A blurb is the book description you find on the back cover of a book to describe its contents. Blurbs tend to run several paragraphs, but some publishers prefer a shorter, more succinct blurb, or one that appears in conjunction with specialized artistic / design features.
The blurb is the 2nd-most important selling tool a book can have, so it needs to grab the reader's attention.
A novel may be hundreds of pages long, but it needs to be described in a few short paragraphs that captures the flavour of the story.
Consider the blurb on the back of your current novel.
1. Did you choose this book based on how the blurb made it sound exciting or appealing in some way?
2. What parts of the blurb grabbed your attention? Any particular words or phrases? Offer specific examples.
3. Think back to your first impressions about the book - what was your initial response? Once you'd finished the book, did you feel the blurb gave a fair account of the overall experience?
4. What other aspects (visual / symbolic / colour / design / dimensions etc) of the back cover appealed to you?
5. Now, pretend that the publisher has decided the existing blurb isn't good enough and it needs to be totally re-written. You've been asked to come up with a different, better, more engaging blurb. Write what you think should appear on the book's back cover.
No comments:
Post a Comment