WRITING TIPS to Hook your Reader and Keep them Hooked.

Ch 2: Is your pitch/ blurb sitting around on its backside?

First, just in case any of you are blurry about this, I'll clarify what we're talking about. A pitch or blurb is basically the paragraph you have that entices the reader (agent/editor) to know more about your book. Technically, the pitch is the verbal delivery of this (at a conference, for example), while the blurb is the short written description which you'd find on the back of the book.

Blurbs for YA novels can be found in first and third person. The first person blurb is used to capture a distinct voice, even though the text is, generally, not directly taken from the first person narrative.

Example: 'The Sky is Everywhere,' by Jandy Nelson.

What's wrong with me?

What kind of girl wants to kiss every boy at a funeral, wants to maul a guy in a tree after making out with her (dead) sister's boyfriend the previous night? Speaking of which, what kind of girl makes out with her sister's boyfriend, at all? .

Lennie Walker - sisterless, lasagna maker, Heathcliff-obsessed and hopelessly in love...

A blurb may also start with a first person quote taken directly from the book, followed by the third person pitch.

However, if you're writing a blurb as part of your query letter to send to an agent, I'd probably avoid the first person. Otherwise, if you're posting your book on Wattpad or self-publishing, any of these three formats is a viable option.

So, whether you're writing your blurb in first person or third person, it needs to achieve several things. Firstly, you need to grab your reader's interest. The first couple of lines should give a clear idea of what the story's about as well as pointing to a strong source of conflict or tension.

Let's look at a few examples of the blurb opening lines taken from several best-selling YA novels.

'Forgotten' by Cat Patrick: 'Here's the thing about me: I can see my future in flashes, like memories. But my past is blank.'

We know straight away what the character's main source of conflict in this story is going to be. She can only remember her future, not her past. This is such a strong source of internal conflict it is immediately intriguing and makes us want to know more

'Twenty Boy Summer' by Sarah Ockler.

'For sixteen-year-olds Anna Reiley and Frankie Perino, their twenty day-long, minimally supervised California vacation will be the 'Absolute Best Summer Ever' and according to Frankie, if they meet one boy every day, there's a pretty good chance that Anna will get her first real boyfriend.'

In my opinion, this sentence is a bit long for the opening blurb line, but it does tell us straight away that this is going to be a story of teenage girls on vacation in California, with a large amount of freedom and a goal to meet boys. The main conflict is hinted in the idea that Frankie wants Anna to get her first real boyfriend. This is interpersonal conflict (i.e. between two people) because it suggests that maybe Ana doesn't want her first real boyfriend, or maybe she's already got/ had one and doesn't want Frankie to know.

'Perfect Chemistry', Simone Elkeles.

'When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created "perfect" life is about to unravel before her eyes.'

From this we know that Brittany has gone to a lot of effort to create a seemingly perfect appearance which is about to come crashing down. Definitely internal conflict!