Genre: YA contemporary
Word count: 80,000
Query:
Dumbest thing to do when you meet the girl of your dreams? Introduce her to the boy of HER dreams.
Adam has loved his best friend Brynna for years. He’s brave enough to sit with her in the hospital after multiple heart surgeries, but too chicken to confess his true feelings. When hot new quarterback Beckett makes a play for Brynna’s heart, Adam, the unwitting matchmaker, fears he’s missed his chance to be with her.
This is no love triangle. Brynna loves one of the boys. She is in love with the other. Adam and Beckett each sit on the fence, teetering back and forth between friendship and enmity.
The fight to share Brynna’s life comes to a head on a snowy Ohio night. One boy would give up his life in order to save Brynna; the other would give up his future to be with her. This is the night Adam and Beckett must finally decide: Friends or enemies? It is the night that changes everything.
LAVENDER BOYS alternates in points of view between main characters Adam and Beckett. Its humor and heartache are reminiscent of Gayle Forman's If I Stay and Jandy Nelson’s The Sky is Everywhere.
This story is from my heart – literally. As a teen, I had cardiac surgery and experienced all the drama of life and love in the hospital. Now I am a nationwide in-demand speaker and writer for the American Heart Association and numerous non-profit organizations. I have been filmed for a reality pilot episode which will be presented to networks in the spring. I have recently been interviewed for a single episode spot on a nationally syndicated television show. I am a current SCBWI member.
First 250:
ADAM
I love her.
But...
BECKETT
There it is.
Right in the middle of the bulletin board on the wall of Coach’s office.
In plain view.
The article.
The one about me.
I can’t help reading it every time I see it. Just like I do with every newspaper article about me.
ADAM
But…she doesn’t love me.
Not the way I want her to love me.
It pains me to lie in bed with her.
So close – touching her, loving her.
Knowing we are just friends. Best of friends. Forever friends. Nothing but friends.
God she smells good.
Brynna rolls over and her long copper hair slides across my arm. I resist the urge to run my fingers through it. I could if I wanted. She doesn’t mind. She actually likes it when I play with her hair. But today, I can’t. There are days when I must control my urges. There are days when I can’t control my desires. On those days, I don’t want to touch her…because I WANT to touch her. Today is one of those days.
Brynna and I are lying on my bed.
Watching the worst supposed-to-be-scary-but-is-not-at-all-scary movie ever made.
Lying next to her is magnificent. It is also complete torture. Self-inflicted torture. Obviously, I am a masochist because I enjoy putting myself in these types of situations. Here I am with her, so close I can feel her body parts against mine. Everyone knows being this close to a beautiful girl will eventually drive even the most restrained eighteen year old boy batshit crazy with hormonal desire.
You had me when you compared it to "If I Stay" and "The Sky is Everywhere." :) Your first few words are very, very sweet.
ReplyDeleteThank you. My book is emotionally charged for sure.
DeleteOh wow! The query is very intriguing! Would love to read more!
ReplyDeleteI remember this from Writeon.com and I loved it then. Still want to keep reading :) Please??? Pretty please?
ReplyDeleteWow! Amazing :) Perfect query and awesome concept! I love how you've started this off too. Good luck :)
ReplyDeleteYour paragraph with Brynna rolls over and her long copper hair...
ReplyDeleteHoly poo! I'm getting all jittery and lovey dovey! Eeep! This is great!
Thanks! I can just see Adam stop breathing as Brynna's hair brushes over him...and then five seconds later, they could be making fun of each other - cuz they are such good friends.
Delete"I love her. But..." My heart aches for Adam. Unrequited love is the worst. Always obstacles in the way. I have a feeling this would be a book I would hug once I was finished and flip it to the front and re-read it all over again.
ReplyDeletethe plot of the story is interesting. this is seems like a story that talks about different kinds of love and how it survives through different challenges and gets stronger through adversity. a must read for everyone!
ReplyDeleteAs an avid teen reader, I can say that Lavender Boys seems like a very different, awesome, and moving story.
ReplyDeleteI find it unique that the alternate point of views in the story is not between the hero and the heroine. I have never read a book that shows the point of view of two guys in a love triangle. That is surely gonna be interesting to read about!
I also say that Lavender Boys is awesome and moving because, I mean, just reread the first line of the pitch. "Dumbest thing to do when you meet the girl of your dreams? Introduce her to the boy of HER dreams." Doesn't THAT just peak your interest? My initial reaction was this: "WOAH". That was such a punch-errific line! I also like that though Lavender Boys is a tragic story, there's still some humor injected here and there. There is a balance between making you laugh and making you sad... I like that!
So, yes, I think Lavender Boys is the definition of an amazing story.
The more I thought over this query and partial, the more it seeped into my brain. I'm not usually a big fan of multiple POVs, but the idea that the POVs alternate between the two boys really caught my attention. Plus the girl already feels real--she's not some cheerleader swishing her blonde ponytail at them, she's real and tangible even though I know nothing about her. I can imagine her pain in all of this too, even though we won't actually be in her head.
ReplyDeleteThis is exactly what you want an ms or book to do--sit in someone's brain until they have to read it.
I want to see the...
FULL!!!
Oh my gosh i think i just spit my coke out onto the screen. You are correct. The girl is not a cheerleader. She's in the hospital too often. Probably not a good idea to jump up and down while attached to an IV. Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteCongrats!!!! :D
ReplyDeleteYay, Lavender Writer! Like I said I've been rooting for this since writeon.con. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the request! This was definitely a good query, I really feel for both of these guys!
ReplyDeleteCONGRATS!!
ReplyDeleteYes, this one is simply great! :D Good job!