the strength to let go of old beliefs and face her inner truths.

Love, friendship and rewarding work come in different forms and Felicity finds it all in ways she never imagined – in a life that’s not by design.

 

 Are you in the process of writing a book blurb for your book?  

 

32 thoughts on “Marketing: Book Blurbs”

  2. Carol, first of all, thanks for mentioning me and my post here, second of all Wow! As a reader of all of your books, I’m anticipating reading more about Felicity’s demise and (new twist of illness). Not trying to be a poet, but I think your blurb is superb! Thanks for sharing these links, I’m bookmarking this post for reference,
    And a question – I honestly thought you were busy writing a crime novel? Knowing you, you’re probably working on both! Needless to say I love your books so whichever comes first, I’m there! 🙂

    Like

    Reply

  5. In a few months, I’ll be faced with the dreaded book-blurb writing. I hope to have my WIP ready to query by July. Sometimes it seems easier to write the book than the blurb! Thanks for the helpful resources.

    Good luck with the novella. Sounds wonderful.

    Like

    Reply

  7. wow, is that book already written? good for you, Carol. When do you leave to Florida for your sister’s bd? SR

    Like

    Reply

    • Yes, it is already written. It’s part of my women’s fiction series. I’m hoping to launch it this week, if all goes well.
      Thanks for stopping by and commenting, Sheindl. 🙂

      Like

      Reply

  10. What perfect timing. I had to write this blurb for a writer conference I just participated in. It was so difficult! This would have made that effort much easier. Still, I’m going to rewrite based on these hints.

    Like

    Reply

  11. That’s a brilliant blurb, Carol – tells so much, concisely and yet hooks the reader with all the questions raised. I think the synopsis and the blurb are the two aspects of writing I’m dreading most – I’ll look at this for more advice on how to cut down all those words to such few. Thanks for sharing. 😀

    Like

    Reply

    • Annika, thanks for your generous words. I’ve made some changes since. I had the word happiness 3 times in the posted blurb. I fixed that and also made more tweaks. So what’s posted now is version 6.
      Good luck with your blurbs. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  12. I’ve always struggled with blurbs. As a researcher I tried testing groups of friends or colleagues on different styles of blurbs and I have to say that consensus tends to be low i.e the same blurb will get 10 points from one person and 2 from another. it’s difficult. Best of luck with the book.

    Like

    Reply

  13. I’ve been playing with blurbs, but I won’t be able to draft one completely until I finally finish the draft of the manuscript! Queries, synopses, and blurbs—all I think are more difficult to write than the novel!

    Like

    Reply

    • Blurbs are also a challenge for me as well.I’m currently in the process of writing one for a crime novel I’m writing and trying to follow the advice from the writers on my post.
      Thanks for your comment. I truly appreciate your presence here. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  16. Pingback: Writing a Book Description or Synopsis for Marketing by Yoon Ju Lee | Yoon Ju Lee

I'd love to hear your comments

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s