Agency, Please BSB 119

Today on the show, BPF trainer and writer John Phythyon and copywriting guru Abigail Dunard tackle an author-submitted blurb to dissect it and understand how to write killer sales copy. To watch video of this episode, view it on Facebook at Best Page Forward. Here are this episode’s read-along selections: Blurb: Kate the Kitty Goes Potty by Kristine Hokstad-Myzyri

Is potty training going slow? You are not alone. Make potty training fun!

Includes a free potty chart, coloring pages, and worksheets. Kate loves to play outside. But today, playtime is at stake when strange noises in her tummy disturb her. Kate worries when her belly growls like a bear. What is making the sounds? Will she reach the potty in time and complete all the steps, or will she miss playtime?

• Story-driven step-by-step guide to potty training
• Rhyming prompts to make learning fun
• Written by a child care professional
• Beautifully illustrated

A happy, potty-trained toddler in just one easy step. That step is ‘Add to Cart’. Targeted Takeaway: Have you ever solved a problem? You know, one of those big problems? The kind that vexes you, that seems like a giant mountain you could never climb? I’m certain you have. Every one of us has experienced that sense of cutting the Gordian Knot. And it’s a powerful, satisfying feeling. Accomplishment makes us feel alive, strong, potent. When we read, we want that same sensation. In literature, we call this agency. Your MC needs to be able to act on the universe, shape it, master it. They need to be in control of their own destiny. And you have to show this in your book description. Your protagonist should always be the subject of the sentence. To have agency, the protag must perform the action, not have it forced on them. Make them the master of their destiny. Everyone wants agency – in their lives and in their literary heroes. Make sure your protagonist has it and that it shows up in the blurb. Readers will thank you with sales.