Michelle Hauck's Blog, page 102
June 19, 2014
Query Questions with Sarah LaPolla
Writers have copious amounts of imagination. It's what makes their stories so fantastic. But there's a darker side to so much out of the box thinking. When a writer is in the query trenches, their worries go into overdrive. They start pulling out their hair and imagine every possible disaster.
Here to relieve some of that endless worrying is a new series of posts called Query Questions. I'll ask the questions which prey on every writer's mind, and hopefully take some of the pain out of querying. These are questions that I've seen tossed around on twitter and writing sites like Agent Query Connect. They are the type of questions that you need answers for the real expert--agents!
If you have your own specific query question, please leave it in the comments and it might show up in future editions of Query Questions as I plan to rotate the questions.
I've got a great interview to sneak in between Query Kombat rounds. Thanks to Sarah LaPolla of The Bradford Literary Agency for taking the time to answer all these query slush questions!
Is there a better or worse time of year to query?- I read my queries in the order I receive them, no matter what. Writers should be aware of the times when publishing is busy or people are less likely to be at their desks - these are the same times as most other companies, so it shouldn't take a lot of guesswork: holidays, end of the year, summer. Responses to queries are going to be slower during these times, but writers shouldn't think they can't query because of it.
Does one typo or misplaced comma shoot down the entire query?Absolutely not! Typos happen. Copyeditors will fix your misplaced comma. But, queries are short. If 5 "typos" and a few grammatical happen in a query... that's a problem. Proofread before sending.
Do you look at sample pages without fail or only if the query is strong?Only if the query is strong. Though, I have looked at sample pages when I thought maybe the query was missing the mark, but I saw potential in the story anyway.
Do you have an assistant or intern go through your queries first or do you check all of them?I'm assistant- and intern-free. I read everything I receive and everything I request, and I answer everything myself.
If the manuscript has a prologue, do you want it included with the sample pages?My guidelines ask for the first 5 pages. A prologue would fall under that, so yes. If the sample pages don't include it, and it's there when I request the manuscript, I'd question whether the author really needed it if I was engaged by the opening without it.
Some agencies mention querying only one agent at a time and some say query only one agent period. How often do you pass a query along to a fellow agent who might be more interested?It's not a good idea to query multiple agents at the same agencies at the same time. It depends on their policy and the size of the agency, but you can usually query another agent after one agent passes on it. We do refer people to each other though. At my agency, we represent fairly different genres and styles, but in the event I get a query for something I don't handle, but one of my colleagues does, I would definitely pass it on if I thought it had potential.
Do you prefer a little personalized chit-chat in a query letter, or would you rather hear about the manuscript?Queries are a business letter. I need to know what the book is about. That comes first. I like when writers infuse their own personalities too, and I think it's a good idea to include a line or two that personalizes the query. But, sometimes I see writers who wait three paragraphs to tell me what their book is about and by that point I've already lost interest.
Most agents have said they don’t care whether the word count/genre sentence comes first or last. But is it a red flag if one component is not included?It's not a red flag necessarily, but it does influence how I read the query. If I can't tell what I'm requesting, I'm less likely to request it.
Writers hear a lot about limiting the number of named characters in a query. Do you feel keeping named characters to a certain number makes for a clearer query?Only name the characters who directly influence the outcome of the plot. Often this is just the main character and the second most important character (love interest/rival/best friend/family member). For novels with larger casts of characters, stick to only who We don't need to know every friend or person they meet along the way. For the query, we only need the basics.
Should writers sweat the title of their book (and character names) or is that something that is often changed by publishers?Titles are often changed so no one should stay married to any particular title, but if I see that no thought went into it or it's something I've seen hundreds of times before (or the name of well-known published books), it colors my judgment a little. I want to know the writer has thought about their novel, even when it comes to aspects that may change, because really, the book itself will be edited too. That doesn't mean you shouldn't self-edit first.
How many queries do you receive in a week? How many requests might you make out of those?I average about 100 a week and request maybe 3-6 manuscripts a month.
Many agents say they don't care if writers are active online. Could a twitter account or blog presence by a writer tip the scales in getting a request or offer? And do you require writers you sign to start one?This answer is different for non-fiction authors, but I only represent fiction, so I'll answer for fiction writers only. If a writer has a huge, celebrity-level platform, that can influence me, but only if I'm already interested in their book. 5,000 followers and 200 devoted blog readers is a nice presence for a debut author, but it isn't going to influence me at all. All I care about is 1) Do I love your book? and 2) Would we work well together?
Some writers have asked about including links to their blogs or manuscript-related artwork. I’m sure it’s not appropriate to add those links in a query, but are links in an email signature offensive?I think those links are fine to add within your bio or at the end of the query. If a query has too many links though, it might get redirected to the spam folder. So, use caution and good judgment.
If a writer makes changes to their manuscript due to feedback should they resend the query or only if material was requested?A writer shouldn't query their manuscript until they feel it's ready. Once it's sent out, you should probably leave it alone and work on something new. If the revision is major - meaning, the plot changes significantly or a detail about the main character changes how the book is read entirely - then it's fine to re-query. But, an agent may get annoyed that you queried too soon and wasted their time, especially if they already requested the manuscript and started reading it before the major revision was complete.
What bio should an author with no publishing credits include?Day job, where they're from, whether they have a writing degree (which does not influence my decision at all, by the way, but you should still include it), something about them that might directly relate to the book (i.e. "Like my character, I'm the daughter of a small town preacher...").
What does ‘just not right mean for me’ mean to you?Most often it means exactly that. A book can be well-written, have a decent premise, but it lacks the "wow" factor (for lack of a better phrase). I need to be in love with a manuscript in order to represent it, and I also need to have the right vision for it. I could like a book just fine, but that doesn't always mean I have the right editorial eye for it or have the best contacts in order to sell it.
What themes are you sick of seeing?For YA, bullying, body image issues, and "I'm different and that's OK" themes are very overdone. YES, I know these books are important, but there are so many of them already. If the plot of the book revolves around an "issue," it won't be a strong enough concept for me. I want books that deal with issues in more unique ways and put good storytelling and writing quality at the forefront.
Do you consider yourself a hands-on, editorial type of agent?Very much so.
What three things are at the top of your submission wish list?- Adult science fiction in the tradition of Vonnegut or Philip K. Dick - not a space opera or action/adventure story.- Literary fiction (adult or YA) that has a strong plot as well as high quality writing.- YA horror/super dark mystery - psychological plot twists are a huge bonus!
What are some of your favorite movies or books to give us an idea of your tastes? This is a hard question for me because usually what I watch/read for pleasure doesn't fall under genres I represent. More often what I watch and what I read aren't even the same thing. Certain genres work better (for me) in certain mediums. That said, I'm always drawn to character-focused narratives. I have a soft spot for anti-heroes of both genders and women who are in control of their own story. I like characters who can be vulnerable underneath a strong exterior (like Buffy), or secretly strong underneath a passive exterior (like Willow, even before she tried to destroy the world, she was the shy nerd who always had a plan and whipped everyone into shape.) OK, I like characters who aren't from Buffy too, but most of them are good examples of what I'm looking for. Except Riley.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sarah LaPolla joined Bradford Literary Agency in May 2013. Prior to joining forces with Laura and Natalie, Sarah worked for five years in the foreign rights department at Curtis Brown, Ltd., and became an associate agent there in 2010. She received her MFA in Creative Writing (Nonfiction) from The New School in 2008 and has a B.A. in Creative Writing from Ithaca College.Sarah represents YA and adult fiction. On the adult side, she is looking for literary fiction, science fiction, magical realism, dark/psychological mystery, and upmarket commercial and/or women’s fiction. For YA, she is interested in contemporary/realistic fiction that doesn’t shy away from the darker side of adolescence. YA sci-fi, horror, mystery, and magical realism are also welcome; and she would love to find a modern Judy Blume for the MG market. No matter what genre, Sarah is drawn to layered/strong characters, engaging narrators, and a story that’s impossible to put down.
Here to relieve some of that endless worrying is a new series of posts called Query Questions. I'll ask the questions which prey on every writer's mind, and hopefully take some of the pain out of querying. These are questions that I've seen tossed around on twitter and writing sites like Agent Query Connect. They are the type of questions that you need answers for the real expert--agents!
If you have your own specific query question, please leave it in the comments and it might show up in future editions of Query Questions as I plan to rotate the questions.
I've got a great interview to sneak in between Query Kombat rounds. Thanks to Sarah LaPolla of The Bradford Literary Agency for taking the time to answer all these query slush questions!
Is there a better or worse time of year to query?- I read my queries in the order I receive them, no matter what. Writers should be aware of the times when publishing is busy or people are less likely to be at their desks - these are the same times as most other companies, so it shouldn't take a lot of guesswork: holidays, end of the year, summer. Responses to queries are going to be slower during these times, but writers shouldn't think they can't query because of it.
Does one typo or misplaced comma shoot down the entire query?Absolutely not! Typos happen. Copyeditors will fix your misplaced comma. But, queries are short. If 5 "typos" and a few grammatical happen in a query... that's a problem. Proofread before sending.
Do you look at sample pages without fail or only if the query is strong?Only if the query is strong. Though, I have looked at sample pages when I thought maybe the query was missing the mark, but I saw potential in the story anyway.
Do you have an assistant or intern go through your queries first or do you check all of them?I'm assistant- and intern-free. I read everything I receive and everything I request, and I answer everything myself.
If the manuscript has a prologue, do you want it included with the sample pages?My guidelines ask for the first 5 pages. A prologue would fall under that, so yes. If the sample pages don't include it, and it's there when I request the manuscript, I'd question whether the author really needed it if I was engaged by the opening without it.
Some agencies mention querying only one agent at a time and some say query only one agent period. How often do you pass a query along to a fellow agent who might be more interested?It's not a good idea to query multiple agents at the same agencies at the same time. It depends on their policy and the size of the agency, but you can usually query another agent after one agent passes on it. We do refer people to each other though. At my agency, we represent fairly different genres and styles, but in the event I get a query for something I don't handle, but one of my colleagues does, I would definitely pass it on if I thought it had potential.
Do you prefer a little personalized chit-chat in a query letter, or would you rather hear about the manuscript?Queries are a business letter. I need to know what the book is about. That comes first. I like when writers infuse their own personalities too, and I think it's a good idea to include a line or two that personalizes the query. But, sometimes I see writers who wait three paragraphs to tell me what their book is about and by that point I've already lost interest.
Most agents have said they don’t care whether the word count/genre sentence comes first or last. But is it a red flag if one component is not included?It's not a red flag necessarily, but it does influence how I read the query. If I can't tell what I'm requesting, I'm less likely to request it.
Writers hear a lot about limiting the number of named characters in a query. Do you feel keeping named characters to a certain number makes for a clearer query?Only name the characters who directly influence the outcome of the plot. Often this is just the main character and the second most important character (love interest/rival/best friend/family member). For novels with larger casts of characters, stick to only who We don't need to know every friend or person they meet along the way. For the query, we only need the basics.
Should writers sweat the title of their book (and character names) or is that something that is often changed by publishers?Titles are often changed so no one should stay married to any particular title, but if I see that no thought went into it or it's something I've seen hundreds of times before (or the name of well-known published books), it colors my judgment a little. I want to know the writer has thought about their novel, even when it comes to aspects that may change, because really, the book itself will be edited too. That doesn't mean you shouldn't self-edit first.
How many queries do you receive in a week? How many requests might you make out of those?I average about 100 a week and request maybe 3-6 manuscripts a month.
Many agents say they don't care if writers are active online. Could a twitter account or blog presence by a writer tip the scales in getting a request or offer? And do you require writers you sign to start one?This answer is different for non-fiction authors, but I only represent fiction, so I'll answer for fiction writers only. If a writer has a huge, celebrity-level platform, that can influence me, but only if I'm already interested in their book. 5,000 followers and 200 devoted blog readers is a nice presence for a debut author, but it isn't going to influence me at all. All I care about is 1) Do I love your book? and 2) Would we work well together?
Some writers have asked about including links to their blogs or manuscript-related artwork. I’m sure it’s not appropriate to add those links in a query, but are links in an email signature offensive?I think those links are fine to add within your bio or at the end of the query. If a query has too many links though, it might get redirected to the spam folder. So, use caution and good judgment.
If a writer makes changes to their manuscript due to feedback should they resend the query or only if material was requested?A writer shouldn't query their manuscript until they feel it's ready. Once it's sent out, you should probably leave it alone and work on something new. If the revision is major - meaning, the plot changes significantly or a detail about the main character changes how the book is read entirely - then it's fine to re-query. But, an agent may get annoyed that you queried too soon and wasted their time, especially if they already requested the manuscript and started reading it before the major revision was complete.
What bio should an author with no publishing credits include?Day job, where they're from, whether they have a writing degree (which does not influence my decision at all, by the way, but you should still include it), something about them that might directly relate to the book (i.e. "Like my character, I'm the daughter of a small town preacher...").
What does ‘just not right mean for me’ mean to you?Most often it means exactly that. A book can be well-written, have a decent premise, but it lacks the "wow" factor (for lack of a better phrase). I need to be in love with a manuscript in order to represent it, and I also need to have the right vision for it. I could like a book just fine, but that doesn't always mean I have the right editorial eye for it or have the best contacts in order to sell it.
What themes are you sick of seeing?For YA, bullying, body image issues, and "I'm different and that's OK" themes are very overdone. YES, I know these books are important, but there are so many of them already. If the plot of the book revolves around an "issue," it won't be a strong enough concept for me. I want books that deal with issues in more unique ways and put good storytelling and writing quality at the forefront.
Do you consider yourself a hands-on, editorial type of agent?Very much so.
What three things are at the top of your submission wish list?- Adult science fiction in the tradition of Vonnegut or Philip K. Dick - not a space opera or action/adventure story.- Literary fiction (adult or YA) that has a strong plot as well as high quality writing.- YA horror/super dark mystery - psychological plot twists are a huge bonus!
What are some of your favorite movies or books to give us an idea of your tastes? This is a hard question for me because usually what I watch/read for pleasure doesn't fall under genres I represent. More often what I watch and what I read aren't even the same thing. Certain genres work better (for me) in certain mediums. That said, I'm always drawn to character-focused narratives. I have a soft spot for anti-heroes of both genders and women who are in control of their own story. I like characters who can be vulnerable underneath a strong exterior (like Buffy), or secretly strong underneath a passive exterior (like Willow, even before she tried to destroy the world, she was the shy nerd who always had a plan and whipped everyone into shape.) OK, I like characters who aren't from Buffy too, but most of them are good examples of what I'm looking for. Except Riley.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sarah LaPolla joined Bradford Literary Agency in May 2013. Prior to joining forces with Laura and Natalie, Sarah worked for five years in the foreign rights department at Curtis Brown, Ltd., and became an associate agent there in 2010. She received her MFA in Creative Writing (Nonfiction) from The New School in 2008 and has a B.A. in Creative Writing from Ithaca College.Sarah represents YA and adult fiction. On the adult side, she is looking for literary fiction, science fiction, magical realism, dark/psychological mystery, and upmarket commercial and/or women’s fiction. For YA, she is interested in contemporary/realistic fiction that doesn’t shy away from the darker side of adolescence. YA sci-fi, horror, mystery, and magical realism are also welcome; and she would love to find a modern Judy Blume for the MG market. No matter what genre, Sarah is drawn to layered/strong characters, engaging narrators, and a story that’s impossible to put down.
Query Kombat 2014 Round 2 Wrap Up
Round 2 of Query Kombat is officially over, and kontestants have finished licking their wounds revising their entries to gear up for the next round. For round 3, we are down to sixteen entries. This is surely going to be the toughest round yet. Some heavy hitter are going at it and we have no idea which of you will come out standing.
If our judge thought the last round was hard, they haven't seen anything yet
Below is the list of those who will go on to the next round. Let me know if we made any mistakes!
Make a Baby with Socks OnBeauty and the Crazy KidnapperLove is HellCan't Keep a Bad Girl DownLavender MarriageA Cozy for GeeksMaking Boys CryWorld on a StringGirl Destroys WorldStar Light, Star BrightTag, You're DeadA Burning DilemmaShalom SasquatchWEELMaidens, Monks, & MurderBingBamBoomBFF
Red: Team Michelle
Blue Team SC
Orange: Team Mike
CONGRATS to all who made it. To those who didn't, you fought valiantly. You should be proud of yourselves.
Round 3 will be hosted on SC's blog. It starts on June 21st and will run through June 23rd.
Best of luck combatants. Round 3 match ups are listed below Lavender Marriage VS Make a Baby with Socks On
Can't Keep s Bad Girl Down VS Making Boys Cry
Beauty and the Crazy Kidnapper VS Love is Hell
WEEL VS Tag, You're Dead
BingBamBoomBFF VS Star Light, Star Bright
World on a String VS Girl Destroys World
Shalom Sasquatch VS A Burning Dilemma
A Cozy For Geeks VS Maidens, Monks, and Murder
If our judge thought the last round was hard, they haven't seen anything yet
Below is the list of those who will go on to the next round. Let me know if we made any mistakes!
Make a Baby with Socks OnBeauty and the Crazy KidnapperLove is HellCan't Keep a Bad Girl DownLavender MarriageA Cozy for GeeksMaking Boys CryWorld on a StringGirl Destroys WorldStar Light, Star BrightTag, You're DeadA Burning DilemmaShalom SasquatchWEELMaidens, Monks, & MurderBingBamBoomBFF
Red: Team Michelle
Blue Team SC
Orange: Team Mike
CONGRATS to all who made it. To those who didn't, you fought valiantly. You should be proud of yourselves.
Round 3 will be hosted on SC's blog. It starts on June 21st and will run through June 23rd.
Best of luck combatants. Round 3 match ups are listed below Lavender Marriage VS Make a Baby with Socks On
Can't Keep s Bad Girl Down VS Making Boys Cry
Beauty and the Crazy Kidnapper VS Love is Hell
WEEL VS Tag, You're Dead
BingBamBoomBFF VS Star Light, Star Bright
World on a String VS Girl Destroys World
Shalom Sasquatch VS A Burning Dilemma
A Cozy For Geeks VS Maidens, Monks, and Murder
June 15, 2014
Query Kombat 2104 Second Round
.jpg)
Here we go again. The same rules apply.
Hop on over to Mike's blog to see the rest of the match-ups and entries!! We've got a little bit of everything: adult, NA, YA, and MG! This round last until June 17th at 8 pm.
But before we begin:
Read this post again to remind yourselves of the rules and guidelines of commenting and judging. Below I've reposted the main ideas:
Reminders for the Entrants:
No commenting on your own entries until Wednesday. If you see something wrong with your entry such as a word that should have been italicized but isn't, or something else, first try to Tweet me @Michelle4Laughs (this is the best option). If you don't have a Twitter, comment on your entry telling me the mistake (but this way will be slower as I won't be checking the comments as much as Twitter, and also because your comment may be lost in a flood of judges' votes).
Also, we tried our hardest to make the match-ups as fair as possible and against as similar stories as possible. But, obviously, this is impossible to do perfectly and some match-ups may seen very random (they're not). We apologize for this but it's an evil of the system.
Kombatants should comment on 6 other match-ups to help share the love around!
Reminders for the Judges:
Wait until after one of us hosts comments on each entry first and reply to that comment to cast your votes :) Try making your votes objective instead of subjective (but if you really love an entry subjectively, don't even feel bad about saying it was a subjective vote - subjectivity rules!).
Make sure to post under your nicknames!
And judges: seriously, thank you so, SO much for doing this. It's a very tough job (just wait until you start doing it!) and isn't for the faint-hearted.
Reminders for Everyone:
Try not to comment until after one of us hosts have made the first comment!
NOW THE FUN BEGINS!!! GO GO GO!!! We'll be Tweeting under #QueryKombat!
QK Round 2: She Wears Bruises Like Trophies versus Lavender Marriage
Entry Nickname: She Wears Bruises Like TrophiesTitle: Lucky PunchWord count: 71,000Genre: Adult Contemporary
Query:
After two years in a veteran’s outreach program of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), widowed military veteran Poppy Leon is slowly rebuilding her life. She strives to be a great single parent to her son Milo, despite suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), after almost losing her life in a mortar attack in Iraq.
With an unbeaten MMA record Poppy’s career is skyrocketing, and her relationship with her five-year-old son has never been better. But a vicious blow to the head during a match triggers a flashback, and Poppy loses control, nearly killing her opponent. She’s immediately plunged into a mental and physical nightmare. Unable to function, Poppy lashes out at those she loves the most, including Milo.
Despite the resurgence of her PTSD Poppy tries desperately to hang onto the sanity that MMA has given her. But when she grabs Milo too hard during a school function, the safety of her son is questioned when the authorities arrive. If she doesn’t get herself together and Marine-up, Poppy knows losing a match is the least of her worries. But what was once her most cherished outlet soon has her reliving her past trauma with every strike and blow. Poppy must decide between Marine and Mother if she's ever going to give her son and herself the life they both deserve.
First 250:
The tent was in flames. Poppy felt like she’d been thrown against a concrete wall. Sand filled her mouth, and her head was splitting apart. All she could think was, move! Tears streamed from her eyes as she opened them, and rough hands grabbed her and dragged her from the tent.
Poppy fell to the ground next to another Marine and watched in a haze as her savior ran back into the tent to bring out anyone left inside. She choked as she inhaled an acrid breath.
She looked around, the ringing in her ears increasing, and brought a hand to her face and wiped her eyes. In slow motion the smoke cleared and the clatter of a .50 caliber machine gun sang a song in the distance. She heard herself asking the question, what happened, in a voice that didn’t sound remotely like her own. She brought her hand up to her head, grimacing as she felt something sticking out of her skull. She'd felt safe when she'd taken off her battle rattle. Poppy leaned over and retched into the sand.
She crawled over to the body next to her, putting a shaking hand on the Marine’s neck to feel for a pulse, but not even a whisper beat against her bloodied fingers. Poppy drew her hand away and felt herself up. Head: mostly intact, but the rest of her she wasn’t so sure about. She looked around, wondering who was in charge. Then she remembered: she was.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Lavender MarriageTitle: The Well-Adjusted HouseholdWord Count: 87,000Genre: Adult Upmarket Fiction
Query:
Ben has been called a lot of things: doctor, husband, father, deviant, liar. His wife Alena calls him friend and her brother Iain calls him lover.
They live in Prohibition-era Pittsburgh and booze isn't the only thing that's illegal. Homosexuality is a felony and Ben and Iain don't care to spend the next ten years behind bars. Luckily, their sham marriages to Alena and her paramour Margaux are the perfect cover.
In public, they are the wealthy and powerful Blackburn family, heirs to a steel fortune. But behind closed doors, they are an improvised household of artificially conceived children and secret passageways between bedrooms. Everything is orchestrated. Nothing is as it seems.
When a conniving maid discovers their secret, Iain and Ben are arrested on charges of sodomy and homosexual behavior. The men and their constructed family are put on trial and it is up to their wives to convince the world of their “innocence.”
With an unjust law and an unsympathetic jury, they are well-aware that the truth will not set them free.
First 250 Words:
“On your right!”
The bicycle appeared from around the corner while Ben was lost in thoughts of covalent bonds and chemical reactions. There was no time to avoid impact. His chemistry beakers hit the pavement first, followed by his face.
“Jesus Christ, I've killed him. Hello? Can you hear me?”
As Ben regained consciousness, he assessed his injuries. Pain, but no broken bones. He rolled to his back. “Left. You were on my left.”
“Pardon?” The offending cyclist hovered over him, surveying the damage. “Goodness. You're bleeding.”
Ben sat up slowly, his ears ringing and his vision blurry. He poked at his cheek where a shard of beaker glass had lodged. “Blast.”
“Here, let me help you.” The young man grabbed Ben's arm and pulled him to his feet. “I do apologize. I've never run over anyone before.”
Ben wobbled slightly, adjusting the spectacles still somehow perched on his nose. “I find that hard to believe.”
“My apartment is just there,” he offered, disregarding Ben's comment and pointing to a building across the street. “Would you care to come up? Use the washroom? That gash is quite a sight.” The young man leaned in closer, inspecting the wound.
“I, um, don't think–” Ben suddenly noticed that his assailant was beautiful and smelled like Eau de Quinine.
“Please. It's the least I can do,” he laughed, gesturing to the mess of papers and glass at their feet.
“Well...”
“I insist.” He offered his hand. “I'm Iain, by the way.”
Query:
After two years in a veteran’s outreach program of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), widowed military veteran Poppy Leon is slowly rebuilding her life. She strives to be a great single parent to her son Milo, despite suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), after almost losing her life in a mortar attack in Iraq.
With an unbeaten MMA record Poppy’s career is skyrocketing, and her relationship with her five-year-old son has never been better. But a vicious blow to the head during a match triggers a flashback, and Poppy loses control, nearly killing her opponent. She’s immediately plunged into a mental and physical nightmare. Unable to function, Poppy lashes out at those she loves the most, including Milo.
Despite the resurgence of her PTSD Poppy tries desperately to hang onto the sanity that MMA has given her. But when she grabs Milo too hard during a school function, the safety of her son is questioned when the authorities arrive. If she doesn’t get herself together and Marine-up, Poppy knows losing a match is the least of her worries. But what was once her most cherished outlet soon has her reliving her past trauma with every strike and blow. Poppy must decide between Marine and Mother if she's ever going to give her son and herself the life they both deserve.
First 250:
The tent was in flames. Poppy felt like she’d been thrown against a concrete wall. Sand filled her mouth, and her head was splitting apart. All she could think was, move! Tears streamed from her eyes as she opened them, and rough hands grabbed her and dragged her from the tent.
Poppy fell to the ground next to another Marine and watched in a haze as her savior ran back into the tent to bring out anyone left inside. She choked as she inhaled an acrid breath.
She looked around, the ringing in her ears increasing, and brought a hand to her face and wiped her eyes. In slow motion the smoke cleared and the clatter of a .50 caliber machine gun sang a song in the distance. She heard herself asking the question, what happened, in a voice that didn’t sound remotely like her own. She brought her hand up to her head, grimacing as she felt something sticking out of her skull. She'd felt safe when she'd taken off her battle rattle. Poppy leaned over and retched into the sand.
She crawled over to the body next to her, putting a shaking hand on the Marine’s neck to feel for a pulse, but not even a whisper beat against her bloodied fingers. Poppy drew her hand away and felt herself up. Head: mostly intact, but the rest of her she wasn’t so sure about. She looked around, wondering who was in charge. Then she remembered: she was.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Lavender MarriageTitle: The Well-Adjusted HouseholdWord Count: 87,000Genre: Adult Upmarket Fiction
Query:
Ben has been called a lot of things: doctor, husband, father, deviant, liar. His wife Alena calls him friend and her brother Iain calls him lover.
They live in Prohibition-era Pittsburgh and booze isn't the only thing that's illegal. Homosexuality is a felony and Ben and Iain don't care to spend the next ten years behind bars. Luckily, their sham marriages to Alena and her paramour Margaux are the perfect cover.
In public, they are the wealthy and powerful Blackburn family, heirs to a steel fortune. But behind closed doors, they are an improvised household of artificially conceived children and secret passageways between bedrooms. Everything is orchestrated. Nothing is as it seems.
When a conniving maid discovers their secret, Iain and Ben are arrested on charges of sodomy and homosexual behavior. The men and their constructed family are put on trial and it is up to their wives to convince the world of their “innocence.”
With an unjust law and an unsympathetic jury, they are well-aware that the truth will not set them free.
First 250 Words:
“On your right!”
The bicycle appeared from around the corner while Ben was lost in thoughts of covalent bonds and chemical reactions. There was no time to avoid impact. His chemistry beakers hit the pavement first, followed by his face.
“Jesus Christ, I've killed him. Hello? Can you hear me?”
As Ben regained consciousness, he assessed his injuries. Pain, but no broken bones. He rolled to his back. “Left. You were on my left.”
“Pardon?” The offending cyclist hovered over him, surveying the damage. “Goodness. You're bleeding.”
Ben sat up slowly, his ears ringing and his vision blurry. He poked at his cheek where a shard of beaker glass had lodged. “Blast.”
“Here, let me help you.” The young man grabbed Ben's arm and pulled him to his feet. “I do apologize. I've never run over anyone before.”
Ben wobbled slightly, adjusting the spectacles still somehow perched on his nose. “I find that hard to believe.”
“My apartment is just there,” he offered, disregarding Ben's comment and pointing to a building across the street. “Would you care to come up? Use the washroom? That gash is quite a sight.” The young man leaned in closer, inspecting the wound.
“I, um, don't think–” Ben suddenly noticed that his assailant was beautiful and smelled like Eau de Quinine.
“Please. It's the least I can do,” he laughed, gesturing to the mess of papers and glass at their feet.
“Well...”
“I insist.” He offered his hand. “I'm Iain, by the way.”
QK Round 2: Remember Me versus Maidens, Monks, & Murder
Entry Nickname: Remember MeTitle: THE GOSSAMER VEILWord Count: 75,000Genre: Adult/Historical Fiction
Query:
Fifteen-year-old Katya watched her family starve to death one by one. She buried her dreams of a happy ending along with the bullet-riddled body of the love of her life. Her survival during Stalin’s assault on Ukraine is a testament to her strength, but it came at an unforgivable price. Now, in the twilight of her life, the secrets she has kept buried for decades have come back to haunt her.
Summer Porter just wanted to stop the nightmares, and nearly died doing so when she accidentally overdosed in high school. Doctors labeled her schizophrenic, but the dreams she’s endured her whole life are something far different. While away at college, she discovers that painting the horrifying images in her mind prevents the dreams. A normal life seems almost possible, till she moves back home. There, the night terrors return and the lure of a quick pill fix threatens everything she has worked so hard for.
Desperate for a change, Summer jumps at the chance to move in with her ailing great-grandmother Katya. Their renewed relationship compels the old woman to do something she swore she’d never do: rip open the scars of her youth and tell her life story. Hearing this confession awakens an inexplicable connection between the two women. This bond may be Summer’s only opportunity to understand and end her nightmares for good and Katya’s last chance at the forgiveness she has spent a lifetime yearning for.
First 250 Words:
When the first shot rang out, the basket my mother had packed slipped from my fingers. Bread spilled to the ground, forgotten, as I raced towards my aunt’s house. Alina yelled for me to stop, but her voice barely whispered in my ear. All I could hear was my cousin Sasha screaming.
My sister caught up and tackled me to the ground. We landed in a snowdrift next to my aunt and uncle’s barn, hidden from view. I had almost made it to the yard. Her speed saved my life that day, but I was too foolish to thank her for it then.
“Katya!” Alina hissed into my ear. Our limbs tangled and our heavy cloaks twisted around us, but it didn’t stop me from trying to wrestle away from her. My arm throbbed where her hand dug into it. “Stop! You can’t let them see us!”
“I don’t care!” I wrenched my left leg from under her and rolled onto my stomach. Snow made its way into my boots and under my thick skirts. The icy crystals numbing my leg scarcely registered. Desperation pushed me forward. “We have to help them!”
I yanked off my cumbersome cloak and left it so I could crawl away from her. Sasha’s screams had stopped, but I was close enough now to hear her quiet whimpering and my uncle’s pleading voice.
“Please!” Alina begged from behind me. “You know it’s too late for them!”
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Maidens, Monks, & Murder
Title: A Serpent in the Garden
Word Count: 60,000
Genre: YA Historical Mystery
QUERY
Amid the grit and splendor of twelfth century Germany, an impetuous teenage noblewoman investigates a brutal murder.
When a young woman is killed near the abbey of St. Nicholas, fifteen-year-old Eva von Hirschburg is moved by similarities between the victim and her own dead mother. She vows to find the culprit and convinces peace-loving Brother Clement to help, but the two clash when Eva accuses a man Clement wants to protect.
As she hunts for evidence, Eva is courted by the charismatic Lord Friderich. Eva is enticed by Friderich’s wit and vitality, but fears he is only looking for an indiscretion. Worse, Friderich distrusts Clement and wants Eva to relinquish her obsession with the murdered woman.
Is Friderich trying to protect Eva, or is he trying to protect the murderer? Eva cannot capture the killer alone, but trusting the wrong person could cost Eva her heart and her life.
FIRST 250
No one prayed for my mother's soul. No one spoke of her. My uncle Baldric forbade it. But I refused to forget her. She died fifteen years ago when I was only a babe, but every morning, before the rest of the castle woke, I went to the chapel to plead for her deliverance.
Darkness filled the room, intensifying the smell of incense and the aching in my legs as I knelt on the stone floor. I recited the De Profundis, the Miserere, and the Requiem Aeternam, prayers suitable for someone suffering in Purgatory. I considered praying that my uncle Arnulf might finally drink himself to death, but I decided against it. I stood and walked out to the chapel garden.
On my right loomed the bergfried, a defensive tower and, in troubled times, a holding place for prisoners. On my left, the crenellated battlements of the south wall snapped at the sapphire sky. I shuddered, feeling like a mouse trapped in the jaws of a lion. Most ladies would count themselves lucky to have a guardian as wise and temperate as Baron Baldric, but I despised being kept out of duty rather than love. And most ladies do not have to contend with an uncle as reckless and cruel as his brother, Baron Arnulf.
I walked toward the archway that led to the main courtyard. A voice cried out. “Judge thou, O Lord, them that wrong me. Overthrow them that fight against me. Take hold of arms and shield, and rise up to help me.”
Query:
Fifteen-year-old Katya watched her family starve to death one by one. She buried her dreams of a happy ending along with the bullet-riddled body of the love of her life. Her survival during Stalin’s assault on Ukraine is a testament to her strength, but it came at an unforgivable price. Now, in the twilight of her life, the secrets she has kept buried for decades have come back to haunt her.
Summer Porter just wanted to stop the nightmares, and nearly died doing so when she accidentally overdosed in high school. Doctors labeled her schizophrenic, but the dreams she’s endured her whole life are something far different. While away at college, she discovers that painting the horrifying images in her mind prevents the dreams. A normal life seems almost possible, till she moves back home. There, the night terrors return and the lure of a quick pill fix threatens everything she has worked so hard for.
Desperate for a change, Summer jumps at the chance to move in with her ailing great-grandmother Katya. Their renewed relationship compels the old woman to do something she swore she’d never do: rip open the scars of her youth and tell her life story. Hearing this confession awakens an inexplicable connection between the two women. This bond may be Summer’s only opportunity to understand and end her nightmares for good and Katya’s last chance at the forgiveness she has spent a lifetime yearning for.
First 250 Words:
When the first shot rang out, the basket my mother had packed slipped from my fingers. Bread spilled to the ground, forgotten, as I raced towards my aunt’s house. Alina yelled for me to stop, but her voice barely whispered in my ear. All I could hear was my cousin Sasha screaming.
My sister caught up and tackled me to the ground. We landed in a snowdrift next to my aunt and uncle’s barn, hidden from view. I had almost made it to the yard. Her speed saved my life that day, but I was too foolish to thank her for it then.
“Katya!” Alina hissed into my ear. Our limbs tangled and our heavy cloaks twisted around us, but it didn’t stop me from trying to wrestle away from her. My arm throbbed where her hand dug into it. “Stop! You can’t let them see us!”
“I don’t care!” I wrenched my left leg from under her and rolled onto my stomach. Snow made its way into my boots and under my thick skirts. The icy crystals numbing my leg scarcely registered. Desperation pushed me forward. “We have to help them!”
I yanked off my cumbersome cloak and left it so I could crawl away from her. Sasha’s screams had stopped, but I was close enough now to hear her quiet whimpering and my uncle’s pleading voice.
“Please!” Alina begged from behind me. “You know it’s too late for them!”
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Maidens, Monks, & Murder
Title: A Serpent in the Garden
Word Count: 60,000
Genre: YA Historical Mystery
QUERY
Amid the grit and splendor of twelfth century Germany, an impetuous teenage noblewoman investigates a brutal murder.
When a young woman is killed near the abbey of St. Nicholas, fifteen-year-old Eva von Hirschburg is moved by similarities between the victim and her own dead mother. She vows to find the culprit and convinces peace-loving Brother Clement to help, but the two clash when Eva accuses a man Clement wants to protect.
As she hunts for evidence, Eva is courted by the charismatic Lord Friderich. Eva is enticed by Friderich’s wit and vitality, but fears he is only looking for an indiscretion. Worse, Friderich distrusts Clement and wants Eva to relinquish her obsession with the murdered woman.
Is Friderich trying to protect Eva, or is he trying to protect the murderer? Eva cannot capture the killer alone, but trusting the wrong person could cost Eva her heart and her life.
FIRST 250
No one prayed for my mother's soul. No one spoke of her. My uncle Baldric forbade it. But I refused to forget her. She died fifteen years ago when I was only a babe, but every morning, before the rest of the castle woke, I went to the chapel to plead for her deliverance.
Darkness filled the room, intensifying the smell of incense and the aching in my legs as I knelt on the stone floor. I recited the De Profundis, the Miserere, and the Requiem Aeternam, prayers suitable for someone suffering in Purgatory. I considered praying that my uncle Arnulf might finally drink himself to death, but I decided against it. I stood and walked out to the chapel garden.
On my right loomed the bergfried, a defensive tower and, in troubled times, a holding place for prisoners. On my left, the crenellated battlements of the south wall snapped at the sapphire sky. I shuddered, feeling like a mouse trapped in the jaws of a lion. Most ladies would count themselves lucky to have a guardian as wise and temperate as Baron Baldric, but I despised being kept out of duty rather than love. And most ladies do not have to contend with an uncle as reckless and cruel as his brother, Baron Arnulf.
I walked toward the archway that led to the main courtyard. A voice cried out. “Judge thou, O Lord, them that wrong me. Overthrow them that fight against me. Take hold of arms and shield, and rise up to help me.”
QK Round 2: The Past is Back versus Love is Hell
Entry Nickname: The Past is BackTitle: WATERS OF OBLIVIONWord Count: 67,000Genre: Adult Paranormal Suspense
Query:
Reine doesn’t want to die; once was more than enough. It’s not because she’s afraid of the permanent end to mortal life. After slipping into the frigid waters of the Venetian lagoon in 1498, that’s no longer a possibility. It’s actually the reason she’s stopped aging and can heal almost instantly. No, Reine’s afraid because her new gifts came at a price: her memories. Forgetting the first twenty-three years of her existence made Reine swear to maintain her safety – and thereby her past – even if it meant living a quiet, solitary, and uneventful life.
She’s successful for five centuries, but when the Georgetown art historian’s invited back to the Serene Republic to examine a resurfaced DaVinci, she finds her secret’s been compromised. The portrait is of her. More importantly, the painting’s owner was – and still is – Massimo Baldovini, her husband who also should have died long ago. Although Reine has no memory of this pompous, domineering, and utterly irresistible man, Massimo’s desperate to rekindle their relationship. Reine now has the chance to trade her quirky sock collection, musty libraries, and an ordinary life with any mortal she’d surely outlive for the man who’s apparently loved her for half a millennium. The choice should be easy, until she inexplicably gets sick for the first time in five hundred years and starts to remember things Massimo wishes would remain buried.
With her immortality – and maybe even her life – on the line, Reine must determine if she can trust Massimo to save her or whether she’s just been a pawn in his self-serving plans from the very beginning.
First 250 words:
Reine clutched her broken hand to her chest and repeatedly tapped the “Door Close” button with the other. The pain in her fingers was almost unbearable, but it would be gone soon. Hopefully it would be soon enough.
As the elevator door slid slowly into place, she looked out into the hotel’s sleek, modern lobby one last time. Thankfully, it was still deserted. This wasn’t unusual given the wintry weather and the late hour, but she knew he had to be right behind her.
He couldn’t catch up. He couldn’t see her. Not just yet.
With a small jolt, the elevator finally began to move upward and she looked at her hand again. It was shaking, but as she flexed her fingers, the last signs of bruising – and of the pain – disappeared. However, that didn’t make her happy.
For the second time in two weeks, she almost inadvertently revealed her secret. A secret her life depended on. She should have just ended the conversation when she fumbled to answer a simple question: “Are you married?”
But she didn’t, and that was mistake number one.
The blunder was a warning sign, and she ignored it. She had uncharacteristically let her guard down. But who wouldn’t have, if they had looked into those eyes or had seen that smile? As always, her heart would be her downfall. That’s why she had avoided listening to it for so long.
Until tonight.
And that’s when she made the second mistake: getting injured.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Love is HellTitle: Daughter of LilithWord Count: 71,000Genre: YA Paranormal
Query:
As a half-demon, sixteen-year-old Ariel rips souls from the living as casually as mortals order coffee.
Raised by her abusive headmistress, Batal, Ariel blindly accepts all humans as a worthless blight on the world – especially males. But when a car accident leaves her stranded, a minister’s son, Mike Flannery, goes beyond the call of duty to help. His genuine concern forces Ariel to question her education.
Mike’s kindness and sincerity suggests he’s not the filthy slime her teacher claims him to be. She soon realizes he brings out something in her she didn’t know she had - humanity. Feeling deceived, Ariel runs away and vows to never again let Batal or anyone else manipulate her. However, Batal is not about to let one of her pawns escape without a fight.
Now the renegade demon realizes letting Mike into her life endangers them both. Ariel is faced with a choice as cruel as the punishments she endured from her teacher. She can deny her new feelings and walk away to protect Mike from the creatures of Hell, or confront her sadistic headmistress, risking an eternity of suffering for a chance at love.
First 250
I stand over the young woman asleep on her side, next to a male. An elongated pillow rests between her knees and under her enlarged belly, supporting her womb.
Searching the bedroom – as I must – I look for any signs that would prevent me from fulfilling my duty. As usual, there are none. No one from today remembers the ancient agreement.
I return to the bed. Glaring down at her mate, the corners of my mouth tighten into a scowl. How can any self-respecting female allow a son of Adam to defile her? The bile in my stomach churns creating a bitter taste in my mouth, making me want to spit. Control, Ariel. Stay in control.
I’m not here for him. He is not my purpose. I must serve the Mother the way I’m expected. Taking a deep breath, I return to my task.
Holding out my hand, palm facing down I listen to the expectant mother’s breathing. Her heartbeat comes into focus, slow and rhythmic. Moving my hand so it hovers over her belly, another heartbeat emerges, faster but still harmonious – the child’s.
Directing all my attention on the mother’s womb, a gentle, soft glow made from thousands of faintly illuminated sand-like particles rise from the woman’s stomach. It grows in intensity as I gradually lift my hand. The tiny crystals follow, collecting below my open palm forming into a baseball size orb.
It always fascinates me, what the soul looks like outside of the body, maybe because I don’t have one myself, none of us half-breeds do.
Query:
Reine doesn’t want to die; once was more than enough. It’s not because she’s afraid of the permanent end to mortal life. After slipping into the frigid waters of the Venetian lagoon in 1498, that’s no longer a possibility. It’s actually the reason she’s stopped aging and can heal almost instantly. No, Reine’s afraid because her new gifts came at a price: her memories. Forgetting the first twenty-three years of her existence made Reine swear to maintain her safety – and thereby her past – even if it meant living a quiet, solitary, and uneventful life.
She’s successful for five centuries, but when the Georgetown art historian’s invited back to the Serene Republic to examine a resurfaced DaVinci, she finds her secret’s been compromised. The portrait is of her. More importantly, the painting’s owner was – and still is – Massimo Baldovini, her husband who also should have died long ago. Although Reine has no memory of this pompous, domineering, and utterly irresistible man, Massimo’s desperate to rekindle their relationship. Reine now has the chance to trade her quirky sock collection, musty libraries, and an ordinary life with any mortal she’d surely outlive for the man who’s apparently loved her for half a millennium. The choice should be easy, until she inexplicably gets sick for the first time in five hundred years and starts to remember things Massimo wishes would remain buried.
With her immortality – and maybe even her life – on the line, Reine must determine if she can trust Massimo to save her or whether she’s just been a pawn in his self-serving plans from the very beginning.
First 250 words:
Reine clutched her broken hand to her chest and repeatedly tapped the “Door Close” button with the other. The pain in her fingers was almost unbearable, but it would be gone soon. Hopefully it would be soon enough.
As the elevator door slid slowly into place, she looked out into the hotel’s sleek, modern lobby one last time. Thankfully, it was still deserted. This wasn’t unusual given the wintry weather and the late hour, but she knew he had to be right behind her.
He couldn’t catch up. He couldn’t see her. Not just yet.
With a small jolt, the elevator finally began to move upward and she looked at her hand again. It was shaking, but as she flexed her fingers, the last signs of bruising – and of the pain – disappeared. However, that didn’t make her happy.
For the second time in two weeks, she almost inadvertently revealed her secret. A secret her life depended on. She should have just ended the conversation when she fumbled to answer a simple question: “Are you married?”
But she didn’t, and that was mistake number one.
The blunder was a warning sign, and she ignored it. She had uncharacteristically let her guard down. But who wouldn’t have, if they had looked into those eyes or had seen that smile? As always, her heart would be her downfall. That’s why she had avoided listening to it for so long.
Until tonight.
And that’s when she made the second mistake: getting injured.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Love is HellTitle: Daughter of LilithWord Count: 71,000Genre: YA Paranormal
Query:
As a half-demon, sixteen-year-old Ariel rips souls from the living as casually as mortals order coffee.
Raised by her abusive headmistress, Batal, Ariel blindly accepts all humans as a worthless blight on the world – especially males. But when a car accident leaves her stranded, a minister’s son, Mike Flannery, goes beyond the call of duty to help. His genuine concern forces Ariel to question her education.
Mike’s kindness and sincerity suggests he’s not the filthy slime her teacher claims him to be. She soon realizes he brings out something in her she didn’t know she had - humanity. Feeling deceived, Ariel runs away and vows to never again let Batal or anyone else manipulate her. However, Batal is not about to let one of her pawns escape without a fight.
Now the renegade demon realizes letting Mike into her life endangers them both. Ariel is faced with a choice as cruel as the punishments she endured from her teacher. She can deny her new feelings and walk away to protect Mike from the creatures of Hell, or confront her sadistic headmistress, risking an eternity of suffering for a chance at love.
First 250
I stand over the young woman asleep on her side, next to a male. An elongated pillow rests between her knees and under her enlarged belly, supporting her womb.
Searching the bedroom – as I must – I look for any signs that would prevent me from fulfilling my duty. As usual, there are none. No one from today remembers the ancient agreement.
I return to the bed. Glaring down at her mate, the corners of my mouth tighten into a scowl. How can any self-respecting female allow a son of Adam to defile her? The bile in my stomach churns creating a bitter taste in my mouth, making me want to spit. Control, Ariel. Stay in control.
I’m not here for him. He is not my purpose. I must serve the Mother the way I’m expected. Taking a deep breath, I return to my task.
Holding out my hand, palm facing down I listen to the expectant mother’s breathing. Her heartbeat comes into focus, slow and rhythmic. Moving my hand so it hovers over her belly, another heartbeat emerges, faster but still harmonious – the child’s.
Directing all my attention on the mother’s womb, a gentle, soft glow made from thousands of faintly illuminated sand-like particles rise from the woman’s stomach. It grows in intensity as I gradually lift my hand. The tiny crystals follow, collecting below my open palm forming into a baseball size orb.
It always fascinates me, what the soul looks like outside of the body, maybe because I don’t have one myself, none of us half-breeds do.
QK Round 2: Cozy for Geeks versus Attempting Average
Entry Nickname: A Cozy for Geeks
Title: The Genuine Fake
Word count: 75,030
Genre: Mystery Cozy
Query:
You'd have to be drunk or crazy to hire Dahlia Moss as a detective, and her client was conveniently both. Drunk was verifiable-- there was a wine glass in his hand. Crazy was self-evident: Dahlia's got no experience, no money, and the only thing she'd been reliably good at finding were pink slips.
The details of the job only makes it seem stranger. The client wants her to recover the Bejeweled Spear of Infinite Piercing, a powerful and breathtakingly gaudy weapon from the online game "Kingdoms of Zoth". The pay is insane, a thousand bucks just for looking, and double for finding it. Dahlia thinks the job is certifiable, but pragmatically signs on; two thousand bucks buys a lot of Ramen.
Her investigation takes her through the student slums of St. Louis and into the on-line jungles of Zoth, interviewing aggrieved gamers, out-of-work actors, drunken fire-mages, misogynist golems, and an extremely petulant tree. But just when she gets a handle on the case, her client shows up dead-- skewered by a 3-D printed copy of the very spear she was looking for.
Suddenly, the police are involved, and Dahlia is in the middle of a murder investigation. Gamers are showing at her doorstep, detectives are trailing her, and more 3-D printed spears are mysteriously showing up in the mail. It's exactly the wrong time to learn that her client's decision to hire her wasn't so random after all.
First 250:
The only time I ever met Jonah Long he was wearing a fake beard, a blue pinstripe captain's outfit and a toy pipe that blew soap bubbles. He did not seem like someone that was about to change my life.
"I have a proposition for you," he had told me. Admittedly, that does sound like the kind of thing a life changing person might say. It's right up there with "it's dangerous to go alone-- take this!" and "you are the chosen one." But a plastic bubble pipe really takes the edge off this sort of thing.
It was a nautical themed party, which partly explained his ridiculous outfit. I had thought he was hitting on me. “I’m in a non-dating phase," I had told him. Not entirely true, but I repeat: bubble pipe.
"A financial proposition, Dahlia."
I had no idea who he was. I was irked that he knew my name but it was clear from the way Charice was hovering over him that my roommate was involved. She was wearing an over-sized mermaid's outfit that made her look faintly seal-like-- especially with her mugging at me as Jonah spoke. Eh? Eh? I felt like I should throw a fish at her.
But really: what could I do? I had seventeen dollars and twenty three cents in my bank account at the time of this exchange, with less in savings. I could only use ATMs that dispensed tens. Despite my correct sense that Jonah was 1) ridiculous and 2) trouble, at the phrase "financial proposition" he had my undivided attention.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Attempting AverageTitle: Love and Fat-Free CheeseWord Count: 68,000Genre: Romantic Suspense
Query:
With her love of ice cream and disdain for yoga, Juliet Easton seems like an average twenty-three-year-old woman. Seemingly average, because no one knows about her involvement in the disappearance of her sister’s fiancé two years ago.
Now, with a new job, a doting boyfriend, an irresistibly handsome boss, and a jealous, diamond-covered rival, it seems she can move on. However, hopes of putting her past behind her are dashed when she walks through her front door to find the missing fiancé sitting on her couch.
His arrival and the chaos that ensues prove that someone close to her can’t be trusted. Is her boyfriend only pretending to care for her to discover her family’s secrets? Is her boss, with his ambiguous past and financial trouble, somehow involved? In order to protect herself and her family from the choices they made two years ago, she must figure out who’s betraying her and on whom she can rely. As she’s forced to trust one of them, she hopes happiness is found when caution is lost.
First 250 Words:
I thought yoga was supposed to make me feel tranquil, peaceful, and sculpt my legs into those of a Greek goddess. However, as I strain every muscle in my body in an effort to do this Downward-Facing Dog pose, I feel anything but calm or goddess-like. I guess it is clearing my mind. For the last three minutes, I’ve been too focused on the intense physical pain that this relaxing exercise is causing me to think about how nervous I am to step foot inside The Bradley Corporation.
“Breathe. Remember to breathe,” the instructor sporting head-to-toe spandex sings out as she demonstrates a One-Legged King Pigeon. Where do the names of these poses come from? I already feel ridiculous as I try these positions. I’m turning purple, gasping for breath, shaking profusely, and have sweat pouring down my face, but to top it off, I’m being referred to as a boat, camel, cow-face, plow, and now a one-legged king pigeon.
I want to scream out that I can’t breathe when trying to touch my feet to my head. Instead I slip in a giant puddle of sweat. I flop down on my mat, ignoring the angry look from the woman next to me. Her shirt bejeweled with the word “Enlightened” is contradicted by her furrowed eyebrows. Closing my eyes, I picture myself inside The Bradley Corporation meeting a man whom I know nothing about. I do have his name and office number written on a paper in my purse, Owen Denny, 9B.
Title: The Genuine Fake
Word count: 75,030
Genre: Mystery Cozy
Query:
You'd have to be drunk or crazy to hire Dahlia Moss as a detective, and her client was conveniently both. Drunk was verifiable-- there was a wine glass in his hand. Crazy was self-evident: Dahlia's got no experience, no money, and the only thing she'd been reliably good at finding were pink slips.
The details of the job only makes it seem stranger. The client wants her to recover the Bejeweled Spear of Infinite Piercing, a powerful and breathtakingly gaudy weapon from the online game "Kingdoms of Zoth". The pay is insane, a thousand bucks just for looking, and double for finding it. Dahlia thinks the job is certifiable, but pragmatically signs on; two thousand bucks buys a lot of Ramen.
Her investigation takes her through the student slums of St. Louis and into the on-line jungles of Zoth, interviewing aggrieved gamers, out-of-work actors, drunken fire-mages, misogynist golems, and an extremely petulant tree. But just when she gets a handle on the case, her client shows up dead-- skewered by a 3-D printed copy of the very spear she was looking for.
Suddenly, the police are involved, and Dahlia is in the middle of a murder investigation. Gamers are showing at her doorstep, detectives are trailing her, and more 3-D printed spears are mysteriously showing up in the mail. It's exactly the wrong time to learn that her client's decision to hire her wasn't so random after all.
First 250:
The only time I ever met Jonah Long he was wearing a fake beard, a blue pinstripe captain's outfit and a toy pipe that blew soap bubbles. He did not seem like someone that was about to change my life.
"I have a proposition for you," he had told me. Admittedly, that does sound like the kind of thing a life changing person might say. It's right up there with "it's dangerous to go alone-- take this!" and "you are the chosen one." But a plastic bubble pipe really takes the edge off this sort of thing.
It was a nautical themed party, which partly explained his ridiculous outfit. I had thought he was hitting on me. “I’m in a non-dating phase," I had told him. Not entirely true, but I repeat: bubble pipe.
"A financial proposition, Dahlia."
I had no idea who he was. I was irked that he knew my name but it was clear from the way Charice was hovering over him that my roommate was involved. She was wearing an over-sized mermaid's outfit that made her look faintly seal-like-- especially with her mugging at me as Jonah spoke. Eh? Eh? I felt like I should throw a fish at her.
But really: what could I do? I had seventeen dollars and twenty three cents in my bank account at the time of this exchange, with less in savings. I could only use ATMs that dispensed tens. Despite my correct sense that Jonah was 1) ridiculous and 2) trouble, at the phrase "financial proposition" he had my undivided attention.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Attempting AverageTitle: Love and Fat-Free CheeseWord Count: 68,000Genre: Romantic Suspense
Query:
With her love of ice cream and disdain for yoga, Juliet Easton seems like an average twenty-three-year-old woman. Seemingly average, because no one knows about her involvement in the disappearance of her sister’s fiancé two years ago.
Now, with a new job, a doting boyfriend, an irresistibly handsome boss, and a jealous, diamond-covered rival, it seems she can move on. However, hopes of putting her past behind her are dashed when she walks through her front door to find the missing fiancé sitting on her couch.
His arrival and the chaos that ensues prove that someone close to her can’t be trusted. Is her boyfriend only pretending to care for her to discover her family’s secrets? Is her boss, with his ambiguous past and financial trouble, somehow involved? In order to protect herself and her family from the choices they made two years ago, she must figure out who’s betraying her and on whom she can rely. As she’s forced to trust one of them, she hopes happiness is found when caution is lost.
First 250 Words:
I thought yoga was supposed to make me feel tranquil, peaceful, and sculpt my legs into those of a Greek goddess. However, as I strain every muscle in my body in an effort to do this Downward-Facing Dog pose, I feel anything but calm or goddess-like. I guess it is clearing my mind. For the last three minutes, I’ve been too focused on the intense physical pain that this relaxing exercise is causing me to think about how nervous I am to step foot inside The Bradley Corporation.
“Breathe. Remember to breathe,” the instructor sporting head-to-toe spandex sings out as she demonstrates a One-Legged King Pigeon. Where do the names of these poses come from? I already feel ridiculous as I try these positions. I’m turning purple, gasping for breath, shaking profusely, and have sweat pouring down my face, but to top it off, I’m being referred to as a boat, camel, cow-face, plow, and now a one-legged king pigeon.
I want to scream out that I can’t breathe when trying to touch my feet to my head. Instead I slip in a giant puddle of sweat. I flop down on my mat, ignoring the angry look from the woman next to me. Her shirt bejeweled with the word “Enlightened” is contradicted by her furrowed eyebrows. Closing my eyes, I picture myself inside The Bradley Corporation meeting a man whom I know nothing about. I do have his name and office number written on a paper in my purse, Owen Denny, 9B.
QK Round 2: RV Arya versus Girl Destroys World
Entry Nickname: RV AryaTitle: The Raven Queen’s RevengeWord count: 40KGenre: MG Fantasy
Query:
After her dad moves out—for good this time—eleven-year-old Sylvie’s mom takes a job as a Louisiana state park campground supervisor, moving Sylvie and her pesky sister into a stinky RV. Ticked off and lonely, Sylvie wants to be back home with her own bed, her own stuff, and her dad.
One day Sylvie and her sister follow a fox into the woods, where they meet Lowell, a local kid whose dad is a park ranger. Lowell insists he can help Sylvie and her sister find the fox he scared off, but he loses the trail and leads them into an alternate world—Wiledyn. Frustrated with herself for following an annoying boy she hardly knows, Sylvie smashes a strategically-placed old, blue bottle against a tree, freeing hundreds of ravens . . . and their queen.
Raven Queen Keres—furious after spending the last seventeen years imprisoned, which gave her plenty of time to plot her revenge—seals all the exits from Wiledyn, confining her enemies while also trapping Sylvie, her sister, and Lowell in the crossfire of a power battle. Now Sylvie must protect her sister as they hunt down the Raven Queen, force her to unseal the exits, and—if Sylvie has anything to say about it—make her pay for the destruction she’s caused. With the help of a talking fox, a pair of cheery goblins, and a childlike druid, Sylvie and her companions struggle to return to the one place Sylvie wanted more than anything to escape: her home.
First 250 words:
Sylvie patted more dirt, wet her fingers in the plastic bowl, and sculpted the muddy mound in front of her. She looked back and forth between her mud creation and the folding, laminated field guide.
Not quite.
She squished and smoothed, then reexamined. Just over two inches. Tapered ends. She’d even added a few wild blackberry seeds.
Ha, nailed it! Best fox scat replica yet.
After snapping a close-up with her iPod, Sylvie stepped back for a group shot. Louisiana black bear, nutria, eastern cottontail, Virginia opossum, white-tailed deer, Northern raccoon, and now red fox. This had to make her some sort of campground expert on the subject.
She packed the replicas in their plastic shoe box, except the fox one. It had to bake in the sun a few hours before she could move it. Her dad would want to see her collection, but it wasn’t like he was going to drive four hours for it. Your father’s very busy, Sylvie. She’d been considering some sort of museum set-up and charging admission. She was sure a few weekenders would swing by, if only to check out the weird girl and her sun-baked mud poop museum. She didn’t care. Not if she could get a dollar out of each of them.
A flash of red near the trees caught her eye, but when she turned . . . nothing. No movement, no fox, nothing. Wishful thinking, she figured.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Girl Destroys World
Title: MAGICK 7.0
Word count: 85,000
Genre: MG Fantasy
Query:
There are two kinds of quests: the good kind and the bad kind. The good kind leads to pots of gold and unicorns and everlasting fame. The bad kind gets you and everyone you love killed. Horribly and painfully. Possibly by zombie sharks.
Fourteen-year-old Anne is leaving the orphanage she calls home to embark on a quest—and it isn’t the good kind. That’s what happens when you accidentally fulfill a prophecy. She could opt out, but then as per Paragraph 5 Subparagraph 3 of the Official Questing Regulations she’d be exiled forever and all of her friends would be tossed into a dungeon. But hey, at least she has options.
The goal?
Slay a silver dragon that doesn’t exist (that’s bad).
In just three days (that’s worse).
With only the help of a wizard with a platypus for an arm, a disgraced academic with no practical experience, a fused-together dwarf and elf, and a sassy holographic sparrow (that downright sucks).
Oh yeah, and to top it all off, what Anne doesn’t know—what no one knows, in fact—is that finishing this quest doesn’t actually save the world. It destroys it (so, you know, not exactly environmentally-friendly).
If she uncovers the truth before it’s too late, she’ll be a HeroTM.
If she doesn’t, everyone dies (that also sucks).
First 250 words:
At Saint Lupin’s Institute for Perpetually Wicked and Hideously Unattractive Children they didn’t play favorites. Each orphan was treated with the same amount of disdain and neglect. They were provided with one threadbare tunic, one pair of ill-fitting shoes, and one dusty and moth-eaten overcoat. They were given a daily ration of gruel, and they were bathed exactly once per month, just before going on duty in the coal mine. This, incidentally, was consistent with the advice given in the popular self-help guide, How to Raise Orphans and Make Money.
There were three ways to leave Saint Lupin’s. The first was to get adopted. Perhaps by a nice family who would whisk you away to your long dreamed-of castle on a hill—one surrounded by forests and glens, filled with interesting and friendly people, rich with history and bright with promise and hope. The board of governors was extremely pleased with its track record in this regard as it had managed to prevent all adoptions since the Institute’s foundation.
The second way was to reach the age of fourteen and be unceremoniously kicked out on your bottom.
The third way was to embark upon a quest. Although quests were heavily regulated (so they could then be heavily taxed), there were no restrictions regarding age or background and thus anyone could apply. The secret to a successful application was first to fulfill a prophecy (also heavily taxed). At Saint Lupin’s, both of these topics, that is, quests and prophecies, were considered particularly taboo subjects of inquiry.
Query:
After her dad moves out—for good this time—eleven-year-old Sylvie’s mom takes a job as a Louisiana state park campground supervisor, moving Sylvie and her pesky sister into a stinky RV. Ticked off and lonely, Sylvie wants to be back home with her own bed, her own stuff, and her dad.
One day Sylvie and her sister follow a fox into the woods, where they meet Lowell, a local kid whose dad is a park ranger. Lowell insists he can help Sylvie and her sister find the fox he scared off, but he loses the trail and leads them into an alternate world—Wiledyn. Frustrated with herself for following an annoying boy she hardly knows, Sylvie smashes a strategically-placed old, blue bottle against a tree, freeing hundreds of ravens . . . and their queen.
Raven Queen Keres—furious after spending the last seventeen years imprisoned, which gave her plenty of time to plot her revenge—seals all the exits from Wiledyn, confining her enemies while also trapping Sylvie, her sister, and Lowell in the crossfire of a power battle. Now Sylvie must protect her sister as they hunt down the Raven Queen, force her to unseal the exits, and—if Sylvie has anything to say about it—make her pay for the destruction she’s caused. With the help of a talking fox, a pair of cheery goblins, and a childlike druid, Sylvie and her companions struggle to return to the one place Sylvie wanted more than anything to escape: her home.
First 250 words:
Sylvie patted more dirt, wet her fingers in the plastic bowl, and sculpted the muddy mound in front of her. She looked back and forth between her mud creation and the folding, laminated field guide.
Not quite.
She squished and smoothed, then reexamined. Just over two inches. Tapered ends. She’d even added a few wild blackberry seeds.
Ha, nailed it! Best fox scat replica yet.
After snapping a close-up with her iPod, Sylvie stepped back for a group shot. Louisiana black bear, nutria, eastern cottontail, Virginia opossum, white-tailed deer, Northern raccoon, and now red fox. This had to make her some sort of campground expert on the subject.
She packed the replicas in their plastic shoe box, except the fox one. It had to bake in the sun a few hours before she could move it. Her dad would want to see her collection, but it wasn’t like he was going to drive four hours for it. Your father’s very busy, Sylvie. She’d been considering some sort of museum set-up and charging admission. She was sure a few weekenders would swing by, if only to check out the weird girl and her sun-baked mud poop museum. She didn’t care. Not if she could get a dollar out of each of them.
A flash of red near the trees caught her eye, but when she turned . . . nothing. No movement, no fox, nothing. Wishful thinking, she figured.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Girl Destroys World
Title: MAGICK 7.0
Word count: 85,000
Genre: MG Fantasy
Query:
There are two kinds of quests: the good kind and the bad kind. The good kind leads to pots of gold and unicorns and everlasting fame. The bad kind gets you and everyone you love killed. Horribly and painfully. Possibly by zombie sharks.
Fourteen-year-old Anne is leaving the orphanage she calls home to embark on a quest—and it isn’t the good kind. That’s what happens when you accidentally fulfill a prophecy. She could opt out, but then as per Paragraph 5 Subparagraph 3 of the Official Questing Regulations she’d be exiled forever and all of her friends would be tossed into a dungeon. But hey, at least she has options.
The goal?
Slay a silver dragon that doesn’t exist (that’s bad).
In just three days (that’s worse).
With only the help of a wizard with a platypus for an arm, a disgraced academic with no practical experience, a fused-together dwarf and elf, and a sassy holographic sparrow (that downright sucks).
Oh yeah, and to top it all off, what Anne doesn’t know—what no one knows, in fact—is that finishing this quest doesn’t actually save the world. It destroys it (so, you know, not exactly environmentally-friendly).
If she uncovers the truth before it’s too late, she’ll be a HeroTM.
If she doesn’t, everyone dies (that also sucks).
First 250 words:
At Saint Lupin’s Institute for Perpetually Wicked and Hideously Unattractive Children they didn’t play favorites. Each orphan was treated with the same amount of disdain and neglect. They were provided with one threadbare tunic, one pair of ill-fitting shoes, and one dusty and moth-eaten overcoat. They were given a daily ration of gruel, and they were bathed exactly once per month, just before going on duty in the coal mine. This, incidentally, was consistent with the advice given in the popular self-help guide, How to Raise Orphans and Make Money.
There were three ways to leave Saint Lupin’s. The first was to get adopted. Perhaps by a nice family who would whisk you away to your long dreamed-of castle on a hill—one surrounded by forests and glens, filled with interesting and friendly people, rich with history and bright with promise and hope. The board of governors was extremely pleased with its track record in this regard as it had managed to prevent all adoptions since the Institute’s foundation.
The second way was to reach the age of fourteen and be unceremoniously kicked out on your bottom.
The third way was to embark upon a quest. Although quests were heavily regulated (so they could then be heavily taxed), there were no restrictions regarding age or background and thus anyone could apply. The secret to a successful application was first to fulfill a prophecy (also heavily taxed). At Saint Lupin’s, both of these topics, that is, quests and prophecies, were considered particularly taboo subjects of inquiry.
QK Round 2: World on a String versus Skateboarding Sherlock
Entry Nickname: World On a StringTitle: The Day I Ruled the WorldWord Count: 57,000Genre: MG Fantasy
Query:
Twelve-year-old Teddy Bridwell thinks her parents are great. They’re also wrong. She shouldn’t have to wait until she turns thirteen to start learning magic, so she practices in secret. That way, they don’t have to worry, and she doesn't have to get in trouble.
Until she gets caught, of course. Then she’s in all kinds of trouble. She’s grounded and stuck doing inventory on the junk Dad collects for his business. That’s where she finds the barrette. It looks ordinary, but it feels like magic, and when Teddy holds it, she can make people do anything she tells them. For the first time in her life, she’s the one with the power.
Unfortunately, the power Teddy uses to make her Dad teach her magic could do mega-damage in the wrong hands. Those hands belong to a fanatic who wants to end all the pain and misery in the world by turning everyone in the galaxy into his puppets. To stop him, Teddy has to destroy the barrette. Until she does, her stubbornness is the only thing standing between humanity and slavery, which, if humanity knew, they probably wouldn’t find too comforting.
First 250 words:
Spying is rude, and I would never, ever do it. Not without a good reason anyway, like needing to know if my parents suspected I'd been practicing spells in secret.
For Snooper's Delight, I needed a mirror, some magic, and a little privacy. Good thing I had my own bedroom, so I wouldn’t be interrupted by my bossy older sisters or nosy younger brothers.
I settled cross-legged on my bed, tugged on my pajama shorts to de-wedgie them, and balanced the mirror on my knee.
At six o’clock on a Saturday morning, Mom and Dad would be in the kitchen, eating breakfast alone and talking about stuff they didn’t want us to hear. That was the scene I had to picture to work the spell—the counter along the back wall and the big dining table surrounded by chairs. When the mental image was as clear as I could make it, I slid it into the mirror to replace the reflection. My brain relaxed, and I opened my eyes. There it was, a perfect picture of my parents with plates of eggs and glasses of juice set out on the table in front of them. I could practically smell the butter on the toast.
I had one second to enjoy my success before the side-effects hit me, the slam of crazy emotions that came with every spell. This time it was a wave of what-the-heck-does-this-have-to-do-with-anything sadness. Mean things people said to me years ago and disappointments I’d forgotten all about rolled in to drown me.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Skateboarding Sherlock
Title: Skidsters
Word Count: 62,000
Genre: MG Science Fiction
Query:
Adrenaline junkie Jedediah Tank lives for the thrill of perfectly landed tricks on his frictionless skid-board. That is, until he crashes into the most dangerous ride of his twelve-year-old life.
After plummeting into an alley during a race, Jed witnesses two men beat up an old guy in a lab coat. Jed takes off—no sense getting caught up in that. Three hours later, a familiar-looking Skid Tech physicist turns up dead. Jed feels guilty, but what can a scrawny kid do? His guilt multiplies when Jed finds out the physicist also happened to be his best friend’s grandfather. Well, Jed’s not about to sit on the sidelines anymore.
Problem is, he can’t go to the police. And since he’s a skidster—a nickname given to kids who treat the city as if it were their personal playground—the coppers would love nothing better than to lock him in juvie and toss the key. No, the only way anyone will take him seriously is if he uncovers some hard evidence.
A question here, a favor called in there, and soon Jed realizes this runs deep into the world of corporate criminals. After some dangerous meddling, he and his friends unravel clues leading to a project that could bring Skid City to its knees. To save his city, Jed must bend the laws of physics to their breaking point or it’s… time’s up, you’re dead, Jed.
First 250 words:
In about 2.07 seconds, I was going to crash. The math didn’t lie—the acceleration of an object by the pull of gravity is 32 feet per second squared, and falling at a velocity of… nevermind. I was going to crash, plain and simple.
I glanced down at my skoard as I fell, jamming my back foot against it so the magnets would catch. Please catch, c’mon. Please.
They caught. Now I had milliseconds to save my neck. As I fell into the alley, the glint of an awning caught my eye. I kicked my heel back, forcing the sleek bottom of the board to glance off the metal canopy. My skoard and I hit a railing a story below, then a dumpster, and finally the alley floor. I grabbed the edge of the second dumpster and skidded to a halt.
I blew out the breath I’d been holding and shook my head. Lucky those dumpsters were there. That’s the trouble with skoards. With their flat, frictionless bottom they just keep going—nearly impossible to stop. But that’s also what’s great about them.
It’s a love-hate relationship.
I double-clicked my heel and the hidden magnets from the bottom of my shoes and the chrome-covered top of my skoard separated. After that near-crash, I wanted to stay still for a second or two. Resting my hands on my knees, I took deep breaths. Adrenaline shot through my veins like electrical currents through a cell tower.
Calm down, Jed, you ain’t dead yet.
Query:
Twelve-year-old Teddy Bridwell thinks her parents are great. They’re also wrong. She shouldn’t have to wait until she turns thirteen to start learning magic, so she practices in secret. That way, they don’t have to worry, and she doesn't have to get in trouble.
Until she gets caught, of course. Then she’s in all kinds of trouble. She’s grounded and stuck doing inventory on the junk Dad collects for his business. That’s where she finds the barrette. It looks ordinary, but it feels like magic, and when Teddy holds it, she can make people do anything she tells them. For the first time in her life, she’s the one with the power.
Unfortunately, the power Teddy uses to make her Dad teach her magic could do mega-damage in the wrong hands. Those hands belong to a fanatic who wants to end all the pain and misery in the world by turning everyone in the galaxy into his puppets. To stop him, Teddy has to destroy the barrette. Until she does, her stubbornness is the only thing standing between humanity and slavery, which, if humanity knew, they probably wouldn’t find too comforting.
First 250 words:
Spying is rude, and I would never, ever do it. Not without a good reason anyway, like needing to know if my parents suspected I'd been practicing spells in secret.
For Snooper's Delight, I needed a mirror, some magic, and a little privacy. Good thing I had my own bedroom, so I wouldn’t be interrupted by my bossy older sisters or nosy younger brothers.
I settled cross-legged on my bed, tugged on my pajama shorts to de-wedgie them, and balanced the mirror on my knee.
At six o’clock on a Saturday morning, Mom and Dad would be in the kitchen, eating breakfast alone and talking about stuff they didn’t want us to hear. That was the scene I had to picture to work the spell—the counter along the back wall and the big dining table surrounded by chairs. When the mental image was as clear as I could make it, I slid it into the mirror to replace the reflection. My brain relaxed, and I opened my eyes. There it was, a perfect picture of my parents with plates of eggs and glasses of juice set out on the table in front of them. I could practically smell the butter on the toast.
I had one second to enjoy my success before the side-effects hit me, the slam of crazy emotions that came with every spell. This time it was a wave of what-the-heck-does-this-have-to-do-with-anything sadness. Mean things people said to me years ago and disappointments I’d forgotten all about rolled in to drown me.
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Skateboarding Sherlock
Title: Skidsters
Word Count: 62,000
Genre: MG Science Fiction
Query:
Adrenaline junkie Jedediah Tank lives for the thrill of perfectly landed tricks on his frictionless skid-board. That is, until he crashes into the most dangerous ride of his twelve-year-old life.
After plummeting into an alley during a race, Jed witnesses two men beat up an old guy in a lab coat. Jed takes off—no sense getting caught up in that. Three hours later, a familiar-looking Skid Tech physicist turns up dead. Jed feels guilty, but what can a scrawny kid do? His guilt multiplies when Jed finds out the physicist also happened to be his best friend’s grandfather. Well, Jed’s not about to sit on the sidelines anymore.
Problem is, he can’t go to the police. And since he’s a skidster—a nickname given to kids who treat the city as if it were their personal playground—the coppers would love nothing better than to lock him in juvie and toss the key. No, the only way anyone will take him seriously is if he uncovers some hard evidence.
A question here, a favor called in there, and soon Jed realizes this runs deep into the world of corporate criminals. After some dangerous meddling, he and his friends unravel clues leading to a project that could bring Skid City to its knees. To save his city, Jed must bend the laws of physics to their breaking point or it’s… time’s up, you’re dead, Jed.
First 250 words:
In about 2.07 seconds, I was going to crash. The math didn’t lie—the acceleration of an object by the pull of gravity is 32 feet per second squared, and falling at a velocity of… nevermind. I was going to crash, plain and simple.
I glanced down at my skoard as I fell, jamming my back foot against it so the magnets would catch. Please catch, c’mon. Please.
They caught. Now I had milliseconds to save my neck. As I fell into the alley, the glint of an awning caught my eye. I kicked my heel back, forcing the sleek bottom of the board to glance off the metal canopy. My skoard and I hit a railing a story below, then a dumpster, and finally the alley floor. I grabbed the edge of the second dumpster and skidded to a halt.
I blew out the breath I’d been holding and shook my head. Lucky those dumpsters were there. That’s the trouble with skoards. With their flat, frictionless bottom they just keep going—nearly impossible to stop. But that’s also what’s great about them.
It’s a love-hate relationship.
I double-clicked my heel and the hidden magnets from the bottom of my shoes and the chrome-covered top of my skoard separated. After that near-crash, I wanted to stay still for a second or two. Resting my hands on my knees, I took deep breaths. Adrenaline shot through my veins like electrical currents through a cell tower.
Calm down, Jed, you ain’t dead yet.
QK Round 2: A Burning Dilemma versus Trailer Trap
Entry Nickname: A Burning DilemmaTitle: Burn, BabyWord count: 62KGenre: YA Contemporary
Query:
The fates must have been laughing their asses off the day sixteen-year-old Ziggy's crack-head mom poured gas all over his sister and lit her on fire. The tragedy that wrecked Layla's future gave him the life he'd always wished for, and too much guilt to ever enjoy it.
His mom got thirty-to-life for attempted murder and now the brother and sister are living with a crazy but cool uncle in the suburbs, far away from the public housing apartments where they grew up. They’re going to a private high school and Ziggy's driving his own car and excelling in kickboxing. Unfortunately, his once kind, smart sister now hates everything, but mostly she hates him, for saving her.
Until she connects with her poetry teacher, who falls in love with her angry words, and slowly draws her out from her prison of scars. But Ziggy isn’t happy about eighteen-year-old Layla dating a teacher. Should he try to come between them, or wait to see if Mr. Osterman – despite the taboo – is just what his sister needs to move on with her life? And will Layla's forgiveness allow Ziggy to finally let go of his guilt?
250 Words:
Lightning streaked across the Tampa sky, illuminating the cockroaches that feasted on the kitchen counter. Thunder cracked, slow and building until vibrations shuddered the tiny living room of our crap apartment, where I sat cross legged on the couch. My sister sprawled beside me, reading a book while I watched some dumbass reality show, pretending not to listen for Mom’s john on the stairs with his twenty bucks and baggie of meth.
Aside from a couple of mattresses in the bedrooms, that was the extent of our furniture. A Goodwill couch which doubled as my bed and a junk TV on a milk crate. I held a box of Lucky Charms where Layla could reach, enjoying our family sit-down dinner.
“What’re you reading?” I asked during a commercial.
The rain messed up the picture, so I fiddled with the rabbit ears, only making things worse. Frustrated, I flopped back down beside her, catching the cereal box before it bounced to the floor.
She looked up, her fake scowl only highlighting her anomalous beauty. Freckled apple cheeks and gorgeous blue eyes that turned heads wherever we went. I know that’s weird for a brother to notice, but I was counting on that face to end up in magazines or on TV, and thereby financing our escape from the crack smoking gorgon who used curses and fists to turn her kids to stone.
Layla waved the cover of some teen romance in my face. “A book. You should try it sometime.”
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Trailer TrapTitle: Experiment in ProgressWord Count: 40,000Genre: MG Contemporary Query: Alexis Reed is going to make her school sorry for sticking her in a trailer. Thanks to overcrowding, her fifth-grade class has been assigned to a portable classroom with defective air conditioning and a cockroach problem. She’s stranded across the soccer field from her quirky little brother, who tends to wander out of classrooms and hide in storage closets. When she can’t stay close to him, it’s a lot harder to keep Lucas from getting himself expelled.
Determined to get back in the main building, Alexis designs an experiment for her school science fair to prove that the trailer is dangerous. She and her partner Jaelynn demolish a model of the trailer with a leaf blower to show what would happen if a tornado hit Glenwood Elementary. The project wins the girls a third-place ribbon, an appearance on the local T.V. news, and an invitation to speak at the next school board meeting. Alexis thinks she’s won—until she learns that the school board plans to empty the trailer by transferring a busload of kids out of Glenwood. A busload made up of low-income students from the “wrong” side of town. A busload that includes Jaelynn.
Caught between her brother and her friend, Alexis must decide if she still wants out of the trailer at any cost. First 250 Words: If you ever run across one of the newspaper stories about my science project, don’t believe a word of it. Every single reporter got the story wrong. Take The Canlaston Chronicle. The article said, “Jaelynn Moore asked her rebellious classmate Alexis Reed to help with a controversial experiment for the fifth grade science fair.” That’s completely backwards. I asked Jaelynn to be my partner, not the other way around. Besides, I wasn’t rebellious or controversial back then. That came later. I told the reporter the real story, but he didn't listen. The truth is, I asked Jaelynn to be my partner because of a boy band. Normally, I would have teamed up with my best friend, Olivia. We’d been doing school projects together since kindergarten. But on September 15, the day the experiment was assigned, Olivia brought The Ultimate D.A.Z.E. Photo Journal for us to read at recess. She shoved it at me as we walked to the playground. I tried not to groan. “I think you showed me this already.” “Nuh-uh. It’s new.” “But we looked at it after swim practice, remember?” Olivia sighed at my cluelessness. “That was The D.A.Z.E. Craze Behind-the-Scenes Fan Guide. Totally different.” Olivia’s books all look the same to me. So do the posters on her bedroom wall, no matter whether they’re showing Damian, Alan, Zack, or Edward. Songs by D.A.Z.E. always sound alike, too. But I’d never dare say any of that to Olivia. “Oh, right. Totally different.”
Query:
The fates must have been laughing their asses off the day sixteen-year-old Ziggy's crack-head mom poured gas all over his sister and lit her on fire. The tragedy that wrecked Layla's future gave him the life he'd always wished for, and too much guilt to ever enjoy it.
His mom got thirty-to-life for attempted murder and now the brother and sister are living with a crazy but cool uncle in the suburbs, far away from the public housing apartments where they grew up. They’re going to a private high school and Ziggy's driving his own car and excelling in kickboxing. Unfortunately, his once kind, smart sister now hates everything, but mostly she hates him, for saving her.
Until she connects with her poetry teacher, who falls in love with her angry words, and slowly draws her out from her prison of scars. But Ziggy isn’t happy about eighteen-year-old Layla dating a teacher. Should he try to come between them, or wait to see if Mr. Osterman – despite the taboo – is just what his sister needs to move on with her life? And will Layla's forgiveness allow Ziggy to finally let go of his guilt?
250 Words:
Lightning streaked across the Tampa sky, illuminating the cockroaches that feasted on the kitchen counter. Thunder cracked, slow and building until vibrations shuddered the tiny living room of our crap apartment, where I sat cross legged on the couch. My sister sprawled beside me, reading a book while I watched some dumbass reality show, pretending not to listen for Mom’s john on the stairs with his twenty bucks and baggie of meth.
Aside from a couple of mattresses in the bedrooms, that was the extent of our furniture. A Goodwill couch which doubled as my bed and a junk TV on a milk crate. I held a box of Lucky Charms where Layla could reach, enjoying our family sit-down dinner.
“What’re you reading?” I asked during a commercial.
The rain messed up the picture, so I fiddled with the rabbit ears, only making things worse. Frustrated, I flopped back down beside her, catching the cereal box before it bounced to the floor.
She looked up, her fake scowl only highlighting her anomalous beauty. Freckled apple cheeks and gorgeous blue eyes that turned heads wherever we went. I know that’s weird for a brother to notice, but I was counting on that face to end up in magazines or on TV, and thereby financing our escape from the crack smoking gorgon who used curses and fists to turn her kids to stone.
Layla waved the cover of some teen romance in my face. “A book. You should try it sometime.”
VERSUS
Entry Nickname: Trailer TrapTitle: Experiment in ProgressWord Count: 40,000Genre: MG Contemporary Query: Alexis Reed is going to make her school sorry for sticking her in a trailer. Thanks to overcrowding, her fifth-grade class has been assigned to a portable classroom with defective air conditioning and a cockroach problem. She’s stranded across the soccer field from her quirky little brother, who tends to wander out of classrooms and hide in storage closets. When she can’t stay close to him, it’s a lot harder to keep Lucas from getting himself expelled.
Determined to get back in the main building, Alexis designs an experiment for her school science fair to prove that the trailer is dangerous. She and her partner Jaelynn demolish a model of the trailer with a leaf blower to show what would happen if a tornado hit Glenwood Elementary. The project wins the girls a third-place ribbon, an appearance on the local T.V. news, and an invitation to speak at the next school board meeting. Alexis thinks she’s won—until she learns that the school board plans to empty the trailer by transferring a busload of kids out of Glenwood. A busload made up of low-income students from the “wrong” side of town. A busload that includes Jaelynn.
Caught between her brother and her friend, Alexis must decide if she still wants out of the trailer at any cost. First 250 Words: If you ever run across one of the newspaper stories about my science project, don’t believe a word of it. Every single reporter got the story wrong. Take The Canlaston Chronicle. The article said, “Jaelynn Moore asked her rebellious classmate Alexis Reed to help with a controversial experiment for the fifth grade science fair.” That’s completely backwards. I asked Jaelynn to be my partner, not the other way around. Besides, I wasn’t rebellious or controversial back then. That came later. I told the reporter the real story, but he didn't listen. The truth is, I asked Jaelynn to be my partner because of a boy band. Normally, I would have teamed up with my best friend, Olivia. We’d been doing school projects together since kindergarten. But on September 15, the day the experiment was assigned, Olivia brought The Ultimate D.A.Z.E. Photo Journal for us to read at recess. She shoved it at me as we walked to the playground. I tried not to groan. “I think you showed me this already.” “Nuh-uh. It’s new.” “But we looked at it after swim practice, remember?” Olivia sighed at my cluelessness. “That was The D.A.Z.E. Craze Behind-the-Scenes Fan Guide. Totally different.” Olivia’s books all look the same to me. So do the posters on her bedroom wall, no matter whether they’re showing Damian, Alan, Zack, or Edward. Songs by D.A.Z.E. always sound alike, too. But I’d never dare say any of that to Olivia. “Oh, right. Totally different.”
