Importance of the 'Blurb'

[Edward C. Patterson]

Rule of thumb to Kindle uploaders and to authors who still use traditional publishers (whom you must educate, because you are ultimately responsible). No printer quotes. No em or en dashes. Kindle translates them into machine language and will mar your blurb.

As for typos and misspellings in the blurbs - I have had some (and they are frustrating) in my first published books. They are highly correctable. So when you discover them, correct them immediately. You can even correct them on POD book covers by adjusting the file copy and at no expense, something you are denied by the tradipubs. However, I have learned that my blurbs must be constructed with care and MUST go through my editor (the famous Peg of the almighty red pen). It is a shame if a misspelled word in a blurb causes a reader to think badly of your work (the ignominy of it all). It IS worse than when a reviewer misspells words left and right/write (couldn't resist  ) when castigating you for typos (they're not selling books and looking for readers . . . just attention, sometimes). Nothing makes me more furious at myself as when a snipper posts that "I didn't buy his book, because he spelled receive "recieve." Therefore the product of 37 years must indeed be a horror akin to a ten year old with a typewriter." No one has ever said as much, but although its my fault, and there are readers who are less interested in your few typos or malapropisms (something that irks me, because I stretch word use to the limit and often get accused of these style quirks as MALAPROPISM), there are those who lurk in the corners and wait for you to switch their for there, and then they hold a party, spin around in delight and shout to the world that 2012 has come early. (How about that long sentence . . . eat your heart out Virginia Woolf). SO spelling counts always, but in a blurb it counts double, because you're double-damned if you do it and you only have yourself to blame when the villagers show up with the pitchforks.  

Edward Cliffe Patterson aka Miss Chatty and on a roll/role today      

[Keith Melton]

I have noticed this problem. Hopefully, the discerning reader can tell that it's some sort of formatting issue with software compatibility. Unfortunately, there have been a lot of books published on the Kindle with formatting issues, so it's possible that having formatting problems in the blurb could hurt your sales somewhat as readers might think the Kindle version has the same problem.   

Although, when I see an issue like this, it does not stop me from getting a sample. And, of course, if the sample is not a problem, I will buy the book. 

That's reassuring to hear. However, one only gets a single chance to make a good first impression. That goes double for unknown writers.

I've heard discussion that it might be an error introduced when the blurb and cover are ported over by Amazon from the mobipocket site.

All that aside, your words on having a polished blurb should be heeded.

[Keith Melton]

Rule of thumb to Kindle uploaders and to authors who still use traditional publishers (whom you must educate, because you are ultimately responsible). No printer quotes. No em or en dashes. Kindle translates them into machine language and will mar your blurb.

Edward Cliffe Patterson aka Miss Chatty and on a roll/role today      

Ah, thank you. I appreciate the information. I will let them know.

[Maria Hooley]

Red,
I am really curious about the autistic son you mentioned as a character in your novel.  I was curious why you chose autism over other disabilities.  I have a six-year-old who is autistic. 


I also hate writing the back jacket copy.  I think the tool that helped me most with that is the Snowflake Method.  It pretty much makes you nail your story in single line then a paragraph and then spreads it out.  It's an amazing writing tool that I highly recommend.  I do not remember the author who developed it, but if you do a search, it should come up.  It's that popular.

[J.E.Johnson]

     Hmmm, when it comes to choosing a book I try to be thorough about it.  First I look at the cover and title (I know, I know, I shouldn't judge, but I can't help it, it's a bad habit of mine  )  If either catches my eye or fancy, I move on to reading the blurb/synopsis.  I have to agree with several of you here; if the blurb is full of typos, I'll assume the book is as well (doesn't mean it's a bad book, it just means I'll get distracted and I'll spend all my energy on mentally editing it). 
     If the blurb sounds enticing but doesn't completely grip me, I'll check out the reviews (both negative and positive - I want to know why someone likes or dislikes this book, may not be for the same reasons I would like or dislike it).  Finally, I read the sample pages.  These are always a plus for me because they give me a feel for the author's style, something that isn't always reflected in the blurb (I mean, authors have to condense their story into a few paragraphs, how could it reflect their writing properly?)  So, in a nutshell, I like to explore all my options before I purchase a book, and the blurb is where I start.
-J.E. Johnson 

[Lynn ODell]

Red,
I am really curious about the autistic son you mentioned as a character in your novel.  I was curious why you chose autism over other disabilities.  I have a six-year-old who is autistic. 

The biggest reason was probably that, years ago, I had a friend whose son was autistic. She actually had 2 sons, both right around my son's age. That's how we met, our kids went to chess club together. My son became friends with both boys. We had them over to spend the night, etc, so I spent a lot of time with them.

However, the boy in my book is only very loosely based on the boy mentioned above.

The boy being autistic actually is an important part of the plot. Or, rather will be, assuming I get that far.