When I was preparing my entry for the Emerging Dagger award (then the Debut Dagger) last year, it was the 1,500-word synopsis that I found most daunting. 

I’d not written a synopsis of more than 300-400 words before, and I hadn’t finished my manuscript, so I didn’t have all the answers to my plot questions when I sat down to prepare my entry. Although I’m more of a plotter than a pantser, I only had about enough detail for a standard synopsis and was missing around 1,000 words’ worth of plot points and twists. But my entry for Unnatural Predators went on to be shortlisted, so my synopsis must have been okay!

Plot focus

In the end I found writing the 1,500-word synopsis to be a very worthwhile exercise because it forced me to think about and answer all the plot questions raised in my manuscript and my opening 3,000 words was the better for it.

Here are my top tips for nailing your Emerging Dagger synopsis.

Use every word

The rules specify that your synopsis should be a maximum of 1,500 words so you don’t have to submit a synopsis of that length. But I recommend you use every word that’s available to you. Be equally careful, however, that you don’t go over the maximum word count or your entry will be disqualified. My final synopsis was 1498 words. 

Polish, polish, polish

It’s tempting to put all your efforts into polishing your 3,000-word opening and either leaving the synopsis to the last minute or not giving it the time and attention that it warrants.

But the synopsis is what sells your story. It brings the whole package together so you should be prepared to put quite a bit of time into it and to write several drafts. 

I did 3 drafts of my synopsis over a period of a few weeks, constantly going back to it and trying to polish and refine it further. 

Remember the judging criteria

The judges award points for the following criteria: 

• Quality of prose
• Originality of plot
• Execution of plot
• Narrative voice
• Plausibility
• Characterisation
• Evocative setting
• Good read factor

So, make sure that your synopsis (and not just your opening) addresses each of these criteria. The quality of writing in your synopsis should be just as good as your story excerpt and leave the judges desperate to read your novel even though you’ve told them all the twists and turns.

Give away everything

Your synopsis isn’t a teaser. It needs to give away all the plot twists and answer all the questions raised in your opening. This isn’t the place to drop hints and leave the judges hanging. People often ask if they should include the ending in their synopsis and the answer is a firm yes. Your synopsis isn’t a book blurb – it should be a concise outline of your novel from start to finish. That can be difficult if, like me, you haven’t finished your manuscript but that’s what brainstorming is for! I had post it notes all over the walls of our spare room as I tried to nut out the various points to include in my synopsis.

Don’t get caught in the detail

Although your synopsis needs to include the outline of your story (including sub-plots), be careful not to include so many minor details that your synopsis starts to become a document that says ‘and then… and then… and then…’ In fact, if you can avoid saying ‘and then’ in your synopsis altogether, that’s a good thing!

Writing the synopsis is challenging, but it’s worth putting the time into it. Good luck and may you write a synopsis that blows the judges away!

Caroline Arnoul

Caroline is a writer, editor and book coach based in the Mornington Peninsula, outside Melbourne, Australia. Her crime novel in progress, Unnatural Predators, was shortlisted for the Debut Dagger in 2024. 

Writers might also like to read advice on writing a synopsis on the website of the Emerging Author Dagger sponsor, Fiction Feedback.