Mikki - Pointers??? Sure, though I think a part of the reason for getting it is that I had also been working in screenwriting and with scripts you don't pitch on a synopsis, but with a 3 sentence pitch. So think about condensing your story into 3 sentences and then a synopsis seems like tons of room to describe it. Seriously, I still struggle with the 3 sentence pitch and am dreading working my way down to the one sentence pitch (ack!!!!).
But something just clicked. I looked at what I had. I could have written a longer synopsis for the course, but the publisher I picked only accepted two page synopsis so I thought about the basic premise, my characters growth curve, story set up, and main climax. I think it was easier to write since a lot of the synopsis structure is very similar to structures used in screenplays. Must use present tense, characters mentioned should be in caps. I started with my summary I had written up and just started cutting. Condensing sentences cutting out middle build up scenes and focused on only the main character motivation, set-up scenes, and climax. I cut out mentions of various characters unless they were crucial in a set-up scene or climax.
I think the big key is to remember you don't have to describe everything, everyone, or every sub-plot. Focus on the most exciting or important parts. Don't worry about skipping an entire chapter in your synopsis or even more. You're going for the big picture. The outline is to describe all that other stuff.
Don't know if that was much help. Probably not.
Good luck. I'm on assignment 7 right not in the ICL novel course and I have one more scene that needs a major rewrite and then I need to send it off.
Angelia
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