Aug 1, 2010

Query- The Hunted of 2060

The Hunted of 2060
Paranormal Sci-Fi Romance
85,000 words


America 2060. Three Lovers. Two Species. One Way to Survive.
An original, dark paranormal, sci-fi romance about a nineteen year old sophomore who discovers the secrets within herself are the very secrets that are being hunted by a group dubbed the Rogue Militia.

As April uncovers that she is in fact a hybrid mixed with human and alien DNA, she finds herself on a dangerous path of self-discovery, belonging to a species on the verge of extinction. At Alaska University, Robert, the love of her life, is put at risk as she struggles with who she was and who she is becoming, while a hybrid family she never knew existed enters her life, a hybrid male pursues her, and her existence becomes a cat and mouse game with enemies she will have to outrun, outfight or outwit to survive.

Under General Raul's orders, the military alliance has no mercy or compassion for a foreign species that invaded earth in 2020 and when April realizes the General has secrets of his own, which have robbed her of her birth mother, grandfather and involve stolen hybrid DNA, she knows she must save more than herself or the world will fall into the hands of a madman.

With the help of her grandfather, Colonial Marn, and the family of hybrids, April eventually destroys General Raul and the Shifter Counterinsurgency Military within homeland Security, the alliance the hybrids dubbed the Rogue Militia, after much sacrifice and loss. Though in the end, April and Robert are finally free of the Rogue Militia, and a new life is born from April's womb, the two realize in the wake of public suspicion and prejudice, destroying the Rogue Militia was just the beginning.

With underlining themes of how prejudice breaks human connections and a theme of animal/wildlife conservation, this novel will leave the reader flipping through the pages of April’s story. Though a hybrid, she speaks to the very core of what makes us human.

Fans of Gena Showater's 'Teen Alien Huntress', and Maggie Steifvarter's 'Shiver', as well as fans of the movie 'Cursed' starring Josh Jackson, and fans of Keri Arthur's Riley Jenson series will enjoy this Hunted of 2060 series.

The prequel and sequel are being written.


http://amiblackwelder.com


MARKETING:

I am active online with Forums: facebook, blogger, freado, reading groups, kindle boards, Bitten By Books Blood Bank, Permuted Press, Author Supporting Authors Ning, Paranormal Romance, SFX Magazine, Gothic.net.

I have also created freado interactive previews, excerpts, character descriptions, quotes to display on various online sites.

I have created fun quizzes to get to know the characters better and displayed them on blogger and facebook.

I am a member of the Virtual Book Tour and have lined up for me about twenty blogs where I will be interviewed over May/June/July.

I have actively pursued review blogs and ezines and have been accepted and my reviews will be displayed over June, July and August.

I have advertising space on Coalition for Independent Authors, Bareback ezine, Virtual Book Tours Cafe,  Bitten By Books, Book Cubby, Catch the Drift with Mama Snow Blog,  and am actively pursuing other advertising venues.

I have FREE posters advertised on my blog and on scribed where fans may download the free poster .pdf

I am also listed online with various public publication services such as scribed, smashwords, lulu to spread the word.

 I have book giveaways on the VBT (Virtual Book Tour), facebook and locally as well as sending a few books out to celebrities/directors/producers monthly.

I have my own facebook page for The Hunted of 2060 Fans.

Began my own 'forum' for discussion about The Hunted.

Began my own Merchandise online for The Hunted.


Offline I am advertising posters, bookmarks and business cards to spread the word for those interested in purchasing online as well as offer prints locally for those interested in direct purchases. 

9 comments:

Touch of Ink said...

Generally speaking, a query should be 250 words long. Yours is over 600. I think you can safely trim all your marketing stuff. Put that in the second letter, after they request a full or partial.

Also, I think if you remember that your query should tease the agent into wanting to read more, rather than be full synopsis, you'll be able to trim some words and get more requests.

Anonymous said...

Having spent more time than I care to contemplate in the Alaskan higher ed system, I know there is no "Alaska University" and that distracted me. Sure, there could be in 2060, but why not just the University of Alaska?

Then, "hybrid" as a noun kept making me think you were talking about a car. Silly me, no doubt, but you don't want those distracions in your query.

Suzi's right, it's too long, too much of a synopsis, and the marketing stuff is not necessary.

Anonymous Author said...

Hi,
The amount of marketing you mentioned made me wonder if you had already self-published the book. I went to amazon and saw that you had, on CreateSpace. I am sitting here asking myself whether you ought to mention this in your query. It seems like you probably should, because it is something that an agent who was going to try to sell the book would need to know.

However, I'd be interested to know others' opinions about this.

Jolene Perry said...

Cut out WHATEVER you can. Rule number one - from Janet Reid is to start with the action. And we should know what the stakes are very simply stated.
Cool idea, I bet you had a lot of fun writing this one!

Also - anonymous person from Alaska, who are you? I'm in Wasilla.

Melanie Walsh said...

I'm not qualified to comment on what makes a good query, but just wanted to give you props for being so proactive marketing your book.

I can understand why you would want to include your marketing initiatives in your query letter - it shows you are energetic and enthusiastic, but would have to agree with the experts that, if you're trying to attact someone's attention, short and snappy would probably work best.

Regards
Mel
Association of Independent Authors

Anonymous said...

Jolene, I no longer live there, but was in the Bethel area for years.

DCS said...

Save the first two paragraphs and polish them. Cut the rest. I agree with Suzy and the agent-bloggers who counsel for brevity. Your first two paragraphs introduce the character and the conflicts. That's all you need.

Amy Blackwelder said...

WOW! Thanks for the input! Here is a condensed version, let me know how it works...


The Hunted of 2060
Paranormal ChickLit with a side of SciFi
85,000 words


America 2060. Three Lovers. Two Species. One Way to Survive. 

An original, dark paranormal chick-lit with a side of sci-fi. Nineteen year old April discovers the secrets within herself are the very secrets that are being hunted by a group dubbed the Rogue Militia. As April uncovers that she is a mixed of human and alien DNA, she finds herself on a dangerous path of self-discovery, belonging to a hybrid species on the verge of extinction. 

At University, Robert, the love of her life, is put at risk as she struggles with who she was and who she is becoming, while a hybrid family she never knew existed enters her life, a hybrid male pursues her, and her existence becomes a cat and mouse game with enemies she will have to outrun, outfight or outwit to survive. Under General Raul, the military has no mercy for a foreign species that invaded earth in 2020 and when April realizes the General has secrets of his own, which have robbed her of her birth mother, grandfather and involve stolen hybrid DNA, she knows she must save more than herself or the world will fall into the hands of a madman.

With underlining themes of how prejudice breaks human connections and a theme of wildlife conservation, April speaks to the core of what makes us human. Fans of Gena Showater's 'Teen Alien Huntress', and Maggie Steifvarter's 'Shiver', as well as fans of the movie 'Cursed' starring Josh Jackson, and fans of Keri Arthur's Riley Jenson series will enjoy this Hunted of 2060 series.

PatronQuo.com said...

For those who want to show their support for Ami, you may read a book excerpt online from this novel, and then prominently showcase yourself as its patron.