BLURBS ... HOW IMPORTANT ARE THEY? ... REALLY? ...

Hi, Everyone,

I hope you all had a great weekend. With the autumn season upon us, it's time to shake things up and move forward.

As most of you know, I have set up a new service creating blurbs. But do we realize how important these few paragraphs are to the overall sales of our books? Extremely. The cover draws the reader in, but it's the blurb that seduces the reader into wanting to read the story. Once hooked, speedy fingers click purchase.

Is your blurb strong enough? Even a published novel can be reborn again with an exciting new blurb. Fellow blogger and published author, Julie Flanders hired me to create a new blurb for her next book, The Ghosts of Aquinnah, a soon to be released novel. After I sent the final draft, she contacted me again to write a new spin on her current novel, Polar Night ...

Just by changing the focus to a different character and adding a bit of tone and atmosphere, a new blurb will appeal to even more potential readers.

Here is the original blurb ... which focuses on the main character. Although the Detective's story is interesting, he's not "the story" he's a player in the story... So Julie decided she wanted to bring the paranormal aspect of the story front and center, therefore changing the focus. 

When Detective Danny Fitzpatrick leaves his hometown of Chicago and moves to Fairbanks, Alaska he wants nothing more than to escape the violence and heartbreak that left his life in pieces. Numbed by alcohol and the frozen temperatures of an Alaskan winter, Danny is content with a dead-end job investigating Fairbanks' cold cases. That all changes when a pretty blond woman goes missing on the Winter Solstice, and Danny stumbles upon some surprising connections between her disappearance and one of his own cold cases. Forced out of his lethargy, Danny sets out to both find the missing woman and solve his old case. 

The investigation points Danny towards Aleksei Nechayev, the handsome and charming proprietor of an old asylum turned haunted tourist attraction in the Arctic town of Coldfoot. While Danny has no evidence to prove Nechayev is involved with the missing women, his instinct tells him that Nechayev is much more than what he seems. 

Danny has no idea that Nechayev is hiding a secret that is much more horrifying than he could ever have imagined. And when his determination to find the missing women sends Danny on a collision course with Nechayev, Danny's life and the world as he knows it will never be the same. 

Here is the new blurb ... I added my atmospheric spin to "the story" and created a more intriguing blurb by just focusing on one main scene. I hope you like it as much as we do ...

At noon the sun awakens as rural Dalton highway is painted on the arctic, Alaskan horizon. Silhouetted against the burning haze, a haunted asylum pierces the never-ending sky.

A woman screams.

A silken voice and a powerful grip to the throat persuades her silence. His classic, Russian features, not unlike the minted image of Czar Nicolas II, remains frozen in time. “Please do not disappoint me like the others, my darling.”

The doorbell chimes. He releases his hold and caresses her cheek. “Natasha,” escapes his lips as he ascends the creaky wooden stairs. A calm hand opens the door. The glistening snow on the front porch pales against Aleksei’s skin and charming smile. 

The callused hand of detective, Danny Fitzpatrick, flashes a search warrant. His puffy, bloodshot eyes lock onto Aleksei’s ...

The young woman cries out, but only Aleksei hears. They will never find you my dear. This beaten and hung over man does not have a clue.

Hours later, the detective crosses the threshold and shudders as if encased in a block of ice. The sun drops to sleep and an eerie shadow creeps along side him. He shakes his head.

Aleksei watches from the peephole. You feel my immortal essence ... do you not.  A forceful hand bolts the door. Aleksei probes his elongating eye teeth. 

It is time for a new plan ...

See how changing the focus draws you in more personally. You are part of the scene, not just looking in. This is how we hook our newest reader. Let them FEEL the story as if part of it. This introduction MUST grab them like icy fingers clutching their arm.

So take a look at your blurb ... would you buy your book?

Take time writing your blurbs ... it is SO important for the success of you book!

And remember I'm here if you need some atmosphere and a change of focus.

Julie Flanders is also hosting an exciting giveaway, so PLEASE drop by her bog to enter ... AND... Polar Night will be available at a special price for a limited time! So hop on over to Julie's blog.

Have a wonderful day everyone ...