How do you write a logline?
- A one-sentence pitch: 25-50 words.
- Names protagonist, conflict, stakes.
- Template: "When [X], [protagonist] must [Y] before [Z]."
- Used in elevator pitches, query openers, conference intros.
- Most working novelists revise their logline 10-20 times.
A logline is a one-sentence pitch for your book that names the protagonist, the conflict, and the stakes — typically 25-50 words. The template that works for most loglines: "When [inciting incident], [protagonist with one defining trait] must [goal] before [stakes]." Used for elevator pitches, query openers, and conference introductions.
Chapter i·Why it matters
A working logline is the most-used pitch artifact in a writing career. Conferences, parties, agents, podcasters — they all ask "what’s your book about?" A 25-50 word logline that lands is the difference between "interesting" and "tell me more." Writers who haven’t written their logline default to rambling explanations that lose listeners.
Chapter ii·What to include
- 25-50 words total.
- Inciting incident named.
- Protagonist with one defining trait.
- Concrete goal.
- Specific stakes.
- A "test out loud" round: does it land in 15 seconds?
Chapter iii·Example
A debut thriller logline: "When a small-town detective discovers her mentor planted evidence in her father’s murder case, she must reopen the 25-year-old investigation before the mentor — now the county sheriff — buries the truth for good." 41 words. Names protagonist, inciting incident, goal, antagonist, stakes.
Chapter iv·Related questions
WriteLoom’s Plan studio holds your logline, premise, and comp set together — three pitches from one source.
See the Plan studio