We looked at hooks last week, both concept hooks that pique our initial interest in a story and in-story hooks that keep us engaged from start to finish. Today we’re looking at how a few New York Times bestsellers hook us. I pulled these loglines from the February 2, 2020 NYTBS list, and then looked … Continue reading Hooks Big and Small–How the Masters Do It
Category: One-Line Synopsis
Logline Revisited: Are some components more significant than others?
I got a comment the other day, on the post about NYTBS one-line synopses, asking whether the significance of each logline component varies according to the sort of story it's describing. Also requested was a list of the components ordered by most significance. These are great questions, and my answers ended up being pretty long … Continue reading Logline Revisited: Are some components more significant than others?
Writing–and Improving–The One-Line Synopsis
Today we’re expanding a couple of last week’s concepts into synopses and then trying to improve them. First I wrote out my first-thought, all-seven-components synopses, with each component identified with {W}orld, {C}haracter, {I}nciting Incident, {G}oal, {A}ction, {P}roblem, and {S}takes, with {i}mplicit components and questionable {?} components indicated. And then I did a stream-of-conscious application of this week’s criteria for a … Continue reading Writing–and Improving–The One-Line Synopsis
The One-Line Synopsis: How the Best Sellers Do It (Or At Least the People Who Write the List) (Updated 10/16/18)
I’ve lifted these synopses from the January 18, 2015 New York Times Best Seller Lists. In each one, I’ve identified any synopsis components with: {W}orld, {C}haracter, {I}nciting Incident, {G}oal, {A}ction, {P}roblem, and {S}takes. I've also indicated if the component is {i}mplicit...to my ears anyway. And, if I wasn't sure if a word or phrase indicated … Continue reading The One-Line Synopsis: How the Best Sellers Do It (Or At Least the People Who Write the List) (Updated 10/16/18)
The One-Line Synopsis: What is it and how do you write one?
Time to expand the concept into a one-line synopsis. Some people call this tool the logline or the one-liner, and lots of people also call it the premise. I was one of the premise people until I started digging into the tool and saw that a lot of people also use premise synonymously with theme … Continue reading The One-Line Synopsis: What is it and how do you write one?
