Will the developmental editor need a synopsis?

A synopsis is actually the first thing a professional publisher asks for, before they even decide whether it’s worth their while to wade through a manuscript.

Some indie developmental editors will ask for it, and that’s a good thing for both author and editor.

By condensing their story into 2 pages (no more than 500 words), the author gets a good sense of their story, a bird’s eye view, if you will. The editor will be able to tell, without spending too much time, if it’s a story that they want to work on.

Many writers don’t want to do this, but this is actually a great exercise. By writing a synopsis, you will know if your story makes sense, if it’s viable, what needs to change, what needs more work.

The good news is that it’s actually easier to write a synopsis than a blurb, so there’s that going for it.

Let’s hear what our two resident developmental editors have to say about this:

Erica: “I ask for one so I know it’s a story for me to begin with. I think it can also tell a lot about how the writer sees their story, so it can help with direction later on (ie it shows more what they think re genre and plot line, whether that’s actually true of the story or not). Yeah, keep the synopsis short. That will keep the focus on what is important. I don’t want more than two pages. If you can’t sum it up in two pages, it tells me you don’t know what your story is about.”

Daiva: “I'm working on a book about dev editing. It will include Exercises for Developmental Editors and one of those exercises is: How to Outline the Story, breaking each scene into events. It's very good for writers to be able to at least summarize the main idea. So, yes, a synopsis is a very good idea, but keep it short, no more than two pages.”

In conclusion, you do want to write a 2-page synopsis for your story. A developmental editor should ask for one, and it will benefit both of you.