I’ve been playing around trying to write a blurb for my novel. The blurb is that important paragraph or two which appears on the book’s back cover and may also form part of the Amazon product description. It has to hook, entice and leave readers with absolutely no option but to buy the book!

Searching the internet for help brings up lots of tips and information.

• The website Blurb concludes that it should introduce the main character, create intrigue and not give away the whole story.
• SilverWood Books adds some more pointers. Write in the present tense, use evocative, emotive words and have a ‘shout line’ that encapsulates the novel and could act as a subtitle for the blurb.
• Digital Book World says the blurb should be short and dramatic.
• Alison Baverstock on the Writers and Artists website says, “Stand back and hover above; try to create mood, feeling and value for what you have written, rather than describing it in endless detail.”

I’ve come up with three possible blurbs but I’m too close to the book to judge them objectively. So, I’d be most grateful for any comments and/or votes in the poll below.

Here are the blurbs, subtitled with their ‘shout line’:

Nature or nurture?
Ignatius is the product of a domineering mother. Ian hardly knew his father. Sandra is a single mum living on the poverty line. They all want a better life and someone to share it with.
But now one of them has done something very bad for the second time…
Bedsit Three is a tale of mystery and romance. It won the inaugural Ian Govan Award and was shortlisted for both the Silverwood-Kobo-Berforts Open Day Competition and the Writing Magazine/McCrit Competition.

Single incidents shape our lives.
A stupid mistake ended Ian’s marriage. Now he’s trying to put it right.
Sandra got pregnant as a teenager. Now she’s fighting to make a good life for her daughter.
Maxine made an important decision behind her boyfriend’s back. His reaction devastates all their lives…
Bedsit Three is a tale of mystery and romance. It won the inaugural Ian Govan Award and was shortlisted for both the Silverwood-Kobo-Berforts Open Day Competition and the Writing Magazine/McCrit Competition.

Opposites attract.
Divorced Ian is middleclass and educated. Single mum Sandra has no qualifications and lives on the breadline. Both will fight for the very best for their offspring. Both would like someone special back in their lives.
But the ex-tenant of bedsit three has a secret waiting to engulf all three of them…
Bedsit Three is a tale of mystery and romance. It won the inaugural Ian Govan Award and was shortlisted for both the Silverwood-Kobo-Berforts Open Day Competition and the Writing Magazine/McCrit Competition.