How To Write a Cover Blurb
By: Dan Brotzel
Tags: Promotion, Creativity, Writing, Fiction Writing, Marketing

How To Write a Cover Blurb

A simple 3-part structure to give impact to your next book

Photo by Anita Jankovic on Unsplash

Writers have issues with blurbs. For every writer who complains about the blurb that’s been written for their book by the publisher, you’ll find another agonising over how to do it themselves.

Personally, if you get the opportunity to write your own cover blurb, I say seize it. For a start, this is your sales pitch and you get control over the way it’s presented. Second, it’s a really useful exercise to try and distil what your book is about into 3 or 4 snappy sentences. When writing a new novel, I always write the blurb up front — it gives me a focus for the story I’m trying to tell.

Once you have a blurb you’re happy with, you can use it (or parts of it) to promote your book in all sorts of marketing contexts — in your guest posts, social posts, email newsletter, on your website, Amazon and elsewhere.

An example

There are various ways to do a blurb. My approach falls into 3 steps, illustrated here with the blurb of my current work-in-progress, The Wolf in the Woods.

THE WOLF IN THE WOODS What if the secrets you keep from each other… are the only things holding you together? [1] When Andrew and Colleen head off for a week at the seaside in a bid to save their marriage, they are amused to discover that their elderly landlord Wolf appears to be spying on them. But their fragile peace comes under pressure as Wolf’s attentions intensify, and the secrets that emerge threaten to tear their world apart… [2] The Wolf in the Woods is a dark comedy about love, marriage and betrayal — and just how much wrong you can do for the right reasons. [3]

Part [1] is the tagline or hook. It’s a question the book raises, or it could be an intriguing quote from a character. It doesn’t have to make complete sense or provide a full explanation — its job is to grab the casual browser’s attention and draw them in. A famous non-fiction example: ‘Warning: Do not read this book if you hate money.’

Part [2] is the plot bit. But this is not an exhaustive summary or technical synopsis. It’s more an elevator pitch, which again is designed to whet our appetite, set up the drama or mystery, and leaves us with that cliffhanger feeling of wanting to know how it all works out. Typically it ends with ellipsis (…) or a question mark. And no spoilers!

Part [3] is more about context and background. This is where you can give an idea of the book’s genre, tone, and themes, and add a critical (if inevitably very positive) evaluation. You might mention another book the author is famous for, or locate this book among others in a similar area, or hint at the kind of people who would enjoy it. Another example: ‘Compulsively readable, The Girl on the Train is an emotionally immersive, Hitchcockian thriller and an electrifying debut.’

Blurb-writing tips

You can apply the above structure to pretty much any type of book. Here are a few more pointers:

Aim to write the blurb in a tone and style that matches that of the book. If your book is zany and playful, get some of that into your blurb.

Be patient. Blurbs aren’t very long but they can take ages to get right. I carry mine around and tinker with it whenever I get a few spare minutes.

Look at the blurb of other books in your genre. Your words should be fresh, but they should also fit in with the style your market expects.

Aim for a word count of 100–250 words. (Mine above is 102.)

Don’t get into subplots or internal character journeys — focus on key conflicts, high stakes, and external events.

Dan Brotzel (@brotzel_fiction) is author of a collection of short stories, Hotel du Jack, and co-author of a new comic novel about an eccentric writers’ group, Kitten on a Fatberg (Unbound).

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