Writing Tools
What Is a Synopsis?
A synopsis is a complete summary of your novel that literary agents request alongside a query letter. Unlike a blurb, it reveals the ending and covers every major plot beat, character arc, and turning point.
Best for
Who is the synopsis generator for?
Writers with a finished draft who need a clear, structured summary to include with their agent submissions.
- Novelists preparing query packages for literary agents
- Writers who struggle to condense their plot into a coherent summary
- Authors who want a synopsis that reflects what is actually on the page
Query checklist
- Introduces the protagonist and the central conflict within the first paragraph
- Covers all major turning points and character decisions in order
- Reveals the ending. Agents expect this and will not request pages without it.
- Stays focused on plot and character, not subplots or world-building details
Checklist
What Makes a Strong Synopsis?
A strong synopsis reads like a confident summary of a book worth reading. It covers the full plot without becoming a scene-by-scene recap.
Middle Grade Fantasy
Example Synopsis
See how a strong synopsis introduces a protagonist, tracks the central conflict, and closes on a resolved ending without withholding anything from the agent.
HARRY POTTER is an orphaned eleven-year-old raised by his cold aunt and uncle, who have hidden the truth about his past. On his birthday, a giant arrives to tell him he is a wizard. Harry is admitted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where he learns he is famous: as a baby, he survived an attack by the dark lord VOLDEMORT, who killed his parents. The attack stripped Voldemort of his power, and he has been missing ever since.
Opening
Protagonist, world, and inciting event in one paragraph.
At Hogwarts, Harry makes two close friends and discovers a talent for Quidditch, the school's aerial sport. But his first year brings growing unease: a three-headed dog guards a trapdoor in the school, and the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, PROFESSOR QUIRRELL, seems suspiciously nervous. Harry comes to believe that PROFESSOR SNAPE is plotting to steal whatever lies beneath the trapdoor for Voldemort.
Rising tension
World-building in one sentence. The paragraph prioritizes the mystery and the false conclusion Harry draws.
Harry learns the trapdoor conceals the Philosopher's Stone, capable of producing the Elixir of Life and granting immortality. Convinced Snape is about to steal it, Harry and his friends move to protect the Stone themselves. They pass a series of enchanted obstacles, including a life-sized chess game and a logic puzzle, before Harry reaches the final chamber alone.
Second act turn
Stakes become concrete. The synopsis skips the obstacle sequence and lands on the decision.
In the chamber, Harry discovers that Quirrell, not Snape, is the true villain. Voldemort's spirit lives on the back of Quirrell's head, sustained by unicorn blood. When Harry touches Quirrell, his skin begins to burn. His mother's sacrificial love left a protective magic in Harry's skin that Voldemort cannot withstand. Quirrell dies in the struggle, and Voldemort's spirit flees.
Climax and reversal
Names the twist and explains the mechanic. Agents need to know how the climax resolves, not just that it does.
Harry wakes in the hospital wing. DUMBLEDORE confirms that Snape was protecting Harry all year out of an old debt to his father. The Philosopher's Stone is destroyed. Harry returns home for the summer, knowing now who he is and that Voldemort is still alive and searching for a way back.
Resolution
Closes Harry's arc while leaving the larger threat open. The ending reflects what's actually on the page.
HARRY POTTER is an orphaned eleven-year-old raised by his cold aunt and uncle, who have hidden the truth about his past. On his birthday, a giant arrives to tell him he is a wizard. Harry is admitted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where he learns he is famous: as a baby, he survived an attack by the dark lord VOLDEMORT, who killed his parents. The attack stripped Voldemort of his power, and he has been missing ever since.
At Hogwarts, Harry makes two close friends and discovers a talent for Quidditch, the school's aerial sport. But his first year brings growing unease: a three-headed dog guards a trapdoor in the school, and the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, PROFESSOR QUIRRELL, seems suspiciously nervous. Harry comes to believe that PROFESSOR SNAPE is plotting to steal whatever lies beneath the trapdoor for Voldemort.
Harry learns the trapdoor conceals the Philosopher's Stone, capable of producing the Elixir of Life and granting immortality. Convinced Snape is about to steal it, Harry and his friends move to protect the Stone themselves. They pass a series of enchanted obstacles, including a life-sized chess game and a logic puzzle, before Harry reaches the final chamber alone.
In the chamber, Harry discovers that Quirrell, not Snape, is the true villain. Voldemort's spirit lives on the back of Quirrell's head, sustained by unicorn blood. When Harry touches Quirrell, his skin begins to burn. His mother's sacrificial love left a protective magic in Harry's skin that Voldemort cannot withstand. Quirrell dies in the struggle, and Voldemort's spirit flees.
Harry wakes in the hospital wing. DUMBLEDORE confirms that Snape was protecting Harry all year out of an old debt to his father. The Philosopher's Stone is destroyed. Harry returns home for the summer, knowing now who he is and that Voldemort is still alive and searching for a way back.
Opening
Protagonist, world, and inciting event in one paragraph.
Rising tension
World-building in one sentence. The paragraph prioritizes the mystery and the false conclusion Harry draws.
Second act turn
Stakes become concrete. The synopsis skips the obstacle sequence and lands on the decision.
Climax and reversal
Names the twist and explains the mechanic. Agents need to know how the climax resolves, not just that it does.
Resolution
Closes Harry's arc while leaving the larger threat open. The ending reflects what's actually on the page.
Two ways to start
Synopsis Template or Free Generator
Use the generator for a faster first draft, or use the template to write your own synopsis by hand. Both cover your full plot from start to finish.
Upload Manuscript
Upload your novel as a .docx or .txt file. We read the full manuscript to understand your plot structure, characters, and arc.
Select Your Genre and Length
Choose a short synopsis (one page) or a standard synopsis (two pages), depending on what your target agents request.
Get Your Synopsis
Get a complete synopsis that covers your plot from start to finish, including the ending.
[Opening: Introduce your protagonist and what their ordinary world looks like. Name the inciting event that disrupts it and brings the story's central conflict into focus.]
[Rising tension: Show how the protagonist responds and what obstacles they face. Introduce any key relationships or antagonists that raise the stakes. Name the moment the story turns.]
[Second act: Describe how the protagonist pursues their goal as the pressure mounts. What do they stand to lose? End at the moment of highest tension, just before the climax.]
[Climax: Describe the confrontation or decisive moment and, how it resolves, and how it lands emotionally for the characters.]
[Resolution: What changed for the protagonist internally and externally. Explain the ending. If the book is part of a series, acknowledge what lies ahead, but resolve this book's central conflict.]
Inkshift
Why Writers Struggle with Synopses
- Most writers are too close to their manuscript to summarize it objectively
- It is hard to know which plot points are essential and which can be cut
- Agents have specific expectations about what a synopsis should cover and how long it should be
- Revealing the ending feels wrong, but agents require it
Inkshift reads your manuscript the way an agent does: with fresh eyes and no attachment to the details. The result is a synopsis based on what is actually on the page.
