Loglines

[JeanneT]

The Writing the Pitch post made me think of this. (excellent post by the way)

I am terrible I feel like at writing loglines. Should our pitch always have one? If so, any tips for writing the darn things?

[MarvaD]

I really question that any except the simplest plots can be summarized in a single logline sentence.  Yes, you can get the gist, but it's like waving the bottle of vermouth over the gin.  It's not really a martini. 

I have no idea why I used that analogy, since I've never had a martini.  It just seems to me that a one-sentence is fine for the TV Guide, but doesn't do justice to a novel, especially those literary ones with deep meanings (which I never read). 

But you've got to do it.  Think Subject Verb Object.  Cut down until that's all you have left. 

[elknutswife]

Ooo, when I first started querying I spent a couple days playing around with these. It was really fun. I found a couple of websites, I'll have to see if I can find them again, because some of the loglines for different films/books were just hilarious.  I don't remember this exactly, but one of the loglines I went something like this:

An innocent young girl gets transported to a mystical land where she kills the first person she sees and teams up with three misfits on a quest to kill again. 

Logline for Wizard of Oz - I would never have summarized the movie that way, but it really is what happens in the movie and it is certainly attention catching!

It really can be fun to do - the logline for my book is "A young woman is swept into an illicit affair with a reformed thief and becomes entangled in the search for a priceless necklace with a bloody past."  Not great, but really, that does give a very brief summary of my story.

If you google "writing loglines" or some variation, a whole bunch of sites pop up - I actually think this is a great way to start writing a query - come up with a great logline (your hook) and build your query from that. If nothing else it'll get the creative query juices going

[gypsygurl]

I'll have to check those out Elky!  Looks like fun!

[katekquinn]

A few years back I ran across this article online when I was trying to write a logline for a screenplay, which for that format is not optional at all.  Anyway, though the article is aimed at screenplays I see no reason why the same ideas could not apply to a novel as well.

http://twoadverbs.web.aplus.net/loglinearticle.htm

[Suzy_Q]

That's a great idea, Kate.  IMO, when an author uses sites intended for other types of writing, it can only improve their chances of having original writing.     Thanks for the link!

[MarvaD]

I don't know.  A one-sentence logline seems to have gutted the entire plot.  I'm probably just doing it wrong.  This is just off the top of my head.

A young witch-in-training discovers that her boyfriend has gone missing and she must go on a dangerous journey to find him, all the while being opposed by mysterious magical forces.

[Suzy_Q]

A young witch-in-training discovers that her true love has vanished and she must embark on a perilous journey to save his life before...

Hmmm.  Guess I don't know how to do it either.  We should start a LOGLINE thread where the author provides a brief plot summary, then everyone pitches loglines for it.  Then the author could pick the "winner".  Maybe the winner could get 50 karma points?  Don't know if it could work...

[MarvaD]

A young witch-in-training discovers that her true love has vanished and she must embark on a perilous journey to save his life before...

Hmmm.  Guess I don't know how to do it either.  We should start a LOGLINE thread where the author provides a brief plot summary, then everyone pitches loglines for it.  Then the author could pick the "winner".  Maybe the winner could get 50 karma points?  Don't know if it could work...

Well, I like yours better than mine.  The logline thread sounds interesting.  Of course, I'd just want the input, having zero ability to do this.  Maybe it's easier on somebody else's book?

[Kelly]

Thank you for the info on loglines. I didn't know what that was until two days ago. I sold another story (yay!!) and had to write 2 log lines, one 12 words one 25 words, for the publisher. First I had to embarrass myself by asking what that was.    OHMYGOD that was so hard to do.

[Kelly]

PS

Gypsygurl,   I LOVE your avatar.

[gypsygurl]

Thanks 

[MarvaD]

Thank you for the info on loglines. I didn't know what that was until two days ago. I sold another story (yay!!) and had to write 2 log lines, one 12 words one 25 words, for the publisher. First I had to embarrass myself by asking what that was.    OHMYGOD that was so hard to do.

Now, however, you're the old codger expert on them, right?  I try to get my publishers to write the loglines.  I always want to write a synopsis.  Two-page loglines are not a good idea. 

Oh, should I say codgerette?

[Kelly]

Well, I'm old, and could be a codgerette but if it means experienced and knowledgeable then...no. I've written 2 loglines! Both for the same story! And I think they both suck.

[JeanneT]

Thanks for the fantastic link.

Marva, I think maybe the problem with your logline is that it doesn't show what opposes the main character--going strictly by my reading. I'm not any good at them either.

Ok, finding her lover is her goal? But what or who is keeping her from doing that?

Here is a try for a logline for the novel I've been querying.

When a novice mercenary saves the princess she is guarding from an attack by an ambitious nobelman, she must struggle to restore the princes to her throne and save the honor of her own clan.

Hmmmm not very good. Harder than they make it look.