Writing that perfect blurb that will sell your book!

So, I wrote this book. It took a great deal of inspiration, hundreds of hours of research and then nearly two solid years to draft, revise and edit before it could go out to the publisher and then out to the store where my lovely and generous readers can finally enjoy it from Amazon, Barnes and Noble or even just their local library. That is, assuming I can sell them on investing a few dollars and several hours of their time to do so. So I have to not only write a great novel but an eye-catching blurb to go with it. After all, I'm not a household name nor do I have "New York Times bestselling" printed on the fronts of any of my books yet. I'm sure many authors face this problem. After all that work, how do you boil it all down into one catchy paragraph, or even just a sentence that will worm its way into the reader's heart, kick down the door and demand their attention. I struggle with that.

But that being said, I'm going to share my insights on how I've gotten through it so far and maybe see where I can improve in the future. Here are the self-help tips I am going by so far:

1. I surf through Amazon and look at other author's blurbs and taglines. I don't steal anything but I look for patterns amongst the best-sellers of works I admire or within the genre.

2. Don't get bogged down with explaining plot. Focus just on the main problem and how the main character fits into that situation.

3. Focus on mood and tone. When I read a book, I want to feel something first. The blurb should tell me: what can expect to feel from this book: a sense of humor, sadness, adrenaline pulsing action, what?

4. What's the twist? What sets my book apart from the others like it? What's going to surprise a jaded reader of my genre, hopefully in a good way?

5. Don't overcomplicate the language. I'm just saying hi to the reader not giving them a lecture on the themes and artistry of the book. That will come as they grow to love the book, its characters, setting and conflict.

6. Let someone else look at it. Ask them, if they hadn't seen the book or known the author, would they by this book on a dare? Would it part them from some of their money and make them want to sacrifice a few episodes of Game of Thrones to sit down and read it?

That's all I've got so far. What can I say? Marketing is a work in progress for me, but after three books published, I'm starting to learn. With a little practice, maybe someone other than me can use this advice.