Chapter synopses as a writing tool

Writing a synopsis of your story is generally one of the last things that you may do in preparation for submitting query letters to agents, but I really think the synopsis is an indispensable writing tool for the author as they go through the process of revision. It might even be an important tool for use as you’re writing the last half of your book.

I’ve written elsewhere about how making a reverse outline of each chapter helps me know what I’ve written. (The reverse outline is essentially a chapter synopsis.) It helps me evaluate how much conflict I have, what kind of tension I’ve included, what promises I am making to my reader, etc.

In my big climactic court scene where all my characters argue back and forth about what happened and why, I can use my synopsis document (which I have been building all along) to quickly make lists of things 1) that characters should argue about, 2) that characters can say to rebut and defend themselves, 3) of evidence they can show, etc. I want my characters to have the strongest arguments possible, and the synopsis helps me find and collect those points together because I have usually forgotten some. (Of course, my characters will look like they have brilliant memories, but they have to be brilliant when their lives and freedom are at stake!)

When I gather all those chapter synopses up in one document, they become a short-hand version of my book that I can use as a reference document as I revise. I don’t have time to get distracted reading through my book to find where the dragon has built the terraces on his hillside. I can find that in my synopsis document. (This synopsis is not what I’d submit to agents, by the way. This is a version for me to use.) Then I can use the working synopsis document to figure out what other later scenes I need to add mentions of the terraces to give a better sense of setting for the reader. (And of course I make notes of what needs to be added and where.)

Finally, even though I’m not quite to that point yet, the synopsis document can become a transitional step between the book and the real synopsis that is put together for a query letter.  It’s nothing more than summarizing the synopsis, distilling it down further until it is in a short enough form to submit.

The process goes like this:

1) Write chapters

2) Write each chapter synopsis

3) Gather chapter synopses into one document  (use for revisions)

4) Update working synopsis document

5) Summarize several chapter synopses together and repeat through story

6) (check length)

7) If still too long, summarize further until length is appropriate.

How to add in a character during revision

When I was doing a first-pass of revision of my novel, I realized that I had completely forgotten to include a secondary character, named Jepp Marvel. He’s first in command of the army, but he’s a secondary character. (Talk about a tricky situation!)

I was faced with the task of figuring out where to add him into the story in such a way as to make it better and not break what I already had.  Thorny problem. I didn’t want to make a bunch of changes and then realize later that they didn’t work and have to take them out again. That way lies madness.

So I figured out a method to test-drive the changes before adding them.

First, I used a print-out with a chapter-by-chapter synopsis of the events in my story. I went through and highlighted all the places near the end where the 2^nd-in-command (one of the main characters, named Trice) did something. 

Then I went scene by scene through the ending section and figured out what stuff Trice still HAD to do to keep maximum emotional impact for the story.  Trice is a villain, so I had to keep him villainous.

Then I started a revision document, listing what-if scenarios, scene-by-scene.  What if Jepp did this thing here?  I wrote that down in a revision document, and I wrote down what would change and how that would affect the rest of the story.  If there was something later that contradicted or made that change impossible, or if things got broken too much, then that what-if scenario was no good and I crossed it out and tried a different one.  If I found a what-if scenario that worked, then I labeled it as a change that had to be made in that scene.

I had one place where it didn’t work for either Trice or Jepp to be involved, but one of them had to be there to do it.  In that case, I figured out which one it HAD to be, and figured what exactly the limiting factor was and started brainstorming ways to alleviate it.  Trice had to be injured in one scene, but he couldn’t be too injured, otherwise he couldn’t carry somebody later that he had to carry. 

Once I finished, I had a documents listing all the revisions that had to be made in each scene so that Jepp could be added.  (It also lists why so I can remember my brilliant reasoning. J) The analysis I did ensures that I can make those changes with the confidence that they will jive with the rest of the story and not break anything else.

I imagine that this method could be used for other types of wide-rippling changes that a writer contemplates making during revisions.

A Revision Technique for Cutting Out Wordiness

I have a tendency to be wordy and redundant in my first drafts.  So how do I deal with this in revision?  What helps me cut my beautiful words that I worked so hard to bleed from my brain? How do I do this without worrying that I'll lose anything important?

Identify, Isolate, Highlight, Analyze, Cut, Reassess.  Those are the steps. (No, they don't make a cute little acronym.  I.I.H.A.C.R.  Yuck. Sounds like a cross between a cough and hacking a loogie.)

Identify

One strategy I’ve found is to find (or ask beta readers to find and highlight) the wordy places where they think it could be tightened up. 

Other times I can find it myself by noticing the paragraph sections that I inexplicably skip reading.  If I notice I want to skim, that’s a pretty good indication it needs to be tightened/eliminated.

Isolate

Next, highlight the section in question. It feels a lot more do-able to condense a section that is visibly marked.  The highlight tells your subconscious brain that for the next 10 minutes that area is your sandbox and anything can happen there. Deletions. Re-ordering.  Rewording. Additions, even. (gasp)

Keep it between 5-8 paragraphs long. If it's longer than a page, it is harder to work with.

Be sure to record how many words long the section is. This gives you a number to compare at the end so you can see how much you’ve condensed.

Highlight the Essentials

Print out a copy of the highlighted section, then pull out your highlighter marker.  (If you used a highlighter marker in the “Isolate” step, you’ll have to change to a different color in this step.)

Read through and highlight the words that represent the bare essentials of what is important to the story in that section.  Don’t highlight sentences, just single words or short phrases. This tells you what story elements definitely stay in.  Highlight beautiful wording only if it is particularly vivid.

I find it helpful to focus on action words--what the characters actually do. That is usually essential.

Analyze For Patterns

Are any of the highlighted sections similar? They can be brought together to create more punch.

Does the order make sense, or should it be reorganized?

Cut the Fat

Large sections that aren’t highlighted are fair game for cutting. Notice redundancy and eliminate it. (Like when the hero winks or smiles multiple times, or the heroine takes her second and third deep breath.)

Slash.

Burn.

Re-jigger wording.

Massage sentences.

You can’t cut everything that is un-highlighted because you need sentences to string the essentials together, but you’ll be surprised how much you can cut.

Reassess the Result

You’ll have to read through it at least once to make sure it still makes sense.

Once you’re done, check how many words you have left and compare it to your starting word count. 

Congratulations! You have cut like a pro, keeping what works, and getting rid of what doesn’t. Your prose should now be a concentrated distillation of emotional awesomeness with maximum impact.

Things to do on next book as I write that will prevent headache in revision

1)   Write the summary of the action for each scene  (This will help with creating the story synopsis.)

2)   Track the goal of each scene, character goal (This will ensure that characters remain active and purposeful, moving the story forward.)

3)   Track the conflict of each scene, source of tension. (This will help ensure that each scene is interesting)

4)   Track the change that occurs to move the story forward (This will help ensure that each scene is necessary to the story)

5)   Track the promises that are made and where they are kept (This will help ensure that I leave no threads hanging that shouldn’t be tied up by the end. Unless they are supposed to still hang free for a series.)

6)   Track what people do to fall in love or show love for each other. (This will help ensure that relationship arcs build in a meaningful and natural way.)

7)   Track time passage (This will ensure that I can track the timing of the plot and spot any problems.)

As I read through what I have written, I might find things that have to be fixed or added later. I can make notes on these things and leave them, since later I might find the issue will have worked itself out or is no longer valid. 

Hopefully this will give me direction on revisions.