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by Romona Hilliger

The scars of betrayal burn deep in his the soul of Hunter Kincaid. The tall, striking cattle king remembers, only too well, his teenage love--the girl who betrayed him.

After twelve years of bitter regret and remorse, Becky Carson has returned to Australia. It seems like an omen that she is back to conclude the sale of her legacy; a vast cattle property close to Hunter Kincaid’s. But is it also an omen that she must see him again?

Return -- writing tip

Question from the e-mail: 

I keep getting my books reurned. I don't think they even read the sample chapters and I'm awful at writng the synopsis. How do I write a GOOD synopsis? I tried the "Sum up what happens in each chapter" method and it's still 12 pages long.

Answer:
Synopsis writing is All Telling. It doesn't have to be "good writing," only accurate as to story. Traditionally, it should be in present tense. And it should start with the  "problen sttement" and tell the whole story, without getting lost in the details.

The first thing you need is the "problem statement." Once you get that on the page, the rest of the synopsis will write itself.

If there's no problem, there's no story. First you state your character's problem and then the story is about how they solve it, Or don't.

PROBLEM STATEMENT: Cinderella wants to go to the ball, but she has nothing to wear. 

What about the dying father, the evil stepmother, and the ugly stepsisters? What about how mean they treated Cindy?

That's all back story, It gets mentioned in passing, but it has nothing to do with the real problem so don't concentrate on those details.

Cindy wants to go to the ball, but she  has nothing to wear and no transportation! She weeps as her stepmother and stepsisters leave for the ball in the family coach.

A Fairy-godmother appears and solves the initial problem with a beautiful gown and glass slippers then sends Cindy off to the ball in a magic coach, warning her to leave before midnight or the magic spell will wear off. 

Cindy dances with the prince and falls so in love that she forgets the time.

When the clock strikes midnight, Cindy panics and runs away to find herself outside in the rain, wearing rags and one glass slipper.

The prince runs after her and finds the lost slipper. He vows to and marry the girl whose foot  fits the slipper. He travels throughout the kingdom looking for his love, without success. At last he comes to Cindy's house.

The step-sisters try to force the slipper on their enormous feet, almost breaking it. The prince sees Cindy in the corner, disregards her rags, and tries on the slipper.

It fits! They marry and live happily ever after.

Now that's the synopsis for a story you will certainly have heard before and it's only  seven paragraphs