Seat-of-the-Pants Synopsis Writing

Hmmm…how to write a synopsis for a “seat-of-the-pants” work in progress… This is the burning question of the day. Having always said that I am mystified by “seat of the pants” writers (also knows as "pantsers"—don't laugh), I find that I have become one—for this project, at least. Oh, I know how it will end—I always know that. I even know pretty much everything that’s going to go on in the middle. I just have no idea what order all that stuff is going to happen in. I have all these loud and boisterous scenes partying in my head and keeping me up all hours. Each day (I’m trying to write almost every day) I open the door, look the whole motley crew over (they have self-segregated into primary and secondary plots), pick two that I think will go nicely together, and let them out to run rampant across my keyboard. How’s that for a writing method? (And what do you think of all these parenthetical statements?)

The colleague who has most recently asked this “how to write a pantser synopsis” question is facing exactly the same problem I am. I'm trying to put together a proposal for a book I haven't written in hopes of selling it before I finish it. This requires sample chapters (no sweat) and a synopsis. I have outlined every novel I’ve written in advance as a natural part of my writing process. Sometimes the outline is five pages long; sometimes it’s as many as nineteen. I have no outline for my WIP.

To make things more difficult, if you’re writing something that isn’t strictly genre fiction, the usual rules don’t always apply. My WIP is a women’s fiction work, not a romance (although it has strong romantic elements). It doesn’t fit neatly into the boy-meets-girl, boy-loses-girl, boy-gets-girl-back plotline of your average romance novel. It’s a compilation of slices of different women’s lives that reflect and complement each other in an exploration of marriage. It’s not even all chronological, since it jumps back and forth in time.

So last week, I sent Kristen a synopsis that I am pretty sure sounds really boring. When I tell people the main idea behind the book and how these other women’s lives fit with the main character’s inner conflict, I get very enthusiastic responses. That’s because I can be sort of loosey-goosey in explaining what’s going on and give a vague idea of how it will all come together, and I have to tell you, the idea is really intriguing. I can say that without being arrogant because it wasn’t my idea (see March 6 blog entry).

So the long and the short of it is I don’t know how to write this kind of synopsis. As I work it out, I’ll keep blogging, because I know I’m not the only one with this problem. I also now have far more sympathy when “pantsers” complain about having to write a synopsis!

I’m so distraught that I just bit the face off my son’s chocolate Easter Bunny. Yes, it is almost two weeks past Easter, and he has eaten only the ears. It’s unnatural. Furthermore, he has left it right next to the computer. The sucker’s fair game, if you ask me.