My Blurb Takeaways

I've never found success with writing blurbs for my books. They're generally too short and light on details. That's generally because there hasn't been a whole lot to say. Except for two published novels, my books are all novellas, which are by their nature, light ~ one main plot; no subplots. Short enough that a lengthy blurb would give away the entire story.

This time, though, I'm putting effort into crafting an intriguing blurb. Running From Herself is, as you know if you've been reading along, my final novel. It's important to get everything right.

And what better way to learn than to scan the bestsellers? My first takeaway is that a blurb should be around 250 words; that's apparently the sweet spot. I wonder if publishers have a template that screams at them if they exceed that number, because all the ones I've looked at coincidentally conform.

Secondly, if an author wants to get noticed, she should start her blurb with a quote (in bold and italicized). The novels I scanned begin their blurbs with a quote, unattributed; certainly composed by the publisher (or else they'd be attributed). "From author ____ comes a story of ____" Well, if a publishing house can makes up quotes about its own author, I can make up quotes about mine (which is me). Anyone can play that game. 

Also, publishers are adept at adding resonate keywords to their blurbs: vivid, universal, and emotionally complex, luminous, heartbreaking, captures both the exquisite pain of loss and the stunning power of hope, an unforgettable story about the longing for ____,  the resilience of the human heart, and the courage it takes to ___. 

Okay, got it. I can do that.

I've researched the best ways to compose a blurb, numerous times, when all along the instructions were right there, on Amazon's pages. I feel mighty right now.

Now I think I can do it.