Laura L. Holloway has been called Goat Girl, Animal Queen, and a Warrior Poet; semi-feral, fierce, and unabashedly “sensitive.” She lives amidst the forest outside a small mountain town in Colorado, where she spends most of her time cleaning up after companion animals, frolicking through the woods, scribbling in her journals, and puttering around the farmstead sanctuary, daydreaming about butterflies and other magical beasts.

She loves long walks in the woods with her pack of dogs, goats, llama, and the occasional enthusiastic cat, and never worries about looking like a total dork to her super-cool teenaged son. Laura aspires to master (and write about) the Art of Truly Loving Herself (really and for real), as well as loving this whole weird, wonderful world of whack-a-doodle Humanity. She also intends to lay off the chocolate, and to not take in any more cats. “Dancing with Demons: A Love Story” is her first proper book.

NOW AVAILABLE

Dancing With Demons: A Love Story

This is a love story, but not the one you’re expecting.

For Laura Holloway—single mom to a teenage boy, owner of a thriving pet-care business—certain aspects of life have always felt elusive. Lasting romance. A secure sense of self in a disorienting world. A home of her own in the countryside, with huge windows and land enough for llamas and goats.

Now in the throes of middle age, a dog attack brings an emotional reckoning, forcing her to face the darkest parts of herself. Will she always feel the stifling grip of fear and loneliness? Can she manifest the inner peace she truly yearns for? Will she ever feel comfortable in this frightening world of humans when animals are so much easier to understand?

And so the dance begins—a dance with her demons. Through vulnerable journal entries written over the course of three years, Holloway recounts a period of candid transformation, real-time.

“A book for sensitive souls, big-feeling beings, animal rescuers, and lovers of the natural world, with remarkable emotional depth”

– Kristen Moeller, MS, literary agent, and author of What Are You Waiting For? and Phoenix Rising: Stories of Remarkable Women Walking through Fire

Now Available

Support Local Authors
BUY DIRECT

Dancing With Demons: A Love Story

Holloway, Laura L

Buy Now

or wherever books are sold.

Please note: Due to Amazon’s continued problems, this book may not be available at its retail price and only through 3rd party sellers at increased markups. Please consider Barnes & Noble if purchasing from an online retailer.

The back cover copy you write for your book is among the most important marketing messages you’ll craft. It’s the essence of your book’s most exciting features, distilled into a few hundred words. It typically serves as the foundation for your online book descriptions, as well as any press releases or pitches you make to the media. It will get re-used and re-fashioned for dozens of purposes. Whatever labor you expend on perfecting it will reward you in the long run.

Here are the key principles that publishers and authors alike use to create what should become a masterpiece of your book marketing and an essential piece of your book metadata.

Back Cover Copy for Nonfiction (Non-Narratives)

The most important question you must answer in your back cover copy is: Why and how will the reader benefit from this book? If you know your audience well, then you know the problems they face; your back cover copy should tell how your book addresses these problems head on and helps readers overcome a challenge or succeed.

Two of the most common mistakes that nonfiction authors make in crafting their back cover is:

Focusing too much on a description of the book’s content, rather than how the content will help, inform, or entertain the reader
Focusing too much on the author’s background, rather than how the author’s credentials or experience helps them expertly address the subject matter

Rather than crafting copy that’s a long, solid block of text, you can help ensure the copy is read by including (in this order):

A headline at the top of the cover that succinctly sums up the key benefit or selling point of the book—or consider a convincing quote (blurb) from a recognizable authority who recommends the book
About a 100-200 word summary that expands upon the headline and demonstrates the value of the book
A bullet list of features and benefits the book provides to readers
A final sentence or two to close the message, with a mention of the author’s credentials if not earlier described
(optional) Praise (blurbs) for the book from recognizable authorities
(optional) A brief author bio and author photo at the bottom of the cover

A professional designer can work wonders in arranging this information in a way that helps it get read, especially if you have a range of elements you’re trying to assemble (description, blurbs, bio, photo, awards, and so on).

Back Cover Copy for Fiction (and Nonfiction Narratives)

It’s not uncommon for traditional publishers to put nothing but blurbs or book reviews on a novel’s back cover, especially if it’s by an author who is already well-known. But that’s rarely the best strategy for authors who don’t already have an established audience. Potential readers will want to know what the story is about before committing, and the hook you provide may determine whether they start reading the first page or chapter. (The same is true of memoir and other true-to-life stories.)

The hook for the back cover isn’t so different from the hook you’d put in a query letter to a literary agent. The hook needs to convey:

Who is the main character(s)?
What do they most deeply desire?
What stands in the way?
What is the setting or context for the story?

If you can’t identify what the main character deeply desires, then ask: What challenge do they face? What sets their story in motion?

Ultimately, what you’re trying to get across is an intriguing story premise. For example, My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult tells the story of 13-year-old Anna, who was born as a “savior sister” specifically so she can save her older sister’s life. When Anna turns 13, she is told that she will have to donate one of her kidneys, and she sues her parents for medical emancipation.

That length of description is all you need to sell the story to potential readers. To improve your own story description, read the book marketing copy for dozens (even hundreds) of books in your genre, and pay attention to length, point of view or voice, as well as how much of the story is described. For example, it’s very popular for contemporary romance novel descriptions to be written from the point-of-view of the heroine. Here’s how the book marketing copy for Baller by Vi Keeland starts:

The first time I met Brody Easton was in the men’s locker room.
It was my first interview as a professional sportscaster.
The famed quarterback decided to bare all.
And by all, I don’t mean he told me any of his secrets.
No. The arrogant ass decided to drop his towel, just as I asked the first question. On camera.

In those 60 words, we know who the main character is, a good idea of what she desires (or will desire!), and what her challenge will be. We also know the setting or context.

No matter what category or genre your book falls into, you have to pack a lot of punch into a couple hundred words, sometimes less. Don’t just write one version and consider it done. Write multiple versions, test and gather feedback, and improve it until you feel it’s the best possible sales piece for your book.

NOW AVAILABLE

Dancing With Demons: A Love Story

“A book for sensitive souls, big-feeling beings, animal rescuers, and lovers of the natural world, with remarkable emotional depth”

Now Available

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 23, 2021

Back Cover Copy for Nonfiction (Non-Narratives)

Back Cover Copy for Fiction (and Nonfiction Narratives)