The thought of writing a synopsis, either for a screenplay that’s about to be developed or an already finished screenplay, makes most screenwriters sick. Even though screenwriters don’t feel good about writing it, they must do it because it’s a movie producer’s best friend. In this post, I’ll try as much as possible to reduce the amount of frustration you feel when it’s time to write one by giving you simple strategies that work, but first, let’s know what a synopsis means.

WHAT IS IT?

We’ll be looking at some dictionary definitions of the word “synopsis,” and at the end of those definitions, we’ll combine all the definitions to get what we need as screenwriters.

1) Wiktionary definition: “a brief summary of the major points of a written work, either as prose or as a table; an abridgement or condensation of a work.”

2) Oxford Languages’ definition: “a brief summary or general survey of something.”

Combining the definitions above to get what we need as screenwriters, we can say that a synopsis is a brief summary of the major points of a screenplay.

WHY IS IT NECESSARY?

From the definitions above, you can see why synopses are loved by movie producers. Instead of reading 70 to 120 pages of a screenplay and, in the end, the movie producer doesn’t like it, the movie producer will only be reading less than or equal to a page or at most two pages because the screenwriter has summarised all the “major” points of the screenplay. In Nigeria, if after reading your synopsis, the movie producer likes what you’ve written, your screenplay is as good as sold.

HOW TO PROFESSIONALLY SUMMARISE USING MICROSOFT WORD:

As a screenwriter, you have only a page or at most two to prove to a movie producer that you have a screenplay that makes sense, so don’t blow up your opportunity. When you submit your synopsis, the first thing a movie producer sees is how professionally structured and written it is before he or she starts reading the content. If it isn’t structured properly, the movie producer might just conclude that there’s no need to waste time reading the content since you couldn’t even structure it properly. For anything you’ve written to be called a synopsis, it must have the following:

1) Title: Yes, a title. You read that right. I don’t know the reason you’ll give as a screenwriter for giving your reader something to read that doesn’t have a name. Your screenplay title should be centred.
2) Submission: Beneath the title, you should let your reader know that what you’ve submitted is a synopsis. You can do this by writing either “Synopsis by” or “A feature screenplay synopsis by,” and this should be centred.
3) Screenwriter: Your reader should know the name of the person whose synopsis he or she is reading. This should be in the centre beneath “Synopsis by”.
4) Contact Details: The sole reason for sending your synopsis to a producer is to be contacted if he or she likes what you’ve written. How can that happen when the producer can’t find your contact details (email address and/or phone number)? There are two ways to write this: either beneath your name (centred) or at the end of your write-up (bottom left).
5) Logline: This one-sentence write-up should appear beneath the contact details (for screenwriters who prefer writing their contact details above) or beneath the name (for screenwriters who prefer writing their contact details at the bottom). This shouldn’t be centred, but written from the left to the right margin of the page.
6) Synopsis: Beneath the logline, write the word “Synopsis:” (left of the page), and then beneath the word “Synopsis:”, start your write-up.

GUIDELINES FOR WRITING YOUR SYNOPSIS:

The write-up of your synopsis needs to look and sound a certain way, so now that we’re done with how to professionally structure your synopsis, let’s jump into the guidelines for writing your synopsis.

1) Introduction: To start writing your synopsis, you’ll have to introduce your protagonist to your reader.
2) The Main Conflict: The main conflict in your story must be highlighted, and then you must show how your protagonist overcomes it.
3) Connection: Make your reader feel emotionally connected to your characters by showing the emotions and motivations of your characters so that the story becomes more relatable and engaging. This should be as brief as possible.
4) Ease: Your synopsis should be simple and easy to understand. Avoid using technical terms that may not be familiar to the reader. You should also avoid using words that will send your reader to the dictionary every minute; that can cause distraction and frustration in the end, which will cause your synopsis to be thrown away.
5) Block Letters: When a name appears for the first time in the write-up, write it in capital letters.
6) Present Tense: Your write-up should be written in the present tense and in the third person singular.
7) Paragraphs: Use paragraphs. It makes your write-up easy to read.
8) Length: The length of synopses shouldn’t be more than a page, at most two pages, because you’re summarising the major points of your screenplay.
9) Font: Using MS Word, your font size should be 12, and your font should either be Arial or Times New Roman because they are easy-to-read fonts. The title can be in a different font, but it should be easy to read.
10) The End: Your synopsis should include the resolution of the story and leave the reader with a sense of closure. “I won’t write how it ended because my work might be stolen,” is what most screenwriters say. If you don’t want to write the end of your synopsis, there’s no need to send it out, because whoever reads it wants to have a sense of how it ends. However, the only thing you can do is creatively withhold the details of how it ended. In other words, say how it ended without giving too many details.

READ: The Inciting Incident: How to Start Your Story with a Bang

The power of any screenplay is having a beautifully crafted logline alongside it. However, writing a logline seems to be a turnoff to most screenwriters, not just beginners but also professionals. It’s very important to note that when it’s time to write a logline, you should be ready to either send pieces of paper to the bin or make the backspace button on your keyboard your finger’s friend because writing a logline that works isn’t something that comes easily. Don’t be afraid; even though it’s a bit tricky, screenwriters write it every day, so you can too.

In this post, you’ll get to know what a logline is, why it’s necessary to write one, and how to craft a compelling one for your screenplay using a formula that has worked countless times for many screenwriters.

WHAT IS A LOGLINE?

We’ll be looking at some dictionary definitions of the word “logline,” and at the end of those definitions, we’ll combine all the definitions to get what we need as screenwriters.

1) Wiktionary definition – “a very short summary of a script or screenplay.”

2) Wikipedia definition – “a log line or logline is a brief (usually one-sentence) summary of a television program, film, or book that states the central conflict of the story, often providing both a synopsis of the story’s plot and an emotional “hook” to stimulate interest.”

Combining the definitions above to get what we need as screenwriters, we can say that a logline is a brief summary of a screenplay in one sentence that stimulates the interest of the reader.

Can you now see why I mentioned it earlier as being a turnoff to most screenwriters, even professionals? How can you invest so much time into writing a screenplay, and the logline says, “Summarise the whole thing you’ve written into one sentence?”

Synopses and loglines summarise a screenplay, but the difference between them is that synopses summarise a screenplay on a page, whereas loglines summarise a screenplay in a sentence.

WHY IS IT NECESSARY?

Here, we’ll be looking at why it’s important to write a logline from two angles: one when writing a screenplay and the other when selling a screenplay.

1) WHEN WRITING: For screenwriters who prefer to write a logline before the screenplay, you’ll immediately know where you should go when writing because it’s very easy to finish a screenplay without knowing what your protagonist’s goal is. For screenwriters who prefer to write a logline after the screenplay, the logline will make you ask yourself, “What is the goal of my protagonist?”

2) WHEN SELLING: From our definition above, a logline is defined as a brief summary of a screenplay in a sentence that stimulates the interest of the reader. If you fail to write a logline as a screenwriter, you’ll have a difficult time finding a producer who is interested in your screenplay. The moment you tell a producer you have a screenplay to sell, the first question you’ll be asked is, “What is the screenplay about?” At this point, the only thing the producer wants to hear is your logline, because that’s the only thing that will stimulate his or her interest in your work and not waste his or her time.

HOW TO CRAFT A COMPELLING LOGLINE?

In music, there’s something called a hook. That part of a song that takes you to the moon whenever you listen to the song; that part of a song that keeps playing in your head when you’re asleep; and that part of a song you can sing best even when you don’t know the verses. A well-crafted logline should be able to “hook” your readers. It should be able to make whoever you tell about it want to read your screenplay. If your logline doesn’t have such strength, nobody would want to see your “blockbuster” screenplay.

For your screenplay to have such strength, you should have a clear idea of what your story is about. If your logline doesn’t make sense to you, the screenwriter, it won’t make sense to anyone. It all starts with you. For whatever you’ve written to be called a logline, it must have the following:

1) Protagonist: There has to be someone pushing the story forward, and that person should be in the logline.
2) Goal: The protagonist should be after something.
3) Stake: There should be something the protagonist must do if he or she doesn’t want to get into serious trouble, either with life or with someone.
4) The Protagonist’s Name: When writing a synopsis, the protagonist’s name is what you start with, but when writing a logline, the protagonist’s name should never be mentioned.
5) Length: A logline should never be more than one sentence.
6) Write-up: Loglines should be written in the present tense and in the third-person singular.
7) Adjective: Using an adjective gives the reader a deeper knowledge of your protagonist and why the journey is important to him or her.

FORMULA:

Due to how difficult it is to come up with a well-crafted logline, the use of a simple formula is very important. Feel free to create yours only when you totally understand it, but for now, here’s the formula to use whenever it’s time to face the giant. The formula is “PGS,” which stands for protagonist, goal, and stake, and the order is [protagonist] + [goal] + [stake]. Using this formula, let’s analyze some logline examples using the formula.

Example One:

Logline: A desperate lawyer must find a man who will get married to her despite her profession before she gets to menopause.

THE BREAKDOWN:

Protagonist: The protagonist happens to be the lawyer; this means that the lawyer will be the one pushing the story forward. I hope you can also see the power of using an adjective in a logline.

Goal: The lawyer’s goal is to find a man who wouldn’t be scared to get married to her because she’s a lawyer.

Stake: If the desperate lawyer doesn’t act fast, she will fall into a serious problem with life, and in this case, it’s called menopause.

Example Two:

Logline: A fresh graduate must disguise himself to save his late father’s company, which is about to be ruined by the acting head.

THE BREAKDOWN:

Protagonist: The protagonist in this logline happens to be the graduate, and once again, you can see how powerful and deep an adjective makes a protagonist to be. Using the word “fresh” shows that the graduate will make some mistakes due to inexperience.

Goal: The goal of the fresh graduate (protagonist) is to save his late father’s company from ruin.

Stake: If the fresh graduate doesn’t act fast, his late father’s company would be ruined by someone, and in this case, it’s the acting head.

QUESTION:

I have some questions to ask you after our use of the formula, and these questions are as follows:

1) Did you notice any character names in our logline?
2) Was the write-up longer than one sentence?
3) Were the loglines written in the third person singular and in the present tense?
4) Was the logline difficult to read and understand?

Use the above formula whenever you need help writing a logline, but feel free to only break the rule when you understand the rule.

READ: Synopsis Writing Made Easy: Simple Strategies for Your Story

Some screenwriters believe that the protagonist is the good character and the antagonist is the bad character, but is this true? Most screenwriters go a step further, believing that the protagonist wants something and the antagonist is the character who tries to stop the protagonist from achieving his or her goal, but is that absolutely true?

Another area of confusion for screenwriters is that since the protagonist is the good character and the antagonist is the bad character, who then is the main character? Is the main character still the same character as the protagonist? If yes, why don’t we just call the main character the protagonist and forget calling another character the main character?

If you’ve ever been this confused about these character titles, the role they play in a movie, and how to identify them, that will be a thing of the past because this post will expose everything you need to know about them. Let’s get the first thing straight: without a protagonist, there isn’t a story. That brings us to the next question: who really is a protagonist?

WHO REALLY IS A PROTAGONIST?

There are millions of definitions as to who a protagonist is, but the simplest of them all is that a protagonist is the character who pushes the story or plot forward through the decisions he or she makes.

THE IMPORTANCE OF A PROTAGONIST IN STORYTELLING

From the definition of a protagonist above, the major importance of a protagonist is to move the story forward. No other character in a story can do that. Let’s see an image (Freytag Pyramid) from Research Gate.

From the image above of a plot structure, you can see that there are different stages and that to move from one stage to the next, the screenwriter, every character, and the story depend on the protagonist to take the first step to move from the exposition to the rising action, to the climax to the falling action, and to the resolution. This simply means that if the protagonist is static, everything concerning the story you’re telling will also be static.

QUALITIES OF A PROTAGONIST

1) Goal-oriented: The reason why the protagonist is so powerful is that he or she always wants something, and it’s his or her desire that causes him or her to make decisions that push the story forward.

2) Decision Maker: To know the protagonist in a movie or in your story, look for the character that makes critical decisions that change the whole dynamics of the story.

THE PARTIAL TRUTH ABOUT AN ANTAGONIST

Some screenwriters say that the antagonist is the character who tries to stop the protagonist from achieving their goals. Even though this definition sounds correct, it is only correct when the protagonist and the main character are the same person.

Since there are no formulas for writing a story, there are some stories where the antagonistic character isn’t after the protagonist but after the main character, and in these types of stories, you can see that the above definition isn’t exactly true.

WHAT IS TRUE ABOUT AN ANTAGONIST?

Scenario One: When the protagonist and the main character are the same person, the antagonistic character goes after the protagonist because he or she is also the main character.

Scenario Two: When the protagonist is different from the main character, the antagonist leaves the protagonist and goes after the main character. Let me use a typical Nollywood movie to illustrate this.

WHEN THE PROTAGONIST AND THE MAIN CHARACTER ARE THE SAME

This is a story about a man who killed a lady’s mother whilst he was a thug, but now he’s repented and goes job hunting. The lady whose mother he killed is in charge of recruitment in the whole city, and she’s out for revenge to make sure he doesn’t get a job anywhere in the city.

In this story, the man doubles as the protagonist and the main character, and the lady becomes the antagonist. The lady isn’t after the protagonist, but after the main character.

WHEN THE PROTAGONIST AND THE MAIN CHARACTER ARE DIFFERENT

This is a story about a mother whose son has been married to a lady for twelve years, and the lady hasn’t given birth to any children. In this story, the son is the protagonist, the lady becomes the main character, and the mother becomes the antagonist. The question is, “Who is the antagonist after?” She’s after the lady, not her son.

From the above, you can see that these two scenarios have gone ahead to show that an antagonist only goes after the main character in a story. Who exactly is an antagonist?

WHO IS AN ANTAGONIST?

An antagonist is a character who tries to inflict pain on the main character. I know you think my definition should be “an antagonist is the character who tries to stop the main character from achieving their goals,” but the question is, do main characters have goals? The answer is no. Protagonists are the only characters with goals. A main character can have a goal only when he or she is the same person as the protagonist.

ARE ANTAGONISTS ALWAYS BAD CHARACTERS?

The answer is no. The antagonistic character in a story isn’t necessarily the bad character, but an antagonist is always the opposite of the main character. Let’s see some examples together.

Example 1: The Good Antagonist

If the main character spends too much money, the antagonist becomes the character who tries to inflict pain on the main character by teaching him or her how to spend wisely. Even though the character is called the antagonist in this case, we all know that the antagonist is doing something good.

Example 2: The Bad Antagonist

If the main character is a herbal doctor who heals everyone who comes to him, the antagonist becomes a jealous character whose aim is to inflict pain on the main character by chasing all the herbal doctor’s clients away.

WHO IS THE MAIN CHARACTER?

The main character in a story is the character who is affected by the decision of the protagonist. What this means is that if the protagonist and main character are the same person, the decision made affects the same person. If the main character and the protagonist aren’t the same person, the decision made affects another character who is the main character.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PROTAGONISTS AND MAIN CHARACTERS

The differences below should help you identify who they are in your story, and this difference exists only if and only if they are different characters.

1) Protagonists have goals, but the main character doesn’t have a goal.
2) The dress of the plot structure fits the protagonists when it’s worn but doesn’t fit the main characters.
3) Protagonists make decisions, and the protagonist’s decisions have an impact on the main character.
4) Main characters don’t push stories forward; protagonists are the only characters that possess such power.
5) Audiences are more focused on the main character’s journey than the protagonist’s.
6) Protagonists and antagonists can work together to hurt the main character, but the main character can never join forces with the antagonist because they are always the opposite; that is, they always want different things.
7) The arc of the main characters is always obvious to the audience, but the arc of the protagonists may or may not be obvious to the audience.

READ: Screenplay Elements 101: How To Make Your Script Unique

Knowledge of these screenwriting terms is very important for a screenwriter who is starting his or her journey into the screenwriting world. Knowing these terms will help you flow with the conversation of other screenwriters, as they won’t be able to tell that you’re a novice. It will also help you understand the screenplays you’ll be reading. Trust me, you’ll need to read as many screenplays as possible. Here are some of the screenwriting terms you need to know:

ADAPT: To write a screenplay from a pre-existing story.

ANTAGONIST: An antagonist is a character who tries to inflict pain on the main character.

BACK TO: This is a transition that is used when going back to a scene that was left for another scene.

BACK TO PRESENT DAY: This is an indication that a character has finished remembering past events and is back in reality.

BEAT: Indicates a short pause.

CHARACTER: This is an imaginary person in a story.

COMMISSIONED SCRIPT: This is a screenplay written by a screenwriter who has been paid to write.

CONTINUOUS: The movement of a character’s action from one scene to another without interruption in time.

CUT TO: A quick switch in scenes.

DIALOGUE: The conversation that goes on between the characters.

DOUBLE BEAT: Indicates a longer pause.

EXT.: This means exterior. It simply means the scene should be shot outside.

FICTION: This is a story that isn’t based on facts. It is a fabricated and untrue story.

FADE IN: This is used at the beginning of a screenplay. It means the shot should be brought in slowly from complete darkness to a normal scene.

FADE OUT: This is used at the end of a screenplay. It means the shot should be taken slowly from a complete scene to darkness.

FLASHBACK: This is used whenever a character wants to remember a past event.

FORESHADOWING: This is an advance hint a screenwriter gives for a future event in the story.

INSERT: This is used when the screenwriter wants to direct the camera to something important in the scene, usually inanimate objects such as a wall clock, a ring that fell on the floor, a piece of paper, and so on.

INT.: This means interior. It simply means the scene should be shot inside.

I/E (INT./EXT.): This means in a particular scene, the camera will be taking shots from the inside (INT.) and outside (EXT.).

INCITING INCIDENT: This is a stirred-up event that destabilises and gives the protagonist a goal.

INTERCUT WITH: This is a transition that takes us back and forth between two or more scenes.

LATER: This is the passage of a long time period.

LOCATION: The entire environment that is considered for shots to take place.

LOGLINE: This is a brief summary of a screenplay in one sentence that stimulates the interest of the reader.

MAIN CHARACTER: This is the character that is affected by the decision of the protagonist.

MOMENTS LATER: This is the passage of a short time period.

MONTAGE: The sequence of brief actions.

NON-FICTION: This is a story that is based on facts (a true-life story).

O.S./O.C.: This means off-screen (O.S.) and off-camera (O.C.). This is used when an off-shot character speaks to an in-shot character.

OUTLINE: A scene-by-scene breakdown of a story.

PLOT: This is an interrelated sequence of events that come together to form a story.

PROTAGONIST: The character who pushes the story or plot forward through the decisions he or she makes.

QUERY: This is a written pitch.

SCENE: This is a particular place in a location where an event is to be shot.

SCREENWRITER: A person who writes a screenplay.

SCREENPLAY: A written breakdown of a story into scenes for a motion picture with instructions from the screenwriter.

SHOOTING SCRIPT: This is the director’s and the cinematographer’s copy. The shooting script is more complex because all the shots have been planned so that shooting can be easier and faster.

SLUG LINE/SCENE HEADING: A group of block letters that begins a scene.

SPEC SCRIPT: A spec script, also known as a speculative script, is a screenplay written without being paid to write, but the screenwriter has the intention to sell it after it is written.

STORY: The sequence of real or fictional events.

SUBTEXT: This is the underlying meaning of dialogue.

SUPER: This is the short form for superimpose. Whenever it’s seen in a screenplay, it means whatever is written there should be displayed on top of the shot. For example: two years later, one month later, etc.

SYNOPSIS: A brief summary of the major points of a screenplay.

V.O.: This means voice-over. It’s used when a character seen on screen says what’s on his or her mind without his or her mouth moving; it can be used when a character is remembering what another character said; and it can also be used when a character’s voice is heard over the phone, radio, or walkie-talkie.

With the above simply defined screenwriting terms, you have no reason to be afraid of the gathering of screenwriters who use these terms, nor do you have a reason to be afraid to speak in the gathering of screenwriters using these screenwriting terms.

Please note that this isn’t the entire list of screenwriting terms, but with these few terms, you can be comfortable whilst you learn more for yourself. When it comes to screenwriting, the more you write, the more you learn.

READ: Plot Structure 101: The Anatomy Of A Great Screenplay