QueryCon AKA School's In Query Wrap Up

Blogger ate this post, which could be a good thing because now you're going to get the simplified version. :)

What a great three weeks! We hope it helped you understand the importance of the query and helped you move in the right direction with your query. All of us at UB enjoyed the chance to pay it forward and help all of our lovely followers. So much in fact that we've discussed making this a yearly thing titled QueryCon.

Monday we will return to our normal posting schedule and various calls for submissions. Stick around and lets continue perfecting our novels so we can reach our publishing goals.

Our judges have another week to look over the queries and let me know if they want to request pages, so don't give up hope. One judge also issued an open invite to submit to her directly to all who participated (info below).

Here are the queries that have already garnished requests:

#2 Who Is Audrey Wickersham?
#3 Joshua's Tree
#5 Staying Dead
#7 Waiting for Someday
#11 Let My Life Be Proof
#12 Running Down the Dragon

Congratulations!

Nancy Bell of MuseIt Up Publishing invites anyone who wishes to query her after September 1st. MuseIt Up has been closed to submissions and therefore might get bombarded this weekend. Mention the UB contest in the personalized section of why you chose to query Nancy. You can find the complete submission guidelines HERE. That page is very detailed as to what they will and will not accept. Good luck!

But don’t go away just yet. To the sixteen who submitted their queries:

Send your mailing address to beccoff(at)nwmo(dot)net and receive an extremely cool magnet with our logo. Use it to pin the kid’s grade school picture and meeting reminders to the fridge.

Or a copy of your book deal.

Sorry, North America only. 

QueryCon #16--Casualties of Work

Title: Casualties of Work
Genre: Fiction
Name: Loralie Hall

Dear Awesome Editor,

Riley’s To Do List:
- Land that VP of Technology position
- Convince her coworker his “sleep with me or I’ll destroy your
career” pick-up line is repulsive.
- Pretend she’s okay with selling her soul for success

Riley doesn’t mind that her job devours her time; it’s all about paying her dues and earning her next promotion. Still, she’s not about to pass up a rare, free Friday night and the chance to have some fun. She doesn’t expect ‘fun’ to end with a coworker forcing himself on her. News travels fast between corporations and it will only take a rumor that she led him on to earn Riley a spot on the software industry’s unofficial list of ‘Manipulative and Difficult to Work with Women’.

As Riley weighs ethics against career, her friends offer a sympathetic ear. Their support would be fantastic if they would stop pushing her to come forward about what happened. They don’t understand her career can’t afford the whispered questions wondering if she asked for it. But the idea of speaking up – even if it means sacrificing everything she’s worked for – grows more appealing every day. If she can’t decide where her priorities lie soon, rumors will make the decision for her. She doesn’t want to lose her choice again.

The women’s fiction CASUALTIES OF WORK is complete at 90,000 words. My short stories have appeared in several anthologies, including BOUND in WICKED CITY 2 edited by George Wilhite, and SUGAR-COATED DREAMS in GRIM FAIRY TALES edited by Dorothy Davies.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

QueryCon #15--Shadow in Secret

Title: Shadow in Secret
Genre: Historical Fiction
Name: Talynn Lynn

Dear Judging Agent,

Forced to marry the prince merely to produce an heir to the throne, Alura Valdameir is pushed back into obscurity to keep her identity a secret. After the Queen was exiled, only one of her sons stood by her and she promised to return to the throne, even if it meant killing her own children and grandchildren. Alura is successfully hidden but only for a matter of time.

She escapes, only to be sold into a bachelorette-type brothel for none other than the Queen and her favorite son, who was spared from the royal slaughter. Alura is afraid her true identity might be uncovered, but her options seem limited. Mysteriously allured into a crumbling castle, she chances upon a man and follows him into the shadows. There, she stumbles upon a woman who looks exactly like her.

The woman is a spy and was accused of treason under the reign of Queen, before her exile. Alura must prove she is not the spy who was condemned to the gallows all the while keeping who she really a secret. There must be a way she can do this without betraying her husband and son, who are still in hiding. But things turn for the worse when the Queen chooses Alura as a bride for her favorite son.

Shadow in Secret is a 75,000 word Historical Fiction

QueryCon #14--The Refugee

Title:  The Refugee
Genre:  Sci-Fi Thriller
Name:  Sam B. Farkas

Dear Editor,

Ross Chambers is used to dodging bullets. All kinds, too, from musket balls to machine-gun fire.

For years he has been the top agent at Hourglass, an underground organization dedicated to “Protecting the Present by Preserving the Past.” Its teams of highly trained time travelers police history, making sure that it unfolds naturally –without interference from terrorists who wish alternate outcomes upon certain events.

When his fiancé perishes in a fire, Ross will do anything to get her back. Even if it means becoming a so-called terrorist himself. But every time he tries, he spirals to a completely different time and place. Like Paris, 1793, where he is mistaken for a long-awaited hero with a knack for depriving the guillotine of its victims.

Rescuing his fiancé is one matter, but saving total strangers is a whole 'nother –a sure-fire way to get himself killed. Not to mention he spent half his life working to maintain history's established melody. But when he sees firsthand that he has power over life and death, he's not so sure if altering the bloodstained past is necessarily a bad thing. It might, in fact, lead to a better world, one person at a time.

But it doesn't take long for his work to gain him unwanted attention from people like Robespierre, and Hitler, and Torquemada –all of whom want him dead. Though not as much as Dr. Lorraine Field, the director of Hourglass. She wants to feed his heart to Aztec gods and strap his corpse to the hull of the Titanic. To her, his daring adventures through time pose a threat to modern society. Changing history is a dangerous game, and the world's timeline cannot depend on the whims of one man – even one like Ross Chambers.

That's why she'll stop at nothing to make sure he's the Most Wanted Man of All Time. Literally.

THE REFUGEE is a sci-fi thriller complete at 100,000 words. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Sam B. Farkas

QueryCon #13--Affairs of the Dead

Title: Affairs of the Dead
Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy
Name: A.J. Locke


Dear Editors,

I am seeking representation for my 85,000 Adult Urban Fantasy novel, AFFAIRS OF THE DEAD.

Necromancer Selene Vanream helps ghosts settle their affairs so they can fade to the afterlife. However, after her often illegal methods of helping her clients lands her in trouble, she’s downgraded to tracking ghosts who hide out, since ghosts that linger too long become murderous beasties. And here Selene thought having an affair with the boss would get her out of trouble, not into it.

While tracking, Selene finds Ethan, a ghost who claims he was ousted from his body and someone else jumped in. Selene suspects reanimation; a power only a minority of necromancers have, including Selene.Reanimation entails bringing a corpse back to life using the soul from a living body, but that doesn’t add up to how Ethan became a ghost. What’s worse, partnered with Micah, a one night stand who turned hostile after, Selene investigates murders where the evidence pinpoints Ethan’s stolen body as the culprit.

When Selene accidentally binds herself to Ethan, she begins to understand the scope of reanimation, and gains power that could put Ethan back into his body. Selene has more than one reason to help Ethan though,because being ghost bound incurs the Rot, which will gradually decay her body due to constant exposure to ghost energy. Throw in a shifting relationship with Micah and a suddenly possessive boss, and Selene will learn just how much trouble you can get into when you don’t follow the rules.

AFFAIRS OF THE DEAD can stand alone but has series potential. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Regards,
A.J. Locke

QueryCon #12--Running Down the Dragon

Title: RUNNING DOWN THE DRAGON
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Name: Laura Hughes


Thalia Drake is the last dragon on earth. Her cover identity as an ass-kicking werewolf in the U.S. Military's elite shapeshifter ranks is in jeopardy. Not even her adopted shifter family know her true form.

When human victims start turning up in the Everglades, Thalia alone recognizes the glyphs burned into their skin. The ritual markings suggest the killer has bigger, more reptilian game on the menu.

None of the shifter investigators suspect what she does, that their modern-day murderer might be capable of killing essentially immortal shifters. Thalia isn't eager to inform them and blow her cover. A thousand years of lies would be tough for her family to forgive, and other shifters wouldn't think twice about killing a recalcitrant dragon. But holding back what she knows will put every shifter in danger.

Thalia and the FBI's shifter division track the killer to the heart of Washington, DC. Every clue seems to point to a U.S. Senator, despite his air-tight alibi. Whatever the senator's involvement may be, if they don't find the killer soon, one of his rituals is bound to succeed. One successful ritual could spell extinction for the shifters.

RUNNING DOWN THE DRAGON is an urban/contemporary fantasy novel of 103,000 words. I have also completed a second Thalia Drake novel, but RUNNING DOWN THE DRAGON can stand on its own. Thank you for your time and consideration.

QueryCon #11--Let My Life Be Proof

Title: LET MY LIFE BE PROOF
Genre: Contemporary YA novel
Name: Connie Michael 

LET MY LIFE BE PROOF is a 60,000 word Contemporary YA novel.  At nineteen, prodigy Emme Sawyer is the youngest girl to graduate from the University of Washington with a medical degree, an honor she’s achieved by giving up the carefree days of high school.  Soon she discovers that being a grown up is a giant bore.  Seeking adventure Emme heads for the Navy. 

Shortly after arriving in Afghanistan, Emme’s mobile hospital is bombed. With a reputation for overlooking regulations, Emme jumps at the chance to be closer to the action and joins up with a Marine unit in need of a medic.  Able to convince the C.O. she’s a medic, not a surgeon; she is placed under the protection of a former Special Ops sharp shooter and joins the team.  With the front lines blurred, Emme accompanies the unit on a mission into the poppy fields of Marjah.

When the bullets start to fly Emme learns that medical school doesn’t prepare you for war and being a girl doesn’t make getting killed off limits. Emme struggles against the cultural biases of a foreign land and the limitations her unit is put under while trying to push the Taliban out.  After her guard is killed by an IED, Emme shuts off her emotions—until her commanding officer, Raven takes the job of looking after her, arousing feelings she doesn’t want and isn’t supposed to have.  As Raven begins to reciprocate Emme realizes she missed out on a lot more than classes when she skipped high school. When Emme sustains life threatening injuries in an IED attack, and is shipped home, her life begins to crumble.  Faced with the nightmares of her deployment and unresolved feelings for Raven, Emme must choose to move forward in a world she no longer feels a part of or figure out how to get back to the men she left behind, risking never being with the man she has begun to fall for.

I am a member of YALITCHAT.org and volunteer in the Submission Mailbox.  Thank you for your consideration.

QueryCon #10--Golden Dawn

Title: Golden Dawn
Genre: Paranormal
Name: Aldrea Alien


Dear Guest Judges,

Herald, eldest son of a bloodthirsty strigoi, endured two centuries of hell before escaping into the human world. He watched, helpless, as his twin brother was murdered by the very villagers his father insists on raiding. Though he has reservations about his father's human-only diet, Herald has nevertheless devoted all of his 1100 years towards protecting his family from outsiders.

Bewildered by his orders to guard the giant crystal held within the castle, Herald doesn’t expect it to hold the spirit of an angel. She is his father's failed attempt to gain true immortality. One he cannot be rid of. Breaking the crystal would free her, but the uncontained magic would level their sheltered valley. Herald's deranged sister doesn't care. She'd rather risk destruction than let the angel influence another sibling.

When the angel's continued existence becomes more important to Herald than his siblings, it results in that sister's death and his banishment. But the angel has taken mortal form in preparation to leave this world and her immortal-gifting blood is free for the taking. Now Herald must decide whether his true loyalty lies with his family or his heart. Either choice will demand death. Only the right path will ensure the life taken is not his.

GOLDEN DAWN, complete at 33,000 words and the first in a trilogy of novellas, is a Paranormal with romantic elements, loosely set in the 1500’s.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
Suzanne Thomas (Writing as Aldrea Alien)

QueryCon #9--Race To Butch Cassidy's Gold

Title: RACE TO BUTCH CASSIDY'S GOLD
Genre: Middle Grade Mystery
Name: Emily Cushing

Twelve-year-old Maggie McCoy wants to be brave and spontaneous. But she’s not. Especially when it comes to school bullies and flying by the seat of her pants. So when she and her fearless cousin Jake stumble upon century-old clues leading to gold coins hidden by Butch Cassidy—farm boy turned infamous bank robber of the Wild West—she crumples her ‘to-do’ list to prove that she really can be daring and impulsive.

And at first, searching for gold with Jake and their quirky Grandpa Jim in his beat-up motor home is the grand adventure she has always wanted. But Maggie’s new found courage falters when she learns they must outsmart and outrun a dangerous thief who is also after the treasure.

The race is on. But, just as Maggie and Jake think they have solved the mystery, Jake is captured and all the ‘to-do’ lists in the world won’t save him. Only Maggie can, if she finds her bravery.

RACE TO BUTCH CASSIDY'S GOLD is a 40,000-word middle grade mystery where Maggie's present-day adventures parallel Butch Cassidy's past until mystery and history collide.This book stands alone, but can open the door for a series that exposes readers to fast-paced adventures across the fifty states.

With a Master’s degree in Elementary Education, I have been both an elementary and middle school teacher. I am a regular attendee of writers’ conferences and have three published magazine articles. I created the successful marketing website, Giveaway Today, with an apex of 176,000 page views per month.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

QueryCon #8--And Jakob Flew the Fiend Away

Title:  And Jakob Flew the Fiend Away
Genre:  Historical fiction, Bildungsroman
Name:  Carrie-Anne


Dear Guest Judges,

Jakob DeJonghe can think of nothing but revenge when the Nazis coerce his father into suicide and his little sister mysteriously disappears the day before Yom Kippur.  As conditions in Amsterdam worsen, Jakob is determined to fight back and be the master of his own destiny, just as his heroes the Maccabees did in ancient times.

While en route from Westerbork, Jakob finally takes action, jumps from a death train, and breaks his foot.  As he’s limping for his life towards a forest, he’s found by four young resistance fighters and taken to a safe house.  Even though Jakob has been left with a permanent limp,he’s still determined to defend his country and track down the men who killed his father.

His dream comes true when he joins his new friends’ resistance group, but when he runs into Rachel Roggenfelderon one of his missions, he starts to feel the slow reawakening of emotions he thought he’d buried.  After being recruited into the Princess Irene Brigade and made a real soldier, Jakob realizes his battle is only half-won. If he ever wants to survive a world that will never be ordinary again,love and not hate will have to carry him through.  And if he finds his dream girl again, this painful readjustment just might be easier.

And Jakob Flew the Fiend Away, a historical fiction Bildungsroman spanning the years 1940-46 and set in the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies, is complete at 120,000 words.

I have a BA from [redacted] in history and Russian and Eastern European Studies, with a focus on 20th century Russian history and the World War II/Shoah era, and worked in the production room of an Albany,NY-based newspaper, The Jewish World, for five years, writing, researching, and proofreading articles.

Thank you for your time and attention.

QueryCon #7--Waiting for Someday

Title: Waiting For Someday
Genre: Women's Fiction


Like a blade of grass pushing its way through a crack in the sidewalk, sometimes the buried past has a way of resurfacing... 

Thirty-eight-year-old Valene DelMonaco is a talented expert when it comes to designing the interiors of luxury homes for a small list of New York clients. She satisfies their needs with all the extravagance their lifestyles demand.  Yet when it comes to her own surroundings,she likes her life just the way it is—ordinary. 

But life hasn’t always been ordinary for Valene.  Surviving an abusive stepfather, a teenage pregnancy, and an abusive marriage-of-convenience, she’s determined to suppress her troubled past and keep it where it belongs—buried, along with the rest of her romantic notions. 

Everything changes when she receives a mysterious letter from her ex-best friend, Allyson. No communication for over twenty years since their friendship-ending quarrel had all but convinced Valene she would never hear from Allyson again.  Dredging up the past is the last thing Valene wants, but unless she’s willing to return to California to gain closure with Allyson, she fears the haunting memories of her past can never be put to rest. 

Valene may be resigned to let bygones be bygones, yet nothing prepares her for Allyson’s revelation, her true motive for reconciliation—their rekindled friendship has an expiration date stamped on it, a date of Allyson’s own choosing. 

Complete at 93,000 words, WAITING FOR SOMEDAY is a poignant journey in women's fiction, intertwining the stories of two women whose friendship comes full circle.

QueryCon #6--Tagestraum

Title:  Tagestraum
Genre:  Fantasy
Name: T.L. Bodine

Dear Guest Judges,

When social worker Adrian Montgomery's seven-year-old client Nathaniel disappears, he jumps on the chance to aid in the investigation. He doesn't expect the search to lead him to another world.

At the scene of the boy's disappearance is a doorway that only Adrian can see.  On the other side is Tagestraum, a faerie realm fed by the energy of children's imaginations. Without their dreams, the whole kingdom would be plunged into the sort of Darkness where monsters are born and nightmares become real.  But Tagestraum's been suffering an energy crisis lately because someone has been stealing dreams – and the kids who make them.

In order to find the dream-thief and rescue Nathaniel, Adrian must journey through a savage wonderland of flesh-eating unicorns, dream-addicted faeries and corrupt monarchs. Worse, Tagestraum itself assaults the sanity of rational minds, and Adrian's is made up of locked doors and labeled file cabinets. At night, the Darkness drags him through his darkest memories, forcing him to face horrors from his own troubled childhood.

As the search unfolds, he realizes that he's not here by coincidence. And if he can't stop the dream thief, Tagestraum isn't the only world that will be overrun with Darkness.

TAGESTRAUM is an 80,000 dark fantasy that would appeal to fans of Neil Gaiman and China Mieville.  My short stories have previously appeared in the Dark Valentines anthology from Whortleberry Press as well as Freedom Fiction Journal and MicroHorror.

QueryCon #5--Staying Dead

Title: STAYING DEAD
Genre: YA Dark Fantasy
Name: Kristy and Bryce

Dear Awesome Guest Judge,

Persephone Mead wakes up in a house with no ceiling, a bed covered with flowers, and a giant shard of glass embedded in her chest. Normal fifteen-year-old girls would start freaking out here. Persephone is not a normal fifteen-year-old girl.

She's back. It worked. After everything she's been through, she's finally made it.

But it doesn’t last. It never lasts.

And soon enough, she’s thrown back. Back down towards Earth. Back down towards a world full of smoke, debris, and wailing ambulances.

Persephone is not a normal fifteen-year-old girl.  Because she just can’t seem to stay dead. And she has no idea why.

STAYING DEAD is a completed YA Dark Fantasy with a word count of 82,000. It was selected as one of the winners for Krista van Dolzer’s “An Agent’s Inbox” contest, judged by Hannah Bowman of Liza Dawson Associates. Thank you for your time and consideration.


Sincerely,

Kristy Shen and Bryce Leung

QueryCon #4--The Curse Merchant

Title: The Curse Merchant
Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy
Name: J.P. Sloan

Dorian Lake has spent years cornering the Baltimore hex-crafting market, using his skills at the hermetic arts to exact karmic justice for those whom the system has failed. He keeps his magic clean and free of soul-corrupting Netherwork, thus avoiding both the karmic blow-back of his practice and the notice of the Presidium, a powerful cabal of practitioners that polices the esoteric arts in America.  However, when an unscrupulous Netherworker interferes with both his business and his personal life, Dorian's disarming charisma and hermetic savvy may not be enough to keep his soul out of jeopardy.

His rival, a soul monger named Neil Osterhaus, wouldn't be such a problem were it not for Carmen, Dorian's captivating ex-lover. After two years' absence Carmen arrives at Dorian’s doorstep with a problem: she sold her soul to Osterhaus, and has only two weeks to buy it back.  Hoping to win back Carmen's affections, Dorian must find a replacement soul without tainting his own. As Dorian descends into the shadows of Baltimore’s underworld, he must decide how low he is willing to stoop in order to save Carmen from eternal damnation... with the Presidium watching, waiting for him to cross the line.

Complete at 82,000 words, THE CURSE MERCHANT is an urban fantasy novel with series potential, that propels the reader into the trials of a charming man in a bastard's profession.

QueryCon #3--Joshua's Tree

Title: Joshua's Tree
Genre: YA Science Fiction
Name: Neil Harris


Dear Guest Judges,

Set in the distant future, Joshua’s Tree is a YA science fiction at 75,000 words.

When a skateboarding accident hurls 17-year-old Joshua Tyler into a dismal future overrun by flesh-eating mutants, he taps into the strength and courage hidden within him and manages to stay alive, only to discover his horrifying relationship to the scientific genius that brought all life on Earth to the brink of annihilation.

Josh is aided by a beautiful warrior student, Nadia, who believes he may be the prophesized savior sent to rescue her people. While struggling with doubt about her role as his guardian, Nadia takes it upon herself to teach him to fight so he can fulfill his destiny. Terrified by the constant threat of a violent death, Josh wants nothing more than to get back to his own life. But the longer he survives in this strange place, the more he learns about its creation. Charged with the job of assassinating the enemy’s leader, Josh begins to uncover his connection to the army of cannibalistic monsters—a nightmarish truth that could prevent him from ever finding his way home.

Joshua’s Tree is the first book in a potential trilogy and will appeal to readers of books like Divergent and The Scorch Trials. An earlier revision was selected as a quarter-finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Contest 2012.  I’m a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and would be happy to provide a copy of my manuscript for your consideration. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,
Neil Harris

QueryCon Final #2--Who is Audrey Wickersham?

Title: Who is Audrey Wickersham?
Genre: Horror/Paranormal
Name: Sara Shrieves

Dear Guest Judges,

Fifteen-year-old Audrey Wickersham loves books, horror movies and anything supernatural, and she’s finally decided to try her first spell. She heads to her favorite hangout, The Magick Eye, to find the perfect one. She encounters Agnes, the old Gypsy who offers to create a custom spell for her. Audrey is thrilled until she encounters an ancient yet totally disgusting parasite called the Zomorwai.While messing with the jar they are contained in, a warning shout from Agnes causes her to spill the creatures, allowing them to invade and attack her system.

When she begins to forget basic words in her vocabulary—even what her cat is—she must tell her overly protective yet devoted father what happened. Their only solution is to confront Agnes, but when they discover that Audrey is becoming a zombie, they will try any spell Agnes can come up with to stop it. Audrey’s eccentric neighbor volunteers his skills as a nurse, and her best friend proposes an alternate solution in secret. The only problem is she would still have to die.

But Audrey holds a secret of her own. She’s developing a taste for humans, and those closest to her are in the most danger. She must decide quickly. Will she go with magick, or death?

WHO IS AUDREY WICKERSHAM? is a young adult horror/paranormal novel with elements of comedy, complete at 64,000 words. It can be opened to a series, and I have already begun writing the second book.

Thank you so much for this opportunity!! 

QueryCon Final #1--Escape From the Forbidden Planet

Title: Escape From the Forbidden Planet
Genre: Upper MG Scifi
Name: Julie Grasso

Dear Guest Agent,

“ESCAPE FROM THE FORBIDDEN PLANET” is an Upper Middle Grade Science Fiction at 53,000 words.

12-Year-Old-Caramel Cinnamon, a telepathic elf from the planet Cardamom thought the worst day of her life was the day her grandparent’s the King and Queen of Cardamom went missing.

She was wrong!

It is the day she spills a sticky toffee syrup onto her father’s computer, that's when her worst nightmare begins. Suddenly she finds herself marooned on a forbidden planet called Earth by an evil clone with a very sticky secret.

Caramel is desperate to find a way to escape and rescue her grandparents. If she doesn't she will lose her dreams of returning to Cardamom to become a healer like her Mum.  With the help of her motley crew of Earth friends Caramel embarks on an outrageous plan to defeat the Alexander clones and rescue her grandparents.  No problem piece of cake. Except her grandfather is wounded in the rescue and the spaceship they jumped on to escape is now hurtling out of control towards Cardamom. 

Luckily, she has a secret of her own and the lives of her family and friends depend on it!

I would be very pleased if you would like to view the full manuscript, but I would suggest you have a snack nearby if you do. My elves are quite partial to sticky date and chocolate with caramel syrup and reading may induce a sugar craving.

Yours faithfully
Julie Anne Grasso

Get Those Queries Ready

It's almost here...

Finals Week!

I hope you've had enough help this week that you feel good about your query. We've had a lot of fun playing the part of teacher's assistants. Before I go into the submission guidelines, I wanted to say one more thing about dealing with critique.

You guys were amazing! No dirty emails berating us for being unkind. We really tried to be kind and helpful. If you cried any tears, you did it at home and then got to work. Good for you!

But here's the thing.

You have to remember that although we've had some experience, our comments are still just our opinions. We haven't read your novel. We don't know what THE most important thing is about it. YOU do.

I spent a year trying to make my query and my book fit into what everyone else said it should be. After about 20 crit partners--yes, I am a glutton for punishment--there was nothing left of ME in my story. Why? Because I tried to change everything that someone said I should change.

Guess what? That doesn't work. You will never be able to make everyone "get" your novel or your query. When it comes down to it, follow your heart. Polish and perfect, but do it in your style. Your voice. It is after all your story.

To tweak Peeta's words: If you're gonna get published, you wanna still be you.

Wow, that didn't sound as cool as I thought it would. See, it doesn't pay to try to be someone else.

Now, on to how and when to submit your queries for Final's Week (of what we are thinking of dubbing QueryCon), and grading by our fabulous judges.

Rules and Submission Guidelines :

1. Must be a follower of UB
2. Manuscript  must be complete and polished
3. Manuscript must fall into the genres our judges are looking for (see below)
4. Please do not comment on the posted queries--this week is for the judges only
5. Put Finals Week--(Name of Novel) in the subject line of the email.
6. Start with:
Title:
Genre:
Name: (name will be posted unless you tell me not to)
Then paste the query in the body of the email--no attachments.
7. We will accept the first 20 queries sent to unicornbellsubmissions@gmail.com after 1:30 PM US Central time On SUNDAY, Aug 26th. Each person is responsible for figuring out their time difference as I will go by the time stamp in my email.
8. I will send an email confirming receipt of the query and your number for "Finals Week"
9. Queries will go up by 6am Monday morning and stay up all week.

Reminder of what our judges are looking for: 

Krystal Wade from Curiosity Quills
Andrew Buckley from Curiosity Quills
Nancy Bell from MuseItUp Publishing
Amy Lichtenhan from SapphireStar Publishing
Donna O'Brien from Crescent Moon Press

Krystal--I love older mc's (18+)! I'd like to see some good dystopian, more male mc's too, and then of course anything scifi/fantasy/paranormal with something new and unusual.

Andrew--I’m looking for adult fiction be it paranormal, sci-fi, fantasy, urban fantasy and/or anything quirky or humorous. No YA or NA please. I like strong protagonists with a unique voice and wonderfully evil antagonists. Please, please, please, no in-your-face sword and sorcery type pieces. They’ve been known to cause sharp pains in my posterior. I’m also looking for cookies. Oatmeal raisin are my favorite.

Nancy--MuseItUp is looking for more dark fiction, horror, as we are light in that department. However, romance, historical romance, YA/MG from a male POV that will entice that sector. Of course, we are open to anything that is well written and crafted. We don't publish literary fiction or poetry.

Amy--We're especially interested in contemporary romance and paranormal romance at this time, although we are accepting submissions in all fiction categories.

Donna--Currently, we are looking for voice rather than specific genre requirements, though we are primarily a boutique publisher of high quality fantasy, futuristic, and paranormal fiction. We are interested in urban fantasy, dystopian, futuristic science fiction, steampunk, mind-bending time travel, space operas, mythological as well as historical retellings with a twist, epic high fantasy, and the paranormal. We are also interested in paranormal categories of suspense, thrillers, gothica, and mystery. CMP also accepting submissions in the YA and New Adult categories of the above mentioned genres.

Query Workshop 27--Race to Butch Cassidy's Gold

Title: RACE TO BUTCH CASSIDY'S GOLD
Genre: MG Mystery


Twelve-year-old Maggie McCoy wants to be brave and spontaneous. But she’s not. Especially when it comes to school bullies and "flying by the seat of her pants". So when she and her fearless cousin Jake stumble upon century-old clues leading to gold coins hidden by Butch Cassidy--farm boy turned infamous bank robber of the Wild West--she crumples her “to-do” list to prove that she really can be daring and impulsive.

And at first, searching for gold with Jake and their quirky Grandpa Jim in his beat-up motorhome is the grand adventure she's always wanted. But Maggie’s newfound courage falters when she learns they must outsmart and outrun a dangerous thief who is also after the treasure.

The race is on. But, just as the cousins think they have solved the mystery, Jake is captured, and all the lists in the world won't save him. Only Maggie can, if she finds her bravery. 

RACE TO BUTCH CASSIDY'S GOLD is a 41,500-word middle grade mystery where Maggie's present-day adventures parallel Butch Cassidy's past until mystery and history collide. This book stands alone, but can open the door for a series that exposes readers to fast-paced adventures across the fifty states.

With a Master’s degree in Elementary Education, I have been both an elementary and middle school classroom teacher. I am a regular attendee of writers’ conferences and have three published magazine articles. I created the successful marketing website, Giveaway Today, with an apex of 176,000 page views per month.

Thanks for your time and consideration.

Query Workshop 26-The Curiosity

Title - The Curiosity
Genre - Horror (historic)


Revision 1

Dear Unicorn Bell,
Anthropology Professor Duncan Clarke discovers, inside an antique journal, a drawing of an emaciated child with terrified eyes. Intrigued, Duncan becomes determined to unveil the identity of the strange child.

Soon, Duncan realizes he's on the verge of an anthropological breakthrough; the child is an alleged 19th century Haitian Voodoo Zombie. Now Duncan must authentic the findings before he reaps the rewards.

However, unlike his usual research, this case challenges everything he thought he understood about science, the human body and the depravity to which a desperate man would sink.

Sucked into a dark world, Duncan begins to change from a conventional professor to one who would risk his family, his job and even break the law to find out the truth of the past.

Finally, when faced with the horrific truth, will Duncan's choices lead him to scientific glory or inextricable hell?

The Curiosity is a 110,000 word historic horror frame story that takes place in both 1865 London and 1990 England as Duncan Clarke brings into his day a macabre tale from the past. It can stand alone but I am exploring the concept of a sequel or two, as the conclusion of the story easily lends itself well to that.

Original
Dear Unicorn Bell,

Professor Duncan Clarke, head of the anthropology department at England's Cambridge University is looking forward to a restful two-week sabbatical when on his way home he stops at a private residence to pick up a donation of strange artifacts and journals for his department.

When a disturbing drawing of an emaciated young boy with terrified eyes falls out of one the journals, Duncan is immediately mesmerized  and dives into the journals to discover the identity of this horrific looking child.

What Duncan is to learn from the journals is like no other anthropological find he has ever come across. They reveal the century-old recorded case of Henri, an actual Haitian Zumbi. The journals, belonging to a Victorian London curiosity dealer named Edward Walker, document the boy's rescue and his attempted rehabilitation in England, where he is kept in seclusion, nursed and studied by the eccentric Mr. Walker.

On the verge of an anthropological break through, Duncan becomes obsessed with trying to authenticate the tale he reads in Edward's journal, using the devices at his disposal as a department head together with the clues that seem to be lying at his fingertips inside the crates of artifacts, if only he can piece the bizarre facts together.

As Duncan gets deeper into the journal and the strange facts of the case, he begins to change from a by-the-book professor to one who will risk his family, his job and even break the law to find out the truth of Edward's Zumbi.

Finally, Duncan's curiosity will alter his life in ways he never anticipates when in the final conclusion he realizes his obsession has damned his life forever.

The Curiosity is a 110,000 word historic horror frame story that takes place in both 1865 London and 1990 England as Duncan Clarke brings into his day a macabre tale from the past. It can stand alone but I am exploring the concept of a sequel or two, as the conclusion of the story easily lends itself well to that.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,