[stylist] Better Book Descriptions

[Ann Bliss]

I would like to share this document which came from a speaker on the podcast: The Creative Penn.
The Ultimate Cheat Sheet for Better Book Descriptions 

Cheat Sheet
The end goal of every book description should be to sell more books. Most 
authors stop after writing a synopsis, but that leaves them three key elements 
short of a proper book description. 
Here are the four parts to a bestselling blurb: 
1. A short, punchy, above-the-fold tagline 
2. A present tense synopsis that uses as few words as possible to demonstrate 
the plot's best selling points
3. A selling paragraph that uses emotional adjectives and genre cues to get 
readers in the right mood 
4. A call-to-action at the end that asks readers to buy
Part 1: Tagline
Authors often don't use taglines, which is a mistake in the mobile age, where 
only a few lines of description text are displayed. Grammar isn't important in a 
tag line. What's important is enticing readers to click the "Add to Cart" or 
"Read More" buttons. 
Examples of strong tag lines: 
"Start and Finish the Book You Were Born to Write" 
"Without sleep, her life became a living nightmare." 
"Bram Stoker wanted fame. What he got was pure evil." 
"A missing girl. An international underworld. A PI who won't quit."
Part 2: Synopsis
Most authors write half-decent synopses, but there are a few problems that 
tend to crop up. They often do a fair job of summarizing the plot, but they may 
fail to entice readers of a certain genre. For instance, if it's dark urban fantasy, 
readers don't care about the history of the main character. They care about his 
or her emotional stakes in the plot. 
Examples of a strong synopsis: 
"The world is driven by wizards, gods, and an imperial space marine 20,000 
years into our future. Fame-hungry female mercenary Zicca is willing to skirt 
the edges of her warrior's code if it brings her the fame she desires. Her 

hopes of making a name for herself by spying on assassins are dashed when 
she's forced to kill the assassin she was hired to watch.
Part 3: Selling Paragraph 
Few authors use this, and as a result they fail to evoke an emotional reaction 
from their readers. It's also an opportunity to let folks know if the book is part 
of a series, what genre it's in, and if the author has anything of note worth 
mentioning. Additionally, it taps into the power of the word "you," which is a 
proven selling term.
Example of a strong selling paragraph: 
"What Must Come is the second book in David Carson's Planet Wars, a 
military sci-fi space opera. If you like Tom Clancy, Stephen King, and James 
Michener, then you'll love a series that combines all of their best traits in a 
fast-paced, captivating, intergalactic adventure."
Part 4: Call to Action (CTA)
Most authors end their description with a synopsis and hope the reader will 
scroll up and buy. The CTA asks the reader to do it, which much improves the 
chances of it happening. 
Examples of strong CTAs: 
"Buy this classic romance filled with sensuous heat today!" 
"Buy this book if you want to change your life today!"
"Buy the book to start reading Marion Alexander's tale of tragedy and love 
today!" 
"Buy this book to continue the epic series today!"
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I hope this cheat sheet was extremely helpful! I've got some video training 
coming out soon to get into the nitty-gritty of what makes descriptions and 
other sales copy work. Keep your eyes on that inbox and be prepared for 
your first training video! 
Thanks so much for reading!
Sincerely, 
Bryan Cohen 

Ann Bliss
Quantum Intuitive
www.basicenergyhealing.com