Apr 6, 2010

Query - FORGOTTEN WINGS, Fantasy YA

Dear Awesome Agent,

Eleanora doesn't shapeshift on purpose. After sixteen years of friends scaring the owl wings out of her, she'd die for a better knee-jerk reaction. But that's the problem; if word ever got out that the human princess actually descended from a skrĂ­msli, or shapechanger, the draconic lawmakers would rip her to shreds. No children born outside of marriage, no exceptions.

Fortunately, her kennari can erase the memories of witnesses. It's truly a no-brainer why her mother sent her to the middle of nowhere to study Artistries with him.

Oopsies get tricky though when Eleanora's assigned as a noble representative to a military fortress along a crucial trade route. She's torn from the safety of her kennari and thrown into a whole new crowd of faces to befriend and deceive, including green-eyed Melidor and mysterious Ben. She can't figure out what about the new locale disconcerts her more: the looming threat of dragons; the cloaked figures in the night; or the two knights vying for her heart.

No use making a decision when she has to answer to all of them.

FORGOTTEN WINGS is a 110,000-word fantasy young adult novel. It's designed as the first of a series but is capable of standing alone. It has the same high-paced fantasy appeal of Kristin Cashore's GRACELING. It is my first novel.

[Insert why I chose this agent.]

I am a Californian copywriter that homes both my copy samples and FORGOTTEN WING's first chapter at www.kourtnie.net.

Thank you for your time and consideration,

Kourtnie
[Insert contact info - didn't delete this from the first comment, whoops! :)]

Query- The Keeper

Dear Public Query Slushpile,

There were signs all along, but signs get missed when you’re struggling just to make it through the day.

After her father’s death, Rachel Goode is determined to rebuild her life a thousand miles away from the only home she’s ever known. Sent with her brother to live at the boarding school where their uncle is Headmaster, she doesn’t expect to ever be happy again. Nor does she expect to find her soul mate, a mysterious boy with a secret connection to Rachel’s family and a world she never imagined existed.

Rachel’s attraction to Talan is instantaneous, consuming, and reciprocated. But standing in the way of her newfound happiness with Talan is the second soul that resides in him. Talan confesses not only to a growing love for Rachel, but that he is possessed by a “keeper,” an entity with a mission to guard her through a supernatural purpose. Can Rachel convince Talan that the “keeper” is just an illusion, an unnecessary barrier to the normal, happy life she desperately craves? Or will she have to come to terms with her role as a “chosen one” and accept that she has a purpose larger than her tragic circumstances reveal?

I am seeking representation for my first novel, a completed 99,000 word YA, paranormal romance titled The Keeper. What makes The Keeper unique is that it operates as two separate stories on two separate levels, one of which is only revealed in the ending. In fact, if you reread the book a second time, a whole different story floats to the surface like seaweed kicked up from the ocean floor.

On the surface, The Keeper uses Rachel’s first-person voice to share a love story that tears at the heart and mends the soul. But a secondary layer of symbolism and allegory emerges towards the ending to give Keeper a deeper relevance. It should appeal to paranormal romance readers as well as anyone seeking an uplifting message and an ending that leaves you thinking for days.

I would appreciate the chance to share a few chapters at your request. Please feel free to contact me at ---@gmail.com . Thank you for your valuable time and consideration.

Sincerely,
LL