What is copy?

Book jacket copy isn’t about summarizing your project or providing the reader with a clear synopsis or plot spoiler; it’s about   sales.   Book copy should be short, succinct, and send a message. It should grab the reader and tell them why they should pick your   book rather than the thousands of other titles packed into the shelves.

How do I write it?

First, and most importantly, you should draft a synopsis of your project. This will help you to determine which plot points you want to highlight and which you don’t want to spoil for the reader.  Once you’ve got your synopsis down, there are three components to creating effective book jacket copy:

Attention

Start off your copy with a powerful hook that demands attention. Is there a central question or revelation in your plot? You might start off with the first sentence or two from your plot summary.

Interest

Intrigue interest and create curiosity. Again, book jacket copy is about sales, and copywriters generally have knowledge of certain key words that engage readers and get them excited about a book. These terms are specific to each genre and audience; the same words that entice a thirteen-year-old girl to purchase a young-adult book will be far different from the key words in place on the back of a literary novel aimed at an adult audience. Your best bet? Research your market.

Detail

Provide details about your story, but again, don’t turn your book copy into a spoiler! The best way to determine how much detail to include is to read other book jackets. Start with those in a genre similar to your book; copy on a romance novel, for instance, is going to be vastly different from a science fiction or horror story. This will also help you to get a feel for your audience and what they want to read.

You might even want to peruse the New York Times Bestseller List – pick up a couple of books on there and check out their jacket copy. The jacket copy may not be the only thing selling those books, but it can’t hurt to check out the success stories.

A final caveat: The length of the copy that appears on your book jacket is completely dependent on the final book design.

Book jacket copy is meant to be slightly over-the-top and sales pitch-y, so have fun with it, and take the opportunity to really make your book shine and out-sell all the rest.

While you may try to design and format your book jacket cover on your own, know that there are professional editors who do it for you.   An experienced professional editor, such as the editors at FirstEditing.com will create a professionally written book jacket cover that will capture your audience’s attention. This is short, succinct copy that sends a strong message about your writing.

There is no doubt that the internet has changed the writing world.  Not only does it provide a new means for writers to get published, but it also opens a new avenue for writers to promote and market themselves.  The creation of a successful website can enhance a writer’s reputation, resulting in an increase in sales.  It could also attract attention to the writing of an otherwise unpublished author, giving that author the exposure that he or she needs in order to secure an agent or publishing contract.

Blogging can be an excellent way to keep readers coming back to your website, and thus, to build a growing readership.  When choosing a host for your blog, there are many free blogging platforms, such as Blogger or WordPress.  These are ideal if you’re looking for a quick, cheap, and easy way to start your blog.  Alternatively, if you’re interested in having more control over your website, buying your own web address could be the right choice.  Either way, when choosing your web address, remember to keep it simple and logical, so that it’s easy for your readers to remember; simply using your pen name can be a good idea.

When it comes time to start uploading those all-important posts, remember to keep the content relevant.  If you created the writing blog to help promote your writing career, then stick to that subject.  This is what readers will come to your blog expecting and wanting to read more about:  you as a writer.  It’s best to keep any unrelated venting about your personal life on a separate blog.  Additionally, it’s always good to offer your readers something useful to take away with them, such as information about your latest published work and where to find it, advice on the writing process, any writer’s workshops that you’ve enjoyed, or editors and editorial services that you’ve found helpful (such as, First Editing).

Of course, as with any piece of writing, make sure your blog posts read smoothly and cleanly, free from any distracting spelling and grammatical errors that may undermine your credibility as a writer.  Remember to always proofread before you publish!  If in doubt, submit it to a professional editing service, such as FirstEditing.com. We’ll be happy to polish your blog posts for you.

Query first

Compile your list of potential recipients by selecting the editors and journalists who may be most interested in what you have to say. Now comes the hard part – the best way to get your press release seen is to query each media outlet via phone or snail mail to ensure that they accept emailed press releases, and to obtain the most up-to-date contact information on where to send them to avoid the dreaded spam folders.

Know your audience

Get the full name, position, and email for the appropriate contact for your release. Sending a press release without specific contact information is the equivalent to folding your press release into a paper airplane and throwing it out your window. Only send your press release to one person per news outlet. The biggest complaint from editors? Receiving press releases that have nothing to do with what they publish.

Fax is dead

Send your press release via email; a stressed editor is more likely to grab a story from a format that lends itself to cut-and-paste. If you can make it easy for them to print your story, why not do it?

Don’t get attached

Format your email carefully. Don’t send your full press release as an attachment; due to the prevalence of computer viruses it is becoming standard practice to delete unsolicited emails with attachments unopened. Instead, include a ‘teaser’ of your press release in the body of the email, with a link to the full press release as it appears on your website.

Timing is everything

Mid-week is usually the best time to send out your press release, as editors aren’t swamped after the weekend but still have time to follow up with you prior to the next weekend. Avoid sending out press releases in and around known holidays.

Think big, but don’t be afraid to start small

Begin by reading the news; the content of your press release may unexpectedly become a hot topic. Trade publications, regional or local newspapers, free weekly newspapers or magazines, e-zines, newsletters, or other niche-market publications are all good places to send your press releases, in addition to national papers and high-circulation magazines. Remember, any exposure is good exposure!

Your editor at FirstEditing.com can review your release to make sure it’s consistent, error-free, properly formatted, and ready for distribution.

Typically, a copywriter crafts the text that appears on the book jacket or paperback cover. A copywriter may either be on the staff at the publishing house, or the publisher may contract out, or outsource, to freelance copywriters. Either way, it’s the job of the copywriter to craft a paragraph or two about your book that will sell it to readers.

Otherwise, and this too occurs more often within larger publishing houses, an overworked and underpaid editorial assistant may be tasked with crafting your book jacket copy. This is often viewed as an onerous task and is obviously less than ideal; while editors (and editorial assistants) are useful in helping to shape and enhance your story, they may not have the necessary ‘sales writing’ skills to entice the reader to purchase your book on the shelf.

So, while most of the time you may not be writing your own book jacket copy, it’s still important for any writer to be able to do so. Here’s why:

1. It allows you the opportunity to succinctly summarize your book and revisit the story – it’s like going through a copy edit of the plot.
2. It allows you to make sure you’ve been writing towards your target audience, OR it can help you to determine the target audience for your book.
3. If you’re sending query letters out to publishers with hopes of selling your manuscript, you’ll essentially have to write a paragraph to pitch your idea anyway.

Finally, once your dream publisher has picked up your book, you’ll be able to ensure that the copy your book jacket receives is the copy it deserves. Next week I’ll discuss tips on how to craft top-notch book jacket copy that will have readers grabbing your books off the shelves.

While you may try to design and format your book jacket cover on your own, know that there are professional editors who do it for you.   An experienced professional editor, such as the editors at FirstEditing.com will create a professionally written book jacket cover that will capture your audience’s attention. This is short, succinct copy that sends a strong message about your writing.

The em dash

Em Dash

The em dash is a longer dash that is similar to a hyphen. It is used to show a pause in a quote that is all one sentence, and it is also used to show when one sentence trails off and another begins.

For example,

“I hope that you have told me the truth – you don’t always.”  This quote is all one sentence, but there was a pause in between the words truth and you that are represented by the em dash.

OR

“He just walked right in through the – He didn’t even think to announce his presence!”  This shows that one sentence trailed off and another began – NOTE the capital letter to begin the second sentence.

When typing in Microsoft Word, you can prompt one of these dashes by placing a space after the last letter of the word, hitting the hyphen key (next to the zero) and then pressing your spacebar again before typing the next word. Most Microsoft Word applications use an auto format that will insert the em dash for you.

Ellipses

Ellipsis

In contrast, the ellipsis is used to show when a thought trails off and the sentence is incomplete. It is a series of three dots.

For example,

“I just couldn’t believe what he was…” she muttered, as if to herself.

These quotation marks most often trip up fiction writers, as they’re used often in dialogue. However, whether you are writing a fiction piece, or working on an academic submission, please remember that the professional editors at Firstediting.com are always here to assist you with your work.  Happy Writing!

1. Form the possessive of singular nouns by adding ’s, unless it is the possessive of an ancient proper name.

For example: James’s house      Moses’ law

2. In a series of three or more terms with a single conjunction, use a comma after each term except the last. This is often referred to as the “serial comma.”

For example: apples, bananas, and oranges purple, yellow, and red

3. Enclose parenthetic expressions between commas.

For example: My brother, John Smith, is a well-renowned police officer. While we were on our way to New York, a tiring drive, to say the least, we stopped many times to enjoy the scenery.

4. Place a comma before a conjunction introducing an independent clause.

For example: The road was slippery, but we continued to drive to the movie theatre. The house was a beautiful sight, and the gardens were absolutely magnificent.

5. Do not break sentences in two. Basically, do not use periods for commas.

For example: Incorrect: She was an interesting talker. A woman who had traveled all over the world and lived in half a dozen countries. Correct: She was an interesting talker, a woman who traveled all over the world and lived in half a dozen countries.

6. Use a colon after an independent clause to introduce a list of particulars, an appositive, an amplification, or an illustrative quotation.

For example: Lisa’s grocery list contained a mere three important items: bread, milk, and eggs.

7. Use a dash to set off an abrupt break of interruption and to announce a long appositive or summary.

For example: His first thought on getting out of bed—if he had any thought at all—was to get back in again.

By no means are these seven items an exhaustive list of things to look out for while writing and editing; however, they’re definitely a good place to start. I will be sure to revisit this topic again in a future blog to highlight more items to take note of during the editing process. Hiring a professional editor, such as the editors at FirstEditing.com can ensure that your document is perfect and ready for publication.

Gina
Editor Specializing in Business Editing Services for FirstEditing.com

Basic editing skills are a must for any writer or editor. Good writing is a hallmark of professionalism; unfortunately, it is also a chance to make a first impression upon a client, supervisor, or potential publisher. While not all of us are born excellent writers, basic grammar and punctuation rules can be learned. Please allow this article to be of assistance.

Capitalization is a necessary grammar skill that can tangle even the best writers.

Please allow this professional editor a few moments to provide you with a few basic rules of capitalization:

* Capitalize the first word in each sentence.

* Capitalize the first word in a quoted sentence.

* Always capitalize I, no matter where in the sentence it appears.

* Capitalize proper nouns.

Some easy ones to remember (and some examples):

* States and countries – Texas, Canada
* Brand names – Gucci, Dr. Pepper, Disneyland
* Religions – Judaism, Roman Catholic
* Days of the week, months, holidays – Thursday, March, Easter
* Magazines, newspapers – Martha Stewart, Detroit Free Press
* Movies, TV shows – New Moon, American Idol

When you have a question about when or when not to capitalize something, a good rule of thumb is to ask yourself, “Is this specific?” For example, while you would not capitalize school (noun), you would capitalize “Parkside Elementary School.”

Directions are tricky- Do not capitalize north, south, east, or west, when referring to direction, such as “Go east along I-4.” Capitalize them when a part of the name of a specific location, such as “North Carolina.”

Names and titles can be difficult as well, but the following should help clarify when and when not to capitalize:

Titles are always capitalized when they precede a name or an organization. For example, “Inspector Lukas,” or “President of the United States of America.” A title should not be capitalized when it is referred to in text with no name, no organization, and it is not part of dialogue. For example, you would not capitalize mayor in the following sentence:

“Are you really the manager?”

Capitalize any title when used in a direct address, e.g.

“Are you ready, Inspector?”

I hope that this has been helpful. Please remember that having a professional editor, such as the editors at Firstediting.com, will ensure your document is perfected and ready for publication.

Alison
Editor Specializing in Fiction Editing Services for FirstEditing.com

The first step is to make sure your manuscript is in the best condition you can possibly make it. This means you have redrafted it, asked friends or a critique group to read it over, and finally given it to a professional editor, such as those at Firstediting.com, to repair any grammar problems, inconsistencies, or structural issues.

Now that your manuscript has been reshaped and in near perfect condition, the next step is to write a killer query letter and synopsis. Maybe you’ve been working on these alongside your manuscript, or maybe you will hire a professional to help you. These are vitally important – and they are the only way you will entice an agent to request a sample of your work. In addition, most agents have assistants who read the submissions for them, and only the best queries will actually get seen by the agent.

Begin your research for the perfect agent by creating a list of those who have worked with books that are a similar style to yours, and preferably books that you admire. Learn as much as you can about each agent, because finding the right person for this role means you will have someone who will fight to get your book into the marketplace and provide the vital link between you and the publishing house. If you send your work to a poor agent, your manuscript may never find its way to a publishing house.

Once you are satisfied with your list, check the agents’ submission guidelines very carefully. Like publishing houses, agents receive many manuscripts, and each may have specific requirements. While the merit of your story is the most important thing, don’t let yourself down by sending in your work in the wrong format or full of typos or awkward grammar.  Contact by the method they request (i.e., do they prefer phone, email, or post?), and then send them only what they have requested; no more, no less.

If your query letter, synopsis, and sample pages shine like a diamond in the slush pile, you may just find the literary agent you always dreamed of.