The Synopsis

Readers must write synopses for each script they read. So when people ask us, can’t you tell by page five that it’s rotten and just toss it? Sure we can tell if the script is rotten by page five. But our job is to read it all, synopsize it and write notes. So we don’t have the luxury of tossing a script down.

How readers synopsize:

Generally, a 110 page script will result in between 2 to 4 pages of synopsis. Obviously it depends how busy a script it is. Executives want a curious combination of the thumbnail sketch and the feel of the script; the what and the how. Usually we focus most of our detail on the set up and third act. If we know the script is a PASS we don’t kill ourselves over the synopsis. We compress information and do a quick and dirty job. If the script is great, then the synopsis will go into more detail.

When we synopsize novels or manuscripts, the rule of thumb is 1 page of synopsis for every 50 pages of text. To keep our thoughts straight, we highlight, pull pages and take notes. I know some readers who use a voice recorder and write the synopsis while they play it back. Some use post-its to mark pages with significant turning points.

You can usually tell what a reader thought of the script by the synopsis. The synopsis of a great script will be written to reflect that – the synopsis itself will be entertaining. A dull script will have a dull synopsis. I get paid to synopsize; I have nothing invested. It’s the least interesting part of what I do. When YOU synopsize (which we’ll get to momentarily) you have a distinct agenda; not just to relate your story but to make an exec or manager want more.

Here is an excerpt from a coverage synopsis for a script (production has wrapped) that I liked but didn’t love:

XXXX just dropped out of law school and moved to New York. He wants to be a writer and figures moving to the Big Apple might stimulate something or other. Very quickly though, reality catches up with him and he needs a job – anything. That’s when he sees an ad in the paper for a road manager and personal assistant for a “celebrity”. He meets XXXX at a small steakhouse and it’s only moments later that his potential employer joins them – XXXX, a washed up talk-show magician and “mentalist”. Full of energy and no shortage of ego, XXXX travels the country performing at small venues. Most of his fans are over 45. But don’t tell XXXX that; as far as he’s concerned, he’s a star. He points out immediately that he was a guest on Johnny Carson over sixty one times! XXXX is not so sure about this job but he needs the money and hell, it’s a life experience, right?

How writers synopsize:

First of all, will you be asked to provide a synopsis? It’s not unusual. This is because you perhaps pitched a logline in a query letter or email and the manager or exec thought – well – it sounds interesting but I’m not entirely jumping out of my shoes. Tell me more. Don’t take the request as a mini-failure, take it as a huge opportunity.

A dry summary of events is not going to get a manager or executive excited to read the work. Write your synopsis in paragraphs and organize (but don’t label) it by act. Be playful but accurate. If the script is a horror – make sure the synopsis is scary. If it’s a comedy, make the synopsis funny to read. If it’s romantic – well – you get the point. This sounds like common sense – and it is – but often writers freeze up and revert to high school freshman thinking and wind up with a stilted, informational synopsis. No. The synopsis has many jobs; to summarize, yes, but primarily to entertain. It is a teaser, an appetizer, a representative of the amazing script it describes. Choose kinetic, evocative, colorful words as you write the synopsis. Put your love of words to use; this is your calling card.

Make your synopsis easy on the eye; avoid dense paragraphs and avoid a six page summary. Keep it moving, CAPITALIZE main character’s names and order it by act. Synopses have a distinct rhythm: detail, summary, prose….The synopsis is the good parts writ quickly:

Life has been strangely good to FRED (63), a recently retired bank clerk; he just bought a Rolex, a vacation home and a membership to the local country club. But this newfound wealth and happiness is about to change. One night, as Fred looks through his new super-powered telescope, he sees it – a red hot chunk of sizzling rock streaking toward him. Fred RUNS inside the house and screams for his wife MYRTLE to come outside. Which is when a thunderous ROAR fills the air. It’s too late. As ash rains down on the shocked couple, Fred realizes his nest egg – stolen bearer bonds hidden in the basement – have just been incinerated. He turns to his wife: Myrtle, we need to talk.

And so on. Include colorful descriptions, sounds or anything else to make the read entertaining. Give more detail in the set up and in the third act climax; summarize the second act a bit more succinctly, keeping your focus on major turning points. In other words, the set up and climax might have some smaller, more evocative moments of character development noted but keep the second act moving along.

Don’t be intimidated if you are asked to write a synopsis; it’s great exercise to summarize your own work. In fact, the Wave-inatrix suggests writing synopses of your scripts as an exercise. How does the synopsis read? Does it move? Is it entertaining? Does it make your story sound cinematic? Does it capture the tone, theme and genre of your script?

If you have trouble summarizing your story in a page or two, you might want to take a look at the material. Is it too dense? Is the primary narrative confusing? Why is the material so hard to describe? Keep it simple. A confusing script that does not lend itself to a simple synopsis is going to make a very difficult pitch. Sure, some sci-fi epic scripts will take some handiwork to summarize. But it can be done – and Rouge Wavers – it will be done. And when it is, you want the synopsis that the exec reviews before he or she even picks up your script to be an entertaining promise of things to come.

This isn’t grade school, it’s show business; sum up your wares like a ring master would; with aplomb, élan and smooth professionalism. Make the synopsis a tease and a perfumed whisper which says – the best is yet to come.

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