CAGI Entry #24

Title: SUMMER OF HOPE

Genre: YA

Word Count: 52,000

Query:

After witnessing the death of her twin brother Jamie, sixteen year old Callie swears to never allow herself to get close to anyone again, because it hurts too much to lose them. She begins to question her faith and rebel against her family. Against her wishes, she is made to go to her family's summer vacation home. While there, she meets the "Perfects". They're the kind of girls who Callie always wanted to be like and wasn't...perfect hair, perfect clothes, perfect boyfriends. And suddenly, they invite her into their perfect little group. She also meets the new neighbor, Ethan; and even though she thinks there is something weird about him, she's drawn to him. Unfortunately, she also finds out that he's hiding a secret. And when she finally discovers what's going on, her world is changed in ways she couldn't have ever imagined, along with everyone else around her.

Callie is forced to face her worst fears, and challenge her beliefs in love, faith, and herself all in one summer.

Summer of Hope would appeal to readers that enjoy reading Lurlene McDaniel or Sarah Dessen. I have my B.S. in English Education from Penn State University and have written for almost ten years for various on and offline publications as both a freelancer and contracted writer.

First 250:

Callie sat up in her bed with a start, dripping with sweat, causing her thin summer nightgown to cling to her shaking body. Tears were streaming down her face as she kept repeating to herself, "It was a dream, it was just a dream."

Slowly, she swung her legs off of  the side of the bed until her feet touched the cool hardwood floor. She stood up and walked to the window, while attempting to gulp back the sobs. As she brushed the sheer cotton curtain back from the window, her mind didn't even register the moonlit setting in front of her. Instead, all she could see was a repeat of the scene that had awakened her, playing over and over again in her mind's eye.

She could see Jamie laughing with his friends, reaching over to good naturedly jostle his buddy over something he said that Callie couldn't hear from where she was standing in their yard. It was a gorgeous spring day, the classic kind that makes everyone want to just forget about any responsibilities they might have indoors, and go outside and enjoy the sunshine and breeze and just being alive. It was also the kind of day that makes sixteen year old kids try to be impressive and drive like they're in the Indy 500.

They said Jamie never even knew what hit him. He had barely stepped down from the curb, when a convertible full of teenagers roared around the turn, ignoring the stop sign, and ran directly into him.

CAGI Entry #23

Title: FORGET-ME-NOT

Genre: YA Speculative

Word Count: 76,000

Query:

Anamae is eight when her mother disappears without a trace. Nine years later, she innocently activates secret technology thrusting herself into danger. She’s forced into hiding from the unknown society concealing the technology from the public. Unable to return home, fear of being forgotten by those she loves leads headstrong Anamae into a fight to resume her normal life. With her protective best friend and a fierce new companion as allies, she struggles against the control of this despotic society determined to prevent her from exposing their many secrets. Friendship, love and hope propel Anamae and her friends through a risky mission to escape the manipulation she never realised influenced her everyday life.

First 250:

How do I tell my mother what’s happened, what she’s missed, everything about my life?

I can’t.

Chin cupped in hand, I sit at the desk in my bedroom and stare at the pale yellow notepaper before me. The blue lines across it are as empty as my pounding head. I hold my favourite pen, poised in my hand ready to write, but the words elude me. I let out a long sigh.

Two faces stare up from the photo waiting to be slipped into the envelope along with the letter. It’s a ‘selfie’, not one of my beautiful nature shots that I normally put with my annual letter. My cheek’s pushed up against Will’s. His sandy blonde hair falls into his bright blue eyes. His arm, resting over my shoulders, pulls us close together. Our grins say more than words ever will. I smile, he’s my best friend.

Twirling the pen between my fingers I gaze out of the window into the soft autumn afternoon. The distant clang of metal on metal pierces the silence. Leaning over my desk, I lift the window and warm afternoon air brushes against my face in a soft breeze. I peer out into the neighbour’s yard below. Will’s jean clad legs stick out from under the hood of a beat up green car. He backs out and hoists a large piece of machinery up onto his shoulder lifting it like it weighs no more than a small sack of potatoes.

CAGI Entry #22

Title: THE PRINCESS PARADOX: A MODERN FAIRY TALE

Genre: Women's fiction with romance

Word Count: 90,000

Query:

Locked away in a self-imposed dungeon slogging through life in her coffee shop, twenty-five-year-old Nora Roseberry has written off the probability Prince Charming will come rescue her. But fate is about to throw a heaping pile of “what now?” that she won't be able to ignore. This damsel in distress may just have to redefine happily ever after.

When roguish Aidan O'Neill comes-a-courtin' in response to a “last stab at romance” ad Nora places in the newspaper, she's shocked (but a teensy bit flattered). Aidan isn't the kind of prince who needs relationship help -- evidenced by the sheer volume of maidens that cross his threshold. Besides, he doesn't go for women like her. He dates knockouts. As suspected, Aidan reveals he answered the ad for his equally handsome brother Finn. Uncomfortable with his flirting and confused by her own foolish desire, Nora agrees impulsively to a date with the unknown Finn.  She quickly finds out Finn is everything fairy tales promised and more. Romantic, sincere, and ready to commit, he soon proposes -- just when Aidan seems to have decided to change his ways and pursue Nora himself. But it's too late. Nora's the blissful princess being carried away by her handsome hero. Upon introducing Finn to her fairy godmother, a.k.a. grandma with grit, Granny uncovers what Nora works hard to deny -- she's in love with someone, but it's not Finn. With a wedding looming, a caustic-mother-to-be waiting to rip her to shreds, and a night with Aidan sprinkled with moonlight and magic, there's only one decision she can make. And it will risk everything she's worked so hard to make fairy tale perfect.

First 250:

I wish I had the guts to tell my best friend I'd rather gouge out my eyes with a cocktail weenie than be at her wedding. Weddings, by nature, raise numerous questions if you’re single. People you don’t even know approach you as if it’s open season on any insensitive question they can muster. Are you involved? Did you just break up with someone? Are you a lesbian?

My answer to all of these is an emphatic "no". But explaining my feelings to Jillian, well, that just makes her try to hook me up with someone even more. Which is why I'm sitting here in dressing room I-lost-count, watching her zip up a beautiful Marchesa bridal gown, dreading this whole experience. I know exactly how today will end. 

"Ohmigod, Nora. Look at me."  

"You look…" I nodded, "breathtaking. Really." 

"I do, don’t I?" she tittered.

"You do," I repeated. 

She twisted her body, arching her back, and straining her neck to peek at every possible angle reflected in the mirror, patting her body down as she did so. "It really sucks in my fat."

"You don’t have any fat. You’re like a size two."

"Whatever. I think this is the one." Her eyes became teary, her lips puckered. She looked at me attempting a smile.

"Are you sure? How do you know it’s the one?" I asked. "You've tried on a gazillion dresses and I'm pretty sure I heard you swear on your unborn child that you've found 'the one' at least eight times."

CAGI Entry #21

Title: BROKEN

Genre: YA Contemporary

Word Count: 59,000

Query:

Oxycontin, Adderall, and cough syrup are sixteen-year-old Dylan Halstrom's best friends. The drugs dull the shame, but nothing can erase the memories. No, the reality of her father and sister's deaths wait for her on the other side of her high, shining like an interrogation lamp, reminding her she doesn't deserve to be happy after causing so much despair.  Desperate to numb her feelings once and for all, Dylan tries heroin.  It takes away the pain, but it does more than that.  It makes her carefree, something she hasn’t felt in three years.  The more carefree she becomes, the more aware she is of her feelings for Matt.  He’s the only person in her world that she can connect with and can make her feel something other than pain and guilt. 

When Dylan tries meth for the first time out of curiosity, the bad trip ends with her two-year-old sister fighting for her life in the ICU after falling down the stairs.  Feeling responsible for yet another tragedy, she pushes everyone away, including Matt.  Because if Matt’s too close, he might find out her darkest secret: that she’s unlovable.  Now, Dylan must decide if she’s strong enough to quit getting high and finally allow herself to love someone again and be loved in return, despite her flaws.  Because if she’s not, the drugs will destroy her, and she’ll end up just like the family she loves--dead.

First 250:

Red and blue lights dance off the roof of my mother’s car.

I groan and lean back against the seat.  The movement makes my head spin and my stomach rolls.  The pain is unbearable.  Like thousands of ice picks hammering into my temple at once. 

Pushing against the steering wheel, I try to shift away from the pain.  My hand slips and my elbow slams into something hard.  I grunt and cradle my arm against my chest.  Blood covers my hand.  It’s smeared across my shirt and the soaked fabric clings to my skin.  It’s sticky and uncomfortable.  

It’s dark.  I don’t understand why I’m in the car.  I can’t even pin down my last memory.  It feels like days ago that I was at Logan’s house.  But it was just this afternoon, right?  Maybe? 

I squint to make out the objects past the cracks in the windshield.  A tree has sprouted through the hood of the car, its branches splayed across the glass.  I turn stiffly to my right.  More trees.  How the hell did I make it this far into the woods in a car?

A distant memory floods my consciousness.  Lily.  My dad. 

Panic seizes my body.  The air is thick, like molasses, and I can’t get enough as I gulp for more.  Each breath I take sends a shock of pain rocketing through my chest as my lungs expand against my tender ribs.  The blood rushing to my brain pounds against my skull and I lean over in time to vomit into the passenger seat.

CAGI Entry #20

Title: THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD THROUGH A PADDED ROOM

Genre: YA Psychological Thriller

Word Count: 48,000

Query:

A drug induced, comatose journey into her own mind is Sophie’s last chance.  The experimental therapy is her final, desperate attempt at normal.  All she has to do now is survive it.

Dr. Warner’s theory is simple.  Find the source of Sophie’s trauma – then they can begin to fix it.  Unfortunately, they’ve been working on that for years without progress.  She’s avoiding her past, and sabotaging her future.  She wants to get better, but she’s too scared to go back.  Without being able to revisit her past, she can’t move forward. 

Something drastic must be done before she loses herself completely.  But the treatment is untested, and dangerous.  If she falls too deep into her own mind, there’s a chance she may never come out again.  And she has no idea what’s lurking inside. 

First 250:

Sophie could feel it slipping.  She was desperate to hang on to it, but it was slipping.  Her sanity was getting up and walking out the back door.  Drastic times called for drastic measures.

The door locked with a bang, sounding way too much like a prison door being slammed.  Looking around, there was nothing but white, so bright it was blinding.  She had to squint to take it in.  Not that there was much to see.  Just the soft walls and ceiling, padded into gigantic tic-tac-toe grids.  It was as creepy and clinical as she had imagined.  Sophie was officially in the crazy room.  Sadly, it was the only place left in the world for her.  The only thing missing was the straight jacket.

She heard them slide the little blue pill through the slot in the door.  This would be the only communication from anyone until the treatment was over, which could be days.  The sliding of pills and food though the slot.  But there was no food now.  Just the tiny blue pill.  Not even water.  She gagged.  She hated swallowing pills without water. 

She walked over, taking a deep breath.  There was nothing left to think about.  Her decision had been made.  She picked up the pill and swallowed it.  It slid right down.

Her parents were strongly against Dr. Warner's radical techniques.  She’d been in therapy for years, and this was unlike anything else.  But Sophie was desperate to try anything.  Convincing her parents was another matter, but they could see her slipping too.