While doing genealogical research on the origins of her paternal family, Catherine Kessler discovers the romantic relationship between her father’s cousin, Paulette, and a young Wehrmacht non-commissioned officer during the occupation of Paris. It is a deep shock for her who was raised in the aura of her resistant father and her uncle, shot at 19 by the Nazis. Determined to understand, she will go back in history and bring to light a heavy family secret.
This 142-word writing a persuasive summary is optimally long, and indicates in the first sentence the three main elements of the book, including the all-important spatio-temporal grounding : This is a true and love story, the two main characters are quoted and we know that the story takes place during the Second World War.
The author has opted for an airy layout and the font allows for optimal reading comfort. In summary,
A key beginning and a well-defined genre
The first words are crucial. The essential must be in the first sentence, it must arouse the interest of the reader. For example, it is possible to start by evoking a central character with the presence of keywords. These keywords give the reader an indication of the genre of the book. Whether it is cited implicitly, as through this example, or explicitly, the genre must always emerge from the text.
Reasoned amount of information and setting the mood
The reader receives the first information on the character and situation of the main characters and thus gets to know them. From the description itself can emerge a certain suspense or tension, which can increase during the text without giving explanations or revealing the crux of the story. The last sentence can end with an ellipsis – the reader then wants to know what happens next. Another possibility is to end the text with a question that appeals to the reader’s imagination…
The narrative point of view
Regardless of the narrative point of view or the tense used in the body of the book, the summary is generally written in the present and the third person singular. The outside perspective gives the book description objectivity and greatly increases credibility.
Pleasant reading
The readability of the summary is just as important as its content. The recommended font size varies between 8 and 12, depending on the font, the format of the book and its graphic design. Pay attention to the size of the line spacing and do not hesitate to form paragraphs to structure your text on the bottom but also to facilitate reading.
Presenting other titles and using reviews as selling points
When the book is part of a series or collection, it may be wise to cite it in the summary text present on online bookstores. Reviews from readers or journalists can also be an effective selling point. Seek to have relevant reviews before the publication of your book, in order to integrate them into your summary. Readers’ confidence and interest in a book increases dramatically with the recommendation of other people.
Always tell the truth
The summary must certainly seduce the reader, but be careful: do not create false expectations and above all tell the truth. You will only benefit from having satisfied readers. A good idea is to test your summary with readers who don’t yet know the plot of the story. So you can find out what content expectations your abstract raises.
The shortest… … are the best.
Do not exceed 150 words. The main characters must be evoked and the plot touched upon so that the reader has an impression of the content without necessarily knowing everything.
Without fail !
Spelling, accuracy in content and language of your abstract are essential. It is essential to have your text read by a third party – this advice also applies to your entire manuscript. Finally, do not hesitate to look for inspiration in your library! Read the back covers of books of different genres. You can also look at summaries of bestsellers on the Internet. You will thus be able to discover which expressions or styles of writing are possible.