When at the start of developing a major project, I find it useful to look ahead to the final stages, the end game if you will, to get a clear picture of where I want to end up. I’m not talking here in terms of story, more in terms of the deliverables for the project. Not much point letting it sit sad and lonely on my hard drive, right? It has to get out into the world in some form, and for me as an agented writer, that means delivering the final product to my agent for his review.
I felt the shivers of endless writers when I used the word product to describe the art of producing a novel. But that’s what it is. Angel Fall will hopefully be on a shelf in a bookstore someday, and people will exchange money for it. A small proportion of that money will go into my bank account, some will go to my agent, some to the distributor, some to the cover artist, and so one. Everyone involved deserves, and gets, a piece of the action, because it takes a team of dedicated professionals to get a book out to the public, and few outside of beta readers will work for free.
The publishing business is just that, a business, and as a professional writer, the creator and inventor of the work, it is my job to deliver a good product to my agent so that he and all the others involved can get it to market, and we can all get paid.
There, I’ve said it.
Viewing Angel Fall as a product, then, and its production as being a project which must be executed in a professional manner, what components must I deliver to my agent?
The Manuscript
I provide an editing service, and have seen manuscripts presented in all sorts of ways. Some have been neat and consistent, while others have been all over the place, having no regard for the fact that someone other than the author is going read them.
Presentation matters in novels as well as everything else, and a professionally presented manuscript speaks well of the writer. It shows their care for their work, and communicates an appreciation for those who will read it. It should be carefully edited, as free from typos as humanly possible, have consistent chapter headings and page numbers, and use a font that is easy to read. These are easy things to do, and if the writer cannot take the time and make the effort to avoid a sloppy presentation then one would have to wonder how much care they took with the story.
I have a novel template document - in fact, I have a novel template folder which contains everything I need to start a new project, including templates for the manuscript, planning documents, character profiles, and so on. I highly recommend taking the time to set up something like this for yourself. It not only ensures consistency but also saves time, because you won’t have to reinvent the wheel every time you start a new project.
So, for Angel Fall, my primary deliverable will be a meticulously edited and well-presented manuscript, and within its pages will lie our story.
The Synopsis
I’m a bit of an oddity when it comes to writing a synopsis for a novel. Most writers don’t like doing them, but I relish the challenge of condensing a major story down to 300-500 words. I’ll be including one in my submission package to my agent. It is an essential document for him to get an overview of the story and character arcs, and is just as essential for me, because it can act as a compass in the development of a novel.
For this reason, I like to write a draft synopsis before I start writing a novel.
You can of course choose to wing it, see where the characters take you, and sort out any issues in the second draft. I have often done this myself, both for long and short form fiction, and it’s an equally valid process. However, given the potential complexities of Angel Fall, I feel a synopsis will be of benefit, and we will draft one very soon.
It won’t be a perfect and immutable one, it might be nothing like the finished work, but it will give me a sense of structure and direction, and clarify what the character arcs will look like.
Think of it as the proving ground for the story.
If I can define the shape of it on one page, if all the bits fit together and the niggly parts can be ironed out, then I have a working - cringe all you like, but I’m going to use another business term here - protocol to guide me in my writing.
For now, it’s enough to be aware that I will definitely need to include one in my submission package.
The Pitch
My agent and I have got to know each other well, so my cover letter to him will take the form of an informal email. I will tell him what I’m sending him, which he will no doubt be expecting anyway, will tell him what documents are attached, and will remind him of the pitch for the novel.
You know what a pitch is, right? You want to sell me on an idea, so you pitch it to me short and sweet, and grab my attention. In the case of this novel, the purpose is to interest and intrigue my agent enough for him to open up my synopsis and manuscript, and commit his valuable time to reading them.
Considering a possible pitch during the early stages of development can be as useful as an early synopsis. It can give the writer a very clear definition of what the novel is about, and what they really want it to say. As such, it can act as another aid to navigation as they trawl through the narrative shoals of the novel.
I hope you can appreciate the value of looking ahead to the end game, and what we will ultimately deliver to an agent or publisher. The above are not essential elements in a novel’s development, but they are tools we can use if we wish.
If you’re still cringing about this business view of the craft of writing, fear not. Taking a professional attitude to what we do does not detract from the art of it. We are still writers who are producing a work of art. It’s just better if we don’t go hungry as a result!
In my experience, it can be most helpful in the development of a novel if I keep the end game in mind. It keeps my focus on what I want to deliver, and gives me a clear picture of what the end result will look like.
Watch out for the next post, in which we’ll discuss the intersection of character and story.
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