A. Howitt – Page 3 – Mythic Scribes Test Site

How to Write a Synopsis

Recently, I compared a query letter to a job interview. However, that is only partially correct. If a query letter is you, showing up a little early, dressed in a clean, pressed suit, then your synopsis is what you choose to talk about during the actual interview.

Once you’re past the first impressions (and we’ll assume you wrote a killer query letter), your synopsis is the final chance to hook your agent, get her excited about your project, and make her remember your name above the hundreds of other writers vying for her attention.

What makes a synopsis so daunting? When a writer has the stamina to finish a full-length novel, why does she struggle at synopsis-writing time?

How to Write a Query Letter

by A. Howitt

Writing a query letter is akin to going to a job interview. It’s your first chance to make an impression, and often times, it’s also your last.

It’s this philosophy, coupled with my experience as a recruiter, that leads me to want to put my best foot forward, knowing that I may never get another shot.

As a person who has conducted hundreds of interviews, I can only tell you that resumes with quirky fonts, or pages of meaningless, random facts about previous jobs, didn’t impress me any more than the people who showed up in sweatpants or hoodies to be interviewed.

Medieval Archery for Fantasy Writers

by A. Howitt

In our distant past, archery nearly became a lost art, a useless tool once weapons technology had moved on. If not for the resurgence of popularity in the early to mid-nineteenth century, it might have vanished in Europe and America entirely, being relegated to the more primitive cultures which rely on it as a means to procure food and make war.

But how best to portray archery in a world where magic is common and monsters are not mere wild animals, but horrific creatures bent on destruction?

First, what type of archery are you trying to portray? Fourteenth century longbows firing war arrows on a battlefield? A band of warriors decimating foot soldiers from horseback? A small group of characters hunting or sneaking through an occupied land?