summaries

[sixbeforelunch]

So here's a question I've often wondered about. What makes for a good fic summary? Is there anything that can get you to click when you might otherwise not have been inclined to?

Conversely, what types of summaries do you like least? Are there summaries that will make you skip a work even if it's tagged with all of your favorite ships and tropes?

Comments

[alchemistdoctor]

mottlemoth gave me some excellent advice when I came panicking to her about summaries; I'm going to paraphrase because I didn't, unfortunately, save the response:

Fic readers don't need a book-style back cover. A lot of them are here for the tropes. They know the characters, and if you've not gone AU, they probably know the main story. They're here for how you write the story.

So when fic readers are looking for a story, they want to know what they're going to be reading. Tell them that.

That changed my idea from "Draw them into the story" to "Just like. Tell them about the thing you wrote." Which is A) easier and B) simple. Suddenly my panic about writing summaries was gone.

And she was totally right! I read summaries looking for the basic story. What trope? What storyline? Mutual pining? Bedsharing? Fake relationship? I'm in.

[sixbeforelunch]

That is excellent advice!

[coyoteclaw11]

Yes, definitely! Especially for people looking for ship fic, if you put the right ship together with the right trope, you've already sold us. There's literally no convincing necessary. "Wolfstar soulmates AU" well damn I like BOTH of those things! That's honestly all the convincing I'd need to click on a fic. For fics like that, all you really need to focus on re:drawing people in is the beginning of the fic (aka your actual writing).

[katajainen]

I hate writing summaries, and this approach sounds like a lifesaver ❤

[musyc]

Oooh, I like this. I read summaries looking for the basic story. What trope? What storyline? Mutual pining? Bedsharing? Fake relationship? I'm in. Something to keep in mind for my next attempt at a summary.