Whether you are Traditionally or self-published, your book
description along with your cover, is key to selling your work. A good blurb
will attract readers, so it is as, if not more important, to get it right. I
find writing my book blurbs one of the hardest things to do, along with writing
a synopsis. I mean, what do you put in it? What do you leave out?
Now I’m not saying that my blurbs are the best in the world,
but after looking at tons of other authors descriptions, the ones that sell, I
realised that there are ways to help you write that all important book
description. Here a few tips to get you started:
1: Use a tag line/headline in bold to grab the reader’s
attention that gives a clue to what the book is about. For Whisper Gatherers, I
put:
Adara has a secret. A paranormal
power she cannot unleash. If she did, her life would be over.
2: If it is a series, mention that either in the title of
your book, or make a reference that it is a continuation in your blurb. For
Echoes from the Lost Ones, I put:
Follow Adara on her mission to find her brother, as
the enthralling Song of Forgetfulness dystopian, sci-fi adventure continues
3: Don't give too much away. Keep the description fairly
short after all you aren’t writing a synopsis just a brief attention grabber. Include
as few names as possible. Give a hint at your protagonist’s dilemma and
emotional state. Make sentences as short as possible to give a greater impact. For
non-fiction, bullet points of relevant features should be in bold. I try to
keep my blurbs under 400 words.
4: Include rave reviews near the top, bottom, or at
appropriate points. Again, keep them short. If they are from a magazine or
known publication, person, include their name. If not, say where they come
from, such as, Amazon Review. From A Silence Heard:
‘Exciting, fun, unique, and
creative. The author is truly a gifted writer to be able to whip up something
like this.’ (Amazon Review)
5: Add your books keywords as part of the description, the
ones that you used for KDP in the book details section. It will link to your
book that way. You don’t have to use all of them.
6: Mention famous authors and perhaps books that are similar
to yours. Try not to go overboard with that. If you aren’t sure, you can find
them if you look at ‘People who bought’ on your Amazon sales page.
7: Use HTML code to make your description look great. If you
don’t, it will appear as one big lump of text, not very exciting. If you don’t know how to use
HTML code, here is a great free tool that will generate the code for you. All
you need to do is to type your blurb into the box and click the generate
button:
I hope these
tips prove useful to you when you write your book description. Don’t be afraid
to change your blurb occasionally. It can’t hurt to try out different
headlines, reviews etc to help your book have a greater impact when a reader
clicks on it.
You may also want
to read Erika M Szabo’s post ‘What Makes You Open A Book?
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