You’ve never purchased something without knowing what it is first, right? Of course not. As consumers, we want to know what we’re buying and we want to know relatively quickly. That’s why it is vitally important to know your story. To be able to answer the question: What is it?
Because if you don’t know, the agent won’t know, and neither will the editor, the publishing execs, the book sellers, or the readers. And if they don’t know, they’re not going to buy it. Plain and simple.
Blake Snyder, screenwriter and author of Save the Cat, a craft book for screenwriters, says this: “In my opinion, thinking what is it is just good manners.” He goes on to say that if we can’t answer that question – then maybe we don’t really have a story at all.
Some of you might be thinking…I think I know what my story is. Let me ask you this: Can you condense your entire novel–your 100,000 word beloved baby–into one simple logline? If you can’t, then you haven’t discovered your story. At least not yet.
So how do you discover your story? Here are some questions you can ask to get on the right track.
- What is the something and the someone? Every story is about a someone trying to do something. Do you know what yours are?
- Can you sharply define your someone using two or three words? The who is important, because the who tells the buyer who they’re going to experience the story through. The way you describe him or her will form the buyer’s first impression. And you know what they say about first impressions.
- Does your something create a clear and compelling mental picture? The something is the story goal. It’s the what your who is trying to accomplish. Hopefully, when you say yours out loud, whoever’s listening will be able to picture it in their head.
- What is the conflict? Without this, you have nothing to sustain your story. So what is the driving force that gets in the way of your hero accomplishing his/her goal? Is it BIG? Are there stakes involved? If you can answer yes to both of those, then you’ll have a story that will keep readers turning pages.
- What’s the irony? Snyder devoted several pages in Save the Cat to the idea of irony and the importance of finding it in your story. The ladies from My Book Therapy talk about this too. What is unexpected or contradictory about your story? Something that will hook the buyer’s interest – an itch they must scratch. One of the best examples of irony that pops into my head is from You’ve Got Mail. Meg Ryan falls in love with a man she hates, but she doesn’t know they’re the same guy. Ironic, no?
Once you’ve answered these questions, you should have a firmer grasp on your story. Now you just have to put the answers together into a logline.
I have to be honest – I hate writing loglines. I’m not very good at them. But despite my dislike, they are an important part of making it in this industry. So I have to keep practicing and wrestling with them until I find the right one.
Here’s my logline for A Broken Kind of Beautiful:
In order to raise money for a disease that has plagued his family, a photographer who quit the intoxicating world of high fashion must team up with a woman who epitomizes it.
Let’s dissect:
We have a clearly defined hero – a photographer who quit.
We have a story goal – raise money.
We have the stakes – it’s for a disease that’s plagued his family.
We have conflict – he’s going to have to work with a woman who epitomizes the world he intentionally left behind. Which also acts as my irony.
Now it’s your turn to play.
Who has a killer logline they’d like to share?
Thanks, Kate. This super post is getting the blood flowing, and to my brain where it's most needed: Writing the logline is going to FORCE me to make some decisions or come up with a new idea (s). Ooooh, this is good (hard, but good). And I will be creasing the seam of "Save the Cat" which is newly arrived in the mail.
Awesome post! This is something that I've been trying to write for both of my WIPs. I wasn't exactly sure how to do it though, so thanks for breaking it down and showing an example!
Thanks for this post. It made something that I've always found challenging much clearer.
This is the logline for my current WIP:
Helix: Unbound
For a generation of kids changed by the Virus, the only safety is in the gangs, but when an enforcer and the girl with a rare psychic ability he was sent to snatch are caught in a gang war, they must trade the rarest commodity of all to save their world from a second catastrophe: trust.
Great post, Katie. Thank you for sharing this important aspect of marketing one's work. I am still developing my logline. I've had some talented helpers along the way, who have moved me much closer to the goal. I think I'll know when I've found exactly the right combination of words that will spark the fires of curiosity and desire to learn more in a publisher or agent. Blessings to you…
Hi Katie,
Great post! Even though I write nonfiction, I can identify with tightly phrasing my concept.
I've wanted to stop by here for quite a while after seeing your comments on other blog-friend's blogs. And today, over on Rachelle Gardner's blog, I just had to refer to your comment in mine. Great minds think alike and all that 😉
I invite you to visit my little corner of the blogosphere.
Blessings,
Susan
ps – my husband is a chiropractor who studied at Palmer in Davenport, IA. I visited the Quad Cities with him a few years back. Lovely!
When a young pastor's wife finds her life less than melodic, she turns the sour notes into a symphony of grace and humor–lest she run away from home or kill her husband's church board members.
Wow, this is a really helpful post, Katie — chock-full of good information. I'd never even heard the term "logline" before I stopped here today. Sort of reminds me of a conversation I had at work this week. When a colleague heard my good news, she asked what my book was about. I completely tripped over my tongue trying to get a concise synopsis out. She responded, "Sounds like you need to work on your elevator pitch!" She can say this, because we are friends…and she's right! So the logline concept is kind of reminding me of the elevator pitch — except I think the logline is even shorter and more concise, if I am understanding it correctly.
Thanks for your support these last few days — really appreciate your encouragement!
I like this post and I especially like your logline. Very clear and intriguing. Makes me want to read!
Great post! I can do this!
Oh you did an awesome job of explaining this! And do I ever need help!!
A widow who fears an early death from her family curse moves near unfamiliar relatives as a way to cope but instead befriends a dyibg man who begs her to help end his life sooner.
Help!
Katie, you're killing me. I'm just getting settled into writing again after near a year off and completely forgot about that horrific part of this journey–creating five-star loglines. Not sure if they are worse or equal in painfulness to create as synopsis!
Now you have me scared of getting back into this too deep!
Love reading the taglines! Some of you really have a grasp on the whole irony thing!
Tagline for Pierce My Ear:
When a shunned teenage girl falls in love with the preacher's son, she must ignore the bitterness of the local congregation and decide if she is willing to become part of something she has always despised.
Great post, Katie. You spurred me to tweak this tagline a little more.
And your tagline makes me want to read your book right now. Well done!
Wow, excellent advice! Thank you! I haven't read that book but I love the irony aspect.
Here's my line for the story I'm almost done with:
A PI falls in love with the policeman who's trying to stop her investigation of a philandering mayor.
Your logline is PERFECT! And I love your explanation too–so simple when put in the right words. 🙂
I like your logline – very helpful post.
My logline – Lauren Reed is a happy college student until her body is possessed by the disembodied Goddess of Vengeance; now she has to find a way to bring justice, not vengeance, to the broken, while keeping her secret from family and cop boyfriend.
I've got the first half down for the WIP, but haven't grabbed the back yet. Will work on it with this lovely tips of yours on hand. Thanks, Katie!
Love yours!
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Ooo-la-la! I love your logline!
I create a one-sentence summary before I write a word of my book. It's good practice!
I want to read your book, Katie!
When my agent (and yours) sold my next novel, I had to come up with a log line for the announcement in Publisher's Weekly. Here's what we said about Lethal Remedy:…"in which a doctor finds that a highly touted miracle drug is attacking more than just bacteria."
Thanks for this thought-provoking post.
Ariel -that sounds intriguing. I especially like your title.
Jaime – you definitely have some irony going. Same with you Lisa!
Thanks for sharing ladies! I'm always impressed with the story ideas people come up with.
If I'd thought about the tag line when I first started writing my YA fantasy Lethal Inheritance, I would have saved myself a lot of time. I have one, but I do keep revising it because it is hard to get the full flavour of a book in a few words. At present, it's
'Ariel’s on a rescue mission in a hidden layer of reality, being hunted by demons who feed on fear. An old man trains her to locate and unleash her inner power and a young Warrior captures her heart.'
I'll bite and then turn over in embarrassment. Here's my logline:
"Evie hopes forgiveness exists. Conan believes it doesn’t.
Finding forgiveness may cost them everything – including their lives."
Great post, Katie!
My tagline for my current WIP is What makes a hero?
My pitch is The one man she never wanted to see again is the only one who can save her daughter's life.
Great post. I am terrible with loglines and I don't have one for my current WIP. I seem to always have to sit and ask myself questions like the ones you have above and then reword them and rewrite them several times until I have something acceptable. Those are great questions, I'm definitely going to use them when I'm ready to come up with a logline for my current WIP.
Still working on mine, but this is a great way to figure out what your story is about. I must admit, it took me a while.
Whoa, T. Super, super brief. And super, super effective. You definitely have irony and conflict!
A woman’s presumed dead husband returns after five years to find her married to his adversary.
I think it's not as tight as it needs to be. I'm still working on it.
Oh, wow, I like your log line. I like the way you were able to work in the irony with the conflict. How simple. How neat. How difficult to do.
Your story sounds fun, Katie.
No log line for me yet–still in first draft mode and figuring out the core of the story. 🙂
Oh how fun – I'll have to stop by Seekerville. Erica – I love yours!
Robyn – yours is awesome. I know exactly what your story is about and you explained it to me very quickly!
Wendy – send it my way lady!
Love your logline. Definitely draws me in and makes me want to read it. :O)
Mary Connealy was playing with this over at Seekerville today too. GMTA 🙂
My current WIP:
A dedicated frontier pastor falls in love with an actress, and his congregation forces him to choose between his calling and that 'unsuitable woman' who has his heart.
What a great post. I have to get that book. Going to find it today. A writer can know there book well, but narrowing it down to just a few words is absolute MURDER. I always want to go on and on. 🙂
Here's mine Katie: When Thirteen-year-old Anna sets out on an endurance horseback ride, she didn't count on a massive thunderstorm or the loss of her horse. Now lost, Anna must use all her wits to survive or end up dead on the mountain.
Of course, I guess the first sentence is really the logline? 🙂
Can't wait to read A Broken Kind of Beautiful!!!!
I've got one I might email you for novel six. This is a great run down of the essential–grasping what your novel is all about.
Bell suggests creating the logline before you begin a novel. Like that.
~ Wendy
Blake Snyder's section in his book on loglines is excellent! Every writer should read that book if they are looking to get published and want to write high concept. Great post.
Loglines are hard aren't they?
Knowing your book and being able to put your knowing into words are often two different things. It took me forever to figure out what my memoir was about. I am not sure I got it right in the end either.
WIP loglines still in the pipelines. I almost have it. I'll get back to you 🙂
Great post. It's always scared me at the thought of summing up my story in so few words. It's something I've been working on lately, you've given some good advice to think about.
My story is stil emerging, but it's almost there.
Until then, I'll rather not try to do a log line.
😉
Great post, Katie. Funny – as I read your first tow paragraphs, I immediately thought of Blake. I love how he explains this and the examples he uses. There's a part in Save the Cat! Strikes Back where he talks about the story concept as the image on the poster and uses Miss Congeniality's poster as an example. That crystalized the idea for me.
Thanks for the great advice.
I've got one in my head now… thanks for a great post.. very clear.
(too scared to share)