Your Proposal’s Secret Weapons: Title, Hook, Comps, and Synopsis

Feel free to share your answer in the comments! Frankly, I vote for #2 – ha! I don’t run into many authors who love creating book proposals. For many of us, assembling the block of elements like our bio, marketing information, platform, and sample content feels like a time suck because we’ve already spent so much time writing our project.

However, a proposal is more than the “buy me” document that an editor or publishing committee considers; it is also the valuable scaffolding authors need when drafting or refining their manuscripts. It’s tempting to skate by with the bare minimum in a proposal. Often, there’s a little voice that whispers, “Just put something down. You can figure out the rest later.” However, whatever a writer shortcuts in the proposal often comes back to bite them when writing or revising the full concept after a contract is signed.

Today’s post highlights four under-appreciated elements of a proposal that authors tend to shortcut and how these elements are secret weapons that can make your project shine.

Yes, we all love book titles. However, just because you love your book title doesn’t mean that it is the right title for your project. Literary agents and publishing teams evaluate titles for discoverability – meaning, how easy will it be for readers to find your book? A question to ask is: Does your title have keywords that readers will use? This is more applicable to non-fiction than to fiction, but novelists will need to address it in their hooks and book descriptions. For everyone, keep this in mind: If your book’s title is too creative, readers may never see it in online searches, where most shoppers purchase books these days.

Hooks are the TikToks of books. Just as a brief TikTok video prompts someone to stop the scroll and watch, hooks briefly highlight the “wow” elements of a project that prompt a prospective reader to stick around and find out more.

In my experience of reading queries and hearing pitches, most people confuse a hook with a book description. Hooks convey what’s unique and attention-grabbing, while a book description describes basic details. Based on that, which one do you think will command more interest?

For example:

Hooks sell. Keep that in mind and put the time into developing a good one.

Comparables are highly underestimated! It’s important to know how your book compares to recent books on the market. This comes down to good ole’ fashioned market research, which you can conduct on Amazon. Yet, for some, figuring out comparables feels overwhelming. For some, wading through a pile of possibilities feels daunting. Others feel discouraged when they see too many similar books.

May I offer a different perspective? I love comparables because they can give you a leg up on your project. Those competitive books are already published, but you can use those comments to help you make your project better.  If you read the comments, the readers provide valuable inside scoop into their buying behavior. Such as:

As you study those comparables, you can see whether there are reader patterns that you need to pay attention to in your manuscript, whether it’s a novel or non-fiction. Don’t underestimate the valuable information that comparables offer to you!

I call this the “sleeper” element. Most people approach writing a synopsis or chapter summaries as the section they need to toss together. The sample chapters receive our main focus. However, the synopsis (novelists) and the chapter summaries (non-fiction) offer the framework for the project that you’ll come back to after you’ve signed the contract.

I interviewed one of my newer agency clients after the release of their first book. I asked what they want to do differently the next time. Their answer: “I will definitely develop my chapter summaries more fully! I figured out the topic, but I didn’t think through what the reader needed or the transformation experience.”

One of the most important “checks” you can conduct after creating your synopsis/chapter summaries is to map the transformation journey. If you’re a novelist, look at your synopsis and chart how the stakes/plot transform your character during the course of the novel. If you’re writing a non-fiction project, look at your chapter summaries and make sure that you’ve clearly conveyed the “from here to there” journey that you’re taking them on.

If there’s no transformation journey, you’re merely accompanying the reader between a series of topics and events.