The blurb: short and punchy or packed with information?

When we don't want to judge a book by its cover.

Many writers will tell you that they find it easier to write a novel than to write a blurb that’s a couple of paragraphs long, and I’m no exception. Mention the word ‘sales’ to me, and I physically clam up, pulling an expression rather like the one I’d pull if I sucked on a lemon segment (cue shivers down the spine, quivering eyelids and a rather melodramatic ugh!). But they are necessary if you want a reader to get past the cover of your book and read the first page. Even as readers, we can appreciate the necessity of a blurb because as beautiful as that cover is, we won’t buy it if we know nothing about the story inside.

(Image taken from the back of my own book: I am Winter.)

So, how does an author decide what to include in a blurb?

There are plenty of websites out there dedicated to helping aspiring writers master the art of the blurb, and many (if not most) will suggest that it should include the following at the very least:

• Setting

• Brief description of the main character

• Conflict

I didn’t want this post to end up looking something like a lesson in blurb-control - I’ve trawled through many courses over the years and could recite the basic rules in my sleep, and it doesn’t make it any easier. So, I thought who needs rules anyway when you can read the blurbs on the backs of the books you’ve already bought and learn from them? You bought those books for a reason, right? Perhaps it was because of the cover. Perhaps they were written by your favourite authors, or you read some great reviews on social media. But mostly it will be because the blurb hooked you in and left you wanting to read more.

And, hey, it is spooky season, so I thought I’d share with you some of my favourites from my overflowing shelves.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

How could anyone resist opening the cover and peeking inside after reading this, especially if, like me, you have a thing about vampires? Pumpkin-coloured font too! This blurb says just enough because … ‘Alone with the dead!’ The opening sentence conjures up all kinds of spooky images and we already know that the character isn’t safe because of the broken window.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

Love the series or hate it (personally, I can never get enough of vampires) this blurb sucks the reader in… (pun intended, sorry). We already know that the MC is putting herself in danger because she’s in love with a vampire… What could possibly go wrong?

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Need the author have said more? No! Even if you knew nothing about this book before reading the blurb, you now know that the Night Circus is unlike any you’ve ever seen before.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

This blurb contradicts all the ‘rules’ and simply gives you a teaser about the main character’s memories. We know nothing about what he’s going to do with these memories or why they’ve come to him now, but I mean … there’s an ocean at the end of the lane!! And magic. And dark forces that were absolutely, one hundred percent disturbed.

The Girl With All the Gifts by MR Carey

This is my personal favourite. It’s that sting at the end: But they don’t laugh. Why don’t they laugh? Why is she strapped into a wheelchair every morning, and why is she kept in a cell? Already hooked???

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by JK Rowling

(Apologies for the fuzzy image but this book has been well-read over the years, so maybe no apologies necessary.)

Okay, so this book needs no introduction, but I couldn’t not include it. Yes, indeed, Harry Potter is a wizard. There have been plenty of books written about wizards and witches, and there will be plenty more, so what is it about this blurb that stands out? Is it the mention of Hogwarts and Quidditch that tells the reader there’s something different inside? Knowing the stories as well as we do now, it’s obvious that no more information was required.

Thank you for reading to the end; I hope you enjoyed this dark and magical selection.

Denise x