The title of today's blog entry, "Why does everyone hate writing synopses?" comes from an email I got yesterday from Sarah Harvey, one of my editors at Orca Book Publishers.
I have a love-hate relationship with synopses, also known as outlines. And apparently, I'm not alone.
I'm about ten chapters into the project I've been working on this summer. The good news is Sarah likes (she actually used the word "loving") what I've done so far (Yippee! Double yippee because Sarah is a tough critic!). The bad news (well, it's not exactly bad, but let's just say it presents a challenge) is she wants a chapter outline or synopsis of the project.
Some writers swear by outlines. They do detailed outlines before they begin a project, and then they let their outlines guide them through. Other writers, I'm thinking now of Neil Bissoondath, whom I once interviewed for the Montreal Gazette, start their novels by writing just one word, or one sentence, and then seeing what happens after that!
I am somewhere in between. Sometimes, when I write fiction, I feel like a miner, digging my way very slowly, but steadily in the dark, with just a small headlamp to illuminate my way.
But, I've done outlines before and I'm psyching myself up to do one now. I told Sarah she'd have it by the end of next week. This curly-haired miner has some serious digging to do!