Synopses - You're Doing It Wrong... (while some do it right)

[Derek]

Nicholas wrote: "Thanks.. To be further annoyed, check the website:

http://www.lostsociety-dc.com/"

I don't believe I will - all I get there is "pageok".

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Jim wrote: "Aw come on, everybody uses them on terms like CD's, DVD's, etc. It has become common usage. Strictly speaking that one isn't correct, but I'll forgive her because I've read two of her books and ra..."

I'm going to pretend you did not just say that. Regardless, it's not okay to use an apostrophe for the plural of "genre"!

[Derek]

Ruby wrote: "Jim wrote: "Aw come on, everybody uses them on terms like CD's, DVD's, etc. It has become common usage. Strictly speaking that one isn't correct, but I'll forgive her because I've read two of her ..."

Ah. I had been unable to parse what Jim was talking about. In fact, using an apostrophe to pluralize an acronym is acceptable (at least in the US) [I believe my source for that is [book:Eats, Shoots and Leaves|12795634], but I may be misremembering), but it's completely different to use them in the plural of an actual word.

C'mon authors (or blurb writers, when they're not the same), the rules for apostrophes are really not that difficult: apostrophes are used to replace missing letters (e.g. "don't") and for possessives - but not possessive pronouns (e.g. "the cat's toy", but "whose toy?", not "who's toy?"), and very occasionally you can use one to pluralize an acronym - but you'd be generally better off to avoid the acronym or avoid the apostrophe ("CDs" is not wrong!).

[Elise]

Derek wrote: "Ruby wrote: "Jim wrote: "Aw come on, everybody uses them on terms like CD's, DVD's, etc. It has become common usage. Strictly speaking that one isn't correct, but I'll forgive her because I've rea..."

I wasn't aware that it was ever acceptable to use an apostrophe to pluralise anything, including acronyms - interesting. (Or possibly that's a UK/US difference, I don't know?)

I am aware it's VERY common with acronyms, right or wrong. I don't even want to hurt people who do it any more - I feel I'm growing as a person.

[Whitney]

Elise wrote: "I wasn't aware that it was ever acceptable to use an apostrophe to pluralise anything, including acronyms - interesting. (Or possibly that's a UK/US difference, I don't know?) ..."

I usually avoid the grammar debates, but this on caught my attention. All the style guides I found online suggest not using an apostrophe for acronyms, unless there is punctuation within the acronym: for example "CDs" but "Ph.D.'s". Also an apostrophe is appropriate with plural letters and numbers "1's" and "F's". These make sense to me, as I subscribe to the philosophy that the point of punctuation is to add clarity, not to slavishly follow arbitrary rules.

One site pointed out that the New York Times breaks these rules, using "CD's" instead of CDs. So I suppose that (at least in the US) one can make the argument for precedent.

[Elise]

Whitney wrote: "Elise wrote: "I wasn't aware that it was ever acceptable to use an apostrophe to pluralise anything, including acronyms - interesting. (Or possibly that's a UK/US difference, I don't know?) ..."

I..."

I don't really know about Fs/F's but it certainly makes far more sense to actually use the apostrophe for plurals where adding an s would actually change A into As, I into Is (for ease of reading, depending on typeface, this could also go for 1s) or U into Us (or any other letter into a badly typed acronym - or is that Bs? ;) ). Slavishly insisting on not using the apostrophe in these cases would simply be daft. So I see too why it makes more sense to apply it across the board, therefore, for pluralising single letters.

Hmm, I think I understand the rationale for inserting the apostrophe for acronyms with punctuation simply for clarity too. Otherwise it tends to look as if the s is part of the acronym.

Interesting.

[Derek]

Elise wrote: "I am aware it's VERY common with acronyms, right or wrong. I don't even want to hurt people who do it any more - I feel I'm growing as a person. "

You are. And it's very big of you :-)

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Then colour me petty. Ruby wants to maim. :)

[Derek]

Ruby needs to grow :)

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Admittedly, this synopsis wasn't written by the publisher. Still, I think I would've gone with "tint" over "taint". Nobody likes to see a sepia taint.

[Whitney]

Ruby wrote: "Admittedly, this synopsis wasn't written by the publisher. Still, I think I would've gone with "tint" over "taint". Nobody likes to see a sepia taint..."

Too funny. In its defense, it does say "no sepia taints" :-)

[Derek]

Oh dear. Thankfully, not another squid infestation...

[Victoria]

I too find it really difficult to write the cover blurb. I write short story collections too, so only get to touch on what they are about rather than the stories themselves. Would love to hear what you think of what I ended up with:

Love can bring us together, but it can also tear us apart.
Dive into ten very different tales all sharing the theme of love; the good, the bad and the hideously ugly. Maternal love leads to obsession, infidelity leads to heartbreak and a prince ends up very disappointed with his lot.
You may have seen one or two of these characters before, but never in this light.
Twisted perspectives on old tales and new stories whose characters will stay with you forever...
To love is man's greatest gift, and his greatest curse.

(Please be nice, it is my first time ;~D)

[Whitney]

This is already far beyond what we like to make fun of here, given that you show a basic understanding of grammar and tense, but since you asked…

My opinion only, I’m sure others look for different things on blurbs. What I want to know is what the book is about and what the tone is. I don’t want philosophical statements or a statement of how great the book is. In general, I’d say the odds of me reading a book are inversely proportional to how many adjectives there are in the blurb.

I don't want to be told that the stories are original or that the characters are unforgettable, I want specific examples from the book showing me originality and unforgettability. I also don't want salesmanship. Don't tell me to 'read this!', or 'check it out!', if the blurb gives me an idea of what's there, and I like the idea, then I'll check it out.

Good luck with your book! And for an example of what I like to see, I'll point to your own profile. You have a poem that speaks for itself, and leaves people who like your kind of writing wanting more. (One thing, though. I'd change the formatting so that people don't have to click 'more' to get the end of the last line, kinda diminishes the impact :-)

[Victoria]

Thank you for your feedback Whitney, and for pointing out the formatting issue with my latest blog *scurries off to sort it out*
:~D

[Derek]

From the Ministry of Dead Thread Resurrection:

I got this blurb in my Nobooko.com free book email this morning:

Bloody Boulevard by Karen Greco (Karen Greco)

Nina Martinez is part of Blood Ops, a government agency so top secret even the President doesn't know it exists. Tasked with taking out rouge supernatural creatures, Nina and and her partner Frankie must clean out a vampire nest in Newark before it overtakes the entire city...

I want to know why they only deal with red-colored supernatural creatures. Is there an Azure Ops for the blue ones?

[M.K.]

Ruby wrote: "I actually think he could've skipped the rest of the synopsis and just gone with the last bit:
This novel is about people trying to find love in the ways it is done before the volcano erupts and th..."

I agree ... the synopsis of Adverbs was too long for my impatient little brain.

[M.K.]

I spent a day writing three different synopses (hope that's correct, this group is tough on grammar!) for a novel I've written. The exercise of trying to create a brief summary from different angles helped.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Derek wrote: "I want to know why they only deal with red-colored supernatural creatures. Is there an Azure Ops for the blue ones? ..."

I hope so. And a chartreuse one as well. I bet they're busy.

[Riona]

Oh see, I was reading it as supernatural creatures who wear lots of makeup. They just pack on that blush!

[Derek]

I think those would be "rouged supernatural creatures".

[Whitney]

Derek wrote: "I think those would be "rouged supernatural creatures"."

Thank you for the clarification. I, too, was picturing a hoard of supernatural hussies. This goes to show the importance of careful sentence structure!

[Derek]

:)

Hang on! I support the right of women (or men for that matter) to wear any amount of rouge without being assumed to be "hussies"!

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Derek wrote: ":)
Hang on! I support the right of women (or men for that matter) to wear any amount of rouge without being assumed to be "hussies"!"

That's right, Derek. Some of them are just mingers. :)

[Derek]

I'm going to have to look up "mingers" now.

[Leo]

Don't know if it's been mentioned before but this one's a beast: The Teleportation Accident :)

[Derek]

First, Ned Beauman don't shout at me.

Second, what on earth is that book about? It might work if you love Vonnegut, but then that's the part of Vonnegut that I've never liked.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Derek wrote: "I'm going to have to look up "mingers" now."

I know. But I have faith in your ability to figure it out :)

[Derek]

Ruby wrote: "Derek wrote: "I'm going to have to look up "mingers" now."

I know. But I have faith in your ability to figure it out :)"

I particularly like Urban dictionary's definition.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Derek wrote: "I particularly like Urban dictionary's definition."

Bahaha! I'll have to use some of those phrases!

[Riona]

Ruby wrote: "Derek wrote: "I'm going to have to look up "mingers" now."

I know. But I have faith in your ability to figure it out :)"

That's what I like about this group. I get to learn Aussie slang from Ruby.

[Derek]

My references were English slang. I led a sheltered childhood, though. I lived in England until I was 11, and I never come across it. I didn't learn to swear at all until I came to Canada.

F'in colonials...

[Derek]

Another from Nobooko.com:

Manginas- They Look Like Men But Act Like Ladies

"What is a Mangina? A man who thinks and acts like a woman. Worse, he’s a man who gives women a free pass to get away irresponsible and immoral behavior just because she was born female."

It makes me feel slimy just reading that blurb, so I need to make the rest of you feel just as bad...

I almost want to download it just to see how really disgusting it is. But I already have The Turner Diaries for that, and I haven't been able to bring myself to open it yet, so I suspect this would be no different.

[Riona]

"What is a Mangina? A man who thinks and acts like a woman. Worse, he’s a man who gives women a free pass to get away irresponsible and immoral behavior just because she was born female."

Wait... what? I would be offended if I could only comprehend what this guy was trying to insinuate.

[Derek]

Well, yeah. I'm not quite sure whether it's as offensive as I think it is. And I don't really want to find out.

[Whitney]

Derek wrote: "Well, yeah. I'm not quite sure whether it's as offensive as I think it is. And I don't really want to find out."

I can't think of any way for it not to be unreadably offensive. And I finished The Turner Diaries.

[Whitney]

Dang it Derek, you've taken all the fun out of the hunt. Nobooko is the Marianas Trench of bad blurbs, my first visit there and this is what I find:

All's Fair in Love & Seduction (The Elusive Lords, Book 2.5)
by Beverley Kendall

She hopes to gain his affections For Miss Elizabeth Smith, sharing her first kiss with the charming Lord Derek Creswell is nothing short of a dream come true...that is, until she is spotted by one of the most influential gossips of the ton. With scandal nipping at her heels, to avoid total social ruin, Elizabeth must present a fiancé by the end of the Season. But when the viscount proves reluctant, Elizabeth is forced to employ a seduction of a different sort... He is determined to ruin her Viscount Derek Creswell believes Elizabeth set out to trap him into marriage.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Holy crap! I don't know where to start. I'm offended by so many things.... Mostly that last synopsis of Whitney's I think. Whatever made this person think they could write?

The mangina stuff is more sad than anything else. It reminds me of Frank in The Wasp Factory actually! Boy, is that going to be a fun discussion....!

[Derek]

Sorry, Whitney. I do find the occasional gem from nobooko, though.

[Kate]

A lot of bad blurbs come from big publishers too, even if they don't contain typos. I've read a few where the writing is poor or the blurb bears no relation to what happens in the book.

They're probably churned out by eager but exhausted unpaid interns subsisting on tissues and cheap vodka...

[Derek]

I think those were the ones Ruby was really looking at when she started this thread. Now, "unpaid intern" is one of those subjects I should mention in the "grumpy old gits" thread. I'm at a complete loss to understand why we now support the reinstitution of slavery - while still criticizing foreign countries for allowing sweat shops. At least sweat shop workers get paid something.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Kate wrote: "They're probably churned out by eager but exhausted unpaid interns subsisting on tissues and cheap vodka... ..."

Should I be asking what the tissues are for?

[Whitney]

Derek wrote: "I think those were the ones Ruby was really looking at when she started this thread. Now, "unpaid intern" is one of those subjects I should mention in the "grumpy old gits" thread. I'm at a complet..."

I will follow you over to Grumpy Old Gits on this one! Not just for the exploitation of labor, but because people who can't afford to work for free for one to three years are priced out of these professions.

[Riona]

Ruby wrote: "Kate wrote: "They're probably churned out by eager but exhausted unpaid interns subsisting on tissues and cheap vodka... ..."

Should I be asking what the tissues are for?"

Their tears of disillusionment.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Riona wrote: "Ruby wrote: Should I be asking what the tissues are for?"
Their tears of disillusionment. ..."

Oh. That's not what I had assumed at ALL.

[Riona]

Ruby wrote: "Riona wrote: "Ruby wrote: Should I be asking what the tissues are for?"
Their tears of disillusionment. ..."

Oh. That's not what I had assumed at ALL."

Ha!

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

For such a highly praised writer, this synopsis is appalling. Whoever wrote it was trying way too hard!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Apart from the dated terminology, the grammar is pretty wonky. SO overblown and.... tangent-y.

[Derek]

Blame Ashley who set that description on Feb 14, 2013. I have no idea if it came out of her own head or from a cover, but I like the previous one better.

[Derek]

Dead of Eve, currently being read by the Apocalypse Whenever group, has a blurb that ends with:

"Content advisory: Guns. Gore. Sex."

Oh, please. You can't just drop the alliteration 2/3 of the way through - get a thesaurus!

Content advisory: Guns. Gore. Gonads.

[Ruby , Mistress of Chaos]

Derek wrote: "Dead of Eve, currently being read by the Apocalypse Whenever group, has a blurb that ends with:

"Content advisory: Guns. Gore. Sex."

Oh, please. You can't just drop the alliteration 2/3 of the wa..."

Yeah. That's just plain lazy!