Great feedback about how we select our books. I, too, am an “impulse book buyer.” Like many of us on this thread, I‘m a visual person and look at a cover first. Then, I read the back cover copy…which brings me to a great writing exercise I want to share with y’all.

If you currently have a book project in mind, or if you’ve already written a book (this goes for both fiction and non-fiction) I encourage you to sit down and write your own BACK COVER COPY. Writing this tight is a lot harder than you think.

This is such a good exercise, that I have begun to include this text as a section in ALL of my book proposals. BACK COVER COPY has its own heading in my book proposals and this is where I include my “grab you by the seat of your pants short-n-sweet overview.” This text block must be no more than 200 words maximum and its better if it’s between 100-150 words. As you can see, this isn’t a complete overview, or even a synopses…it’s exactly what it’s called, BACK COVER COPY.

Of course this does NOT mean this is the actual back cover copy that will eventually go on your book, but if it’s good, the publisher will gladly use it, or at least incorporate aspects of it within the back cover copy they will produce. Remember, when we write we must always have our target market readers in mind. When writing back cover copy your target market is the reader who has picked up your book from a ga-zillion other books on the shelf. Perhaps they liked the cover design, maybe the title spoke to them, maybe the author who wrote the endorsement quote on the cover is a favorite, or maybe even the color of the cover caught their eye…whatever the reason, picture someone standing in an airport bookstore, or in Wal-Mart, or at their local chain bookstore, or maybe they are sitting at their desk and reading the cover blurbs online at Amazon.com. Got that picture of your target market in your mind? Okay, now, you have less than one minute to grab this particular readers’ attention. Less than one minute, ladies.

See why back cover copy is so vital? Try this writing exercise and let us know on this thread how it worked for you. This is an especially good writing exercise for books in progress…even if you’ve only just begun and aren’t even certain how your book will end.

The first back cover copy that I wrote for my debut novel, A Stitch in Time, was 352 words. It conveyed the overall gist of the book for the publishers…but it was too long. Here it is:

As a successful fund-raising executive in Southern California, Dee Decker’s glamorous job revolves around one gala event after another. In a world populated by highly competitive, impossibly thin, perfectly coiffed, designer outfitted women who lunch-for-a-living, Dee is extremely overweight but nonetheless has a well-earned reputation of being cool, calm, collected and in control. That is until she discovers her husband has been having an affair and their two spoiled adult children who still live at home knew all about it. A Stitch in Time spotlights the disintegration of a family without faith and their survival as Dee embarks on a journey of transformational change and self-discovery.

After leaving her husband and moving into the beautifully furnished home of a business associate in the city of Orange, Dee undergoes gastric bypass surgery and in less than one year loses 150 pounds. Several plastic surgeries ensue, and in a short time Dee truly does become another person—all the while taking on more and more special event responsibilities including the development of a major fundraising campaign for a soon-to-be non-profit arts organization in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Back and forth she travels—from one state—one world—to another. Is divorce the answer? How could she have raised such horrid kids? Is the grass really greener on the other side? Who’s in control? As her past and present collide, forcing her to make painful decisions about the future, Dee experiences a significant spiritual shift—an occurrence that changes not only her life, but eventually the lives of her family as well.

Narrated in Dee’s smart, refreshingly transparent voice, Stitch takes us on a journey of the painful, poignant and sometimes hilarious self-image struggles that impact Dee’s understanding of life, marriage, faith, family, and forgiveness.

A Stitch in Time raises the questions of what happens when we strive to be perfect in an imperfect world—when our insecurities, fears, and the inability to forgive, keep us distanced from those we love. Dee’s focus on outer beauty and self-improvement leads her to discover a timeless truth—a truth that will bring inner beauty and change her life.

– The End –

While the above text was NOT used on the back cover, my publisher (Bethany House Publishing) used sections of it in their catalog, in press releases, and shared it with their distributors and sales team. This tight overview enabled their team to better visualize the book.

Now, this is the back cover copy that actually appeared on the book. It is 90 words long.

Dee is out to prove that a middle-aged Christian woman can be faithful, fashionable, and fabulous! In the course of one year Dee Decker…has gastric bypass surgery and loses 150 pounds…separates from her husband…buys a whole new wardrobe…flourishes in her glamorous fundraiser job…and becomes a Christian. She’s a new person inside and out, and her future looks bright. But then a job offer sends her life in a direction she hadn’t expected. Her past and present are about to collide in a major way…and Dee didn’t bring the right shoes! - The End -

Okey dokey. I’ll close this posting and come back with a response to the question about how God Allows U-Turns got started.

Oh, and, Queen Jaw-Jaw? Just read the back cover copy on your book: “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Throne,” and it clearly conveys what the book is about. Good job! The endorsement quotes are also written in such a way as to tell me what this book is about, not just what the endorser thought about the book. If anyone wants to discuss the topic of “the value of endorsement quotes in book proposals and on book covers,” please post the question and I’ll talk more about that.

Onward!