Once your general idea and outline are complete you can move on to the synopsis. Depending on how much detail you put into your outline, you might already have a good chunk of the synopsis developed.
When I started the process, the synopsis was one of the last things I did and to be honest I really struggled with writing it.
This is why I stress really trying to get a solid outline together first so you have a clear direction of where the whole story is going to go before doing anything else. Pretty much all publishers require a synopsis when pitching your concept to them, so getting it out of the way from the get go will take some pressure of you and allow you to focus on writing the scripts. Another benefit is that it gives you a document to give to potential illustrators that you want to hire. They can then understand what subject matter they will be dealing with and aid in their decision of whether they want to take on the job or not.
I'll add a link below this next section that goes into more detail about writing a 1 page synopsis, but here are a few things I picked up.
TIPS:
- Try to keep it short and to the point.
- One page is ideal for length. Three pages is probably pushing it. (Remember, publishers are getting a lot of submissions and don't have time to read a full dissertation about your story)
- Avoid going into too many details. Don't get into super specifics of each individual issue. Summarize from your outline.
- Don't leave open ended questions. Tell publishers how it starts and ends. Don't worry about spoilers.
- Introduce 3-4 to main characters.
- Keep it to your story. Don't add in sentences saying how great you think the story is. Leave that to the publisher to determine.
- Make sure you have your contact information and the title of the series clearly established.
- Consider a short blurb at the start that details the genre/time period/location/setting of your story.
Here is a link to a good article about writing a 1 page synopsis. (Bonus, she uses Star Wars as the example).
Once you get the synopsis in a good place, you can put it aside and revisit it before you submit your final work to a publisher. You can tweak it as necessary if new ideas come to you as you start writing the scripts.
With that being said, up next, in part 3, I'll take you through writing a script and formatting one.