Contest Winners!

Literary agent Joan Paquette judged our last QueryTracker Blog contest on October 27, 2010. We had over 600 entries ranging from picture books to young adult novels. We will contact the winners and provide them with the proper submission email address. Ms. Paquette's winners are as follows:

October Children's Lit Contest Winners

Wow! I was amazed and overwhelmed by the most impressive turnout for this contest, and I had a terrific time making my way through the many submissions. But… how do you go about narrowing down 600 entries to a handful of winners? Not easily, that’s for sure!

The process I followed was to first read through the pitches and mark the ones that stood out to me. Then I went back to the top and read the opening sentences, and again noted those that caught my eye. Then I went back and checked to see which of the two overlapped. After that it was just a matter of reading, re-reading, pondering, mulling, sorting and, in the end, going with my gut.—Which, after all, is a lot of what it really comes down to in this very subjective business.

The selections that follow are those that most captivated me—a combination of hook, voice, writing style, and my particular interests. So without further ado, here are the winners of this Query Tracker contest:

WINNERS: Please send a query and the first 50 pages (QT will provide you with the address).

These pitches left me utterly intrigued, and the opening lines pulled me right into the story. Terrific stuff!

FORGET ME, by Monica Goulet

Pitch: When someone gives up their seat on a city bus for 17-year-old Addy, she thinks nothing of it - until the bus crashes on the way home and the person left standing is the only fatality.

Opener: If I learned anything in the hours after the accident happened, it was that the only difference between a stranger and an acquaintance is an introduction. It made me think about the little boy who'd been sitting behind me on the bus, kicking my seat, when it happened. It made me think about the teenaged girl I didn't recognize who'd been sitting across from me, listening to music on her headphones way too loud. I could hear the beat, but not the words, and found myself tapping my foot, trying to guess what song was playing. I didn't ask if any of them died - not right away anyway.

THE ALYSCRAI, by Deren Hansen

Pitch: In an alternate 1898, sixteen-year-old Alysseren navigates a land infested with steam-powered war machines to stop a rebellion when she learns the tochtin, lemur-like familiars, are preparing to use their human hosts as weapons.

Opener: The thought of being so wicked had been thrilling, almost intoxicating.

The reality was uncomfortable and dull.

It had been easy enough for Alysseren to slip under the pews at the end of the common service. Sister Alice had gone to the vestry to prepare for the High Service and Reverend Dodgson was busy attending to the high priest who'd come to dedicate the new church, so no one noticed she was missing.

That was fifteen minutes ago—fifteen minutes of trying to stay perfectly still curled up on the hard wooden floor—and they still hadn't started the anthem yet.

RUNNERS UP: Please send a query and your first chapter (QT will provide you with the address).

There were so many great projects to choose from! How could I stop at just two winners? The pitches and opening lines for these projects tugged me in as well, and made me curious to read more.

DEAD AGAIN, by Paige Cuccaro

FOOTBALLS AND TIARAS, by Amy Brashear

GHOST MACHINES: Specter Cell, by Graham Bradley

LOCK 19, by Sabrina Wolford

MY MOMMY'S A SPY, by Laura Aldir-Hernandez

PRINCESS SASSYLASS, by Nancy Kelly Allen

SEAN MCDONALD'S ELIXIR OF INFINITE WISDOM, by Bonny J. Anderson

SNAKES IN PARADISE, by Elizabeth Penney

WORLD WAR ME, by Kevin M. McGreer

Lastly, I want to add that there were some other projects which caught my eye as well. I will be sending out individual emails to these other folks with an invitation to send along their query to me.

I really enjoyed judging this contest and reading all of your work, and I wish every one of you all the very best up ahead.—There’s some amazing talent in this pool and I look forward to seeing many of you in print!

Ammi-Joan Paquette

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A huge QT thanks to Ms. Paquette and congratulations to all the winners.

More on Ms. Paquette can be found on the Erin Murphy Literary Agency Website

Contest Closed

The contest officially closed at 9:00 AM Eastern Standard Time today and the form is no longer operational. Thanks to everyone who entered.

The response time and announcement of the winners (who will receive full and partial requests from Ms. Paquette) will depend on the number of entries. The more entires, the longer it will take--one of the pitfalls of not having an entry cut-off.

Ms. Paquette hopes to have the results within two weeks. I'll give updates as to her progress, and the winners will be notified directly via email as well.

Good luck to all who entered!

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to post them in comments or email me at marytlindsey@gmail.com

Agent Judged Contest Has Begun!

Our agent-judged one-line pitch contest began today, Wednesday, October 27^th at 9:00 am Eastern Standard Time.

Joan Paquette of the Erin Murphy Literary Agency is judging the contest.

The contest entry window is 24 hours and will end at 9:00 am Eastern Standard time on Thursday, October 28^th.

You may pitch more than one project, but be certain all projects are complete, edited and polished enough to present to an agent.

Submissions must be made via our online submission form. (A free QueryTracker.net membership is necessary to use the form and can be accessed from the form page.) Only entries received through the online form will be accepted. Entries emailed directly to the agent or agency will be disqualified.

This contest is for completed children’s projects only. The genres include children’s literature from picture books and chapter books through middle grade and young adult novels of all sub-genres. NO ADULT NOVELS OR PROJECTS as this agency only represents children’s fiction including YA.

Ms. Paquette wants to receive one-line pitches and the first 100 words of your manuscript (+ or – half a sentence. Don’t just end mid-sentence).

Details for this contest were posted yesterday and have been in the contest widget in the sidebar for several weeks.

The response time and announcement of the winners (who will receive full and partial requests from Ms. Paquette) will depend on the number of entries. The more entires, the longer it will take--one of the pitfalls of not having an entry cut-off. Ms. Paquette hopes to have the results within two weeks. I'll give updates as to her progress and the winners will be notified directly via email as well.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to post them in comments or email Mary at marytlindsey@gmail.com.

Best of luck to everyone and special thanks to Ms. Paquette for judging.

Agent Judged Contest Begins Tomorrow!

Agent Joan Paquette from the Erin Murphy Literary Agency will judge our contest that opens tomorrow, Wednesday October 27th at 9:00am Eastern time and ends 24 hours later at 9:00am Eastern time on Thursday, October 28th.

EMLA represents children's literature only, so no adult projects in this contest, please.

Ms. Paquette wants to see a one-line pitch and the FIRST 100 words (plus or minus 1/2 sentence--don't just cut it off mid sentence) of completed children's picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, or young adult novels.

Because Ms. Paquette does not accept unsolicited queries, this is a great way to get your work in front of her.

A form will be activated and a link will be posted on this site at the start of the contest tomorrow morning. There is no advantage to being one of the first to enter as we will accept all entries submitted within the 24-hour window.

Wishing everyone the best.

The how-to of one-line pitches.

http://querytracker.blogspot.com/2009/04/dreaded-pitch-what-to-include-in-that.html

Examples of excellent pitches:

http://querytracker.blogspot.com/2009/04/one-line-winners.html

http://querytracker.blogspot.com/2010/05/from-chris-richman-winners.html

http://querytracker.blogspot.com/2010/04/from-jason-yarn-winners.html

* Please note: Sometimes the email notifications from this blog do not go out right when the post is published (a Google Blogger issue we cannot control). If you are an email subscriber, please realize this email might arrive after the contest has begun. We have given weekly reminders of the contest on the Friday Publishing Pulse. In addition, the information has been posted in the sidebar of this blog for close to a month.

Agent-Requested Revisions: An Interview with Literary Agent Joan Paquette

Having just finished my first round of revisions for my publisher, maybe I'm just more in tune with the topic of revisions on forums and networking sites than I've previously been, but it seems like everyone is talking about it recently. More and more, the topic of agents requesting pre-offer revisions is the center of the discussion.

My agent, Joan Paquette, was kind enough to answer some questions I see in these discussions. She was hands-on with my manuscript from the beginning and has a keen eye for detail. I've no doubt that without her suggested revisions, my book would not have sold.

Before I launch into her interview, I want to give you my profound revision analogy (that's a joke. It's not profound--but it works for me).

Revisions, no matter how small are like moving furniture in a carpeted room: Any change leaves rug dents. Change one thing, and chances are it will have an effect somewhere else.

So when you move a bookcase, you scrub out, cover up or somehow disguise the big nasty carpet dent left by what you moved, right? Same with revisions. So often, writers fail to check the entire manuscript for the effects of the change.

Moving furniture often makes a room more attractive or functional, but occasionally, it is the wrong thing to do, which brings me to the real topic today:

Why agents request revisions and when you should consider doing them.

(An interview with Joan Paquette of the Erin Murphy Literary Agency)

How often do you ask writers to revise before you offer representation? Why do you ask these writers to revise before instead of after you offer?

Ms. Paquette: The decision of whether to ask for a revision before or after offering representation usually depends on the type of work the manuscript needs. If the changes required are fairly substantial, or if I want to give a project a little more time to test out how strongly I feel about it, then I will ask for revisions first. If I'm so persuaded of the need to represent this project that I can't bear the prospect of it getting away, then I will offer right away. It's all about getting the manuscript to the point where it strikes magic; it can happen early or late, but when it happens we'll both know it.

What kind of things do you most often request in the pre-offer revision?

Ms. Paquette: This completely depends on the case. Two things that usually hook my interest in a project are (1) a strong voice, and (2) a unique premise. When I read sample pages that have these two factors, I'm then looking for a certain flow of language that resonates with me, a smoothness of pacing and a readable quality that's hard to put into words. Those things are more challenging to infuse if they are lacking in a manuscript. But if a project has these elements but is weak in other areas--in world-building, for example; or the story begins too slowly; goes on too long; needs to go deeper within the characters; needs a smoother arc or more complete resolution at the end--those kinds of things can be fixed. I think what I'm looking for is a project that feels so close to being ready that I can easily articulate a few fixes that I feel would bring it to that point where I could fall in love. Those are the kinds of revisions I would ask for before signing.

What are the most common kinds of mistakes you see in revised material? What is your primary reason for rejection?

Ms. Paquette: One big mistake I frequently see is writers who return the revision too quickly. Sometimes there is a perception that interest from an agent should be capitalized on as soon as possible or it will expire; unfortunately, this can result in manuscripts being sent back before they're fully ready. Don't be afraid to take all the time you need to do a thorough revision; get some additional readers; let it sit a while and then come back to it with fresh eyes. It doesn't have to take a supremely long time, but there are no special benefits from a super-speedy turnaround--and sometimes, to the contrary, it can be a red flag of an inexperienced reviser.

Why do I usually reject a revised manuscript? Truthfully, there's no one reason. Before I sign a client's manuscript I must truly fall in love with it. So, put simply, I'm looking for the revision to knock my socks off--to make it so I can't pass it up. That's what I'm looking for.

When would you recommend a writer not revise for an agent?

Ms. Paquette: If you don't agree with the direction an agent proposes for a project and you wouldn't feel comfortable having these changes in your final book, then don't make them. Otherwise, it's a case where you are being provided with an insider's critique and input on your manuscript which, even if the end result doesn't end up resonating with the requesting agent, will hopefully result in a stronger finished product that can go on to even greater things elsewhere.

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Once again, I thank Ms. Paquette for taking time out to answer questions for QueryTracker. More can be found about Ms. Paquette and the Erin Murphy Literary Agency on QueryTracker.net.

Have a great week!

Mary