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NaNoWriMo pitches Archives - Page 5 of 9 - The Book Doctors

The Book Doctors

Tag: NaNoWriMo pitches

  • Tonya Preece

    More Than Meets the Eye by Tonya Preece

    Seventeen-year-old Cordelia never lets anything get her down, but when the anniversary of the explosion that killed her dad triggers nightmares and panic attacks, her mom insists on counseling. The diagnosis: PTSD. Treatment: eye movement therapy. Cordelia’s opinion: absurd. Therapy does have a bright side, though—a hot guy named Gino she meets in the waiting room. Gino’s pop-punk style and sense of humor grab her attention.

    As they bond over music, the discovery of why he’s in therapy softens her tough exterior but sharing her own tragedy with him raises questions surrounding her dad’s death. While she isn’t entirely sure she wants to find answers, eye movement therapy begins to defy her expectations. Repressed memories surface that could hold the key to what’s causing her pyrophobia and nightmares.

    Cordelia’s recovery hinges on allowing certain walls and pedestals to crumble. First, she must face painful truths, not only about herself, but also the father she idolized. If she isn’t careful, her avoidance habits may push everyone away, including Gino, the musical soulmate she’s always hoped for.

    MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE is contemporary YA fiction and was selected as a finalist for the Joan Lowery Nixon Memorial Award at the 2018 Houston SCBWI conference. It will appeal to fans of Carolyn Mackler and Emery Lord and delivers a surprising twist like Tamara Ireland Stone’s Every Last Word. I consulted a therapist trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and drew on my own experience with the treatment as well.

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    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Click here to listen to our feedback on this pitch. 

     

  • Malavika Kannan

    All The Yellow Suns by Malavika Kannan

    Vincent Van Gogh was an incurable artist. He couldn’t help eating yellow paint. Fifteen-year-old Maya Kaimal is an incurable idealist. She couldn’t help falling for Juneau Zale the day she immigrated to the United States.

    A human tidal wave and Renaissance masterpiece combined, Juneau is the de facto leader of the Pugilists: a merry band of highschool mischief-makers who right the wrongs of the world each Friday. Immediately, Maya finds herself drawn to Juneau and her boundless way of living. They forge a friendship over trips to the Metropolitan Museum, crusades for social justice, and life-or-death escapades in the colorful inner-city neighborhood of Columbia Heights.

    But as their bond grows stronger, Maya begins to suspect that there’s a whole different person beneath Juneau’s painted-on facade. The harder she looks, the farther she finds herself from the girl she once idealized. Because without meaning to, she’s allowed Juneau Zale to steal a piece of her heart. Now, she will never be the same.

    All The Yellow Suns is written by an Indian-American teenage activist, exploring Gen-Z themes of race, womanhood, and justice with refreshing candor and depth. Told through poignant and philosophical vignettes, it follows Maya’s journey to Find The Truth in Juneau’s mysterious, mixed-up world. The girl she loves is counting on her.

    About the author

    Malavika Kannan is an 18-year-old Indian-American student activist, writer, and speaker. She’s written about topics like race and feminism for the Washington Post, Huffington Post, Teen Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Broadly, and VICE, among other places. Her writing has also been recognized by organizations including the National YoungArts Foundation, Scholastic Art & Writing, Library of Congress, and the J.F.K. Library. Malavika is passionate about progressive politics, serving on the national Women’s March Youth Cohort and March For Our Lives to amplify youth power in politics. She is also founder and executive director of the Homegirl Project.

    [themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”5″ ]

    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Click here to listen to our feedback on this pitch. 

  • NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza 2018

    NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza 2018

    Nano Nation delivered yet another batch of pulse-pounding pitches for NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza 2018! A Midwest Strangler and Chupacabra; inheritance and identity, love and conspiracies; a beatnik disc jockey and the threat of nuclear annihilation; a 12-year-old author; opium smugglers and sex traffickers: once again, we were totally blown away by the diversity and quantity of pitches we received. But of course we’ve come to expect this level of excellence from NaNo Nation. The Book Doctors had an absolute blast swimming in this vast pool of pitches.

    Now for the 411: The 20 pitches were selected randomly. You can watch the recording of NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza to hear our feedback. It’s our mission to try to help all you amazing writers not just get published, but get published successfully.  That’s why we’ve told you what works, but also what needs to be improved.

    But don’t let our opinion sway your vote. What story intrigues you? What pitch would prod you from the couch to the bookstore (or, if you’re really lazy, to buy it online)? The pitch that receives the most votes by 11:59 p.m. PDT on April 1, 2018 will be awarded the Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250). We’ll announce the Fan Favorite on April 2, 2018.

    But please note: YOU CAN ONLY VOTE ONCE! So please choose carefully. Don’t just read the first couple of pitches — read them all. You owe it to your fellow Wrimos. Encourage your friends, family and random strangers to vote for you via the link to the poll. Connecting with your future readers is a vital part of being a successfully published author today. And this is a great way to get some practice.

    We will also be posting these pitches—a couple a day–on social media. We encourage anyone to like your entry but only poll votes from the webpage will count toward the Fan Favorite.

    Finally, through April 2, 2018, we are still offering a free webinar (worth $75) to anyone who buys a copy of our book The Essential Guide To Getting Your Book Published. Just email a copy of your receipt to nanowrimo@bookdoctors2.pairsite.com and we’ll be in touch to set up a webinar.

    Write on, Wrimos!

    NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza 2018 Voting

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  • Samantha Mae Coyiuto

    Where Are You Really From by Samantha Mae Coyiuto 

    After her first semester in USC, Chloe takes the dreaded 12-hour flight back home to the Philippines for winter break. She gets the shock of her life when her Instagram-loving dad suddenly invites her boyfriend to her cousin’s wedding. To clarify, this is the boyfriend her dad hates because he’s Filipino and to her dad, Chinese people only date other Chinese people. But Chloe can’t celebrate her dad’s change of heart because she and her boyfriend broke up months ago.

    Thanks to her meddling Auntie’s offers to matchmake Chloe, she goes on five dates with five different Chinese boys. The only problem is that they are all arranged by her dad without her consent. In other words, everything is freaking awkward.

    Aside from battles in her love life, Chloe struggles with fighting for her dream to become an animator. When she draws, she feels like she can make art that actually matters. She keeps trying to make her dad understand, but all she wants is for her to take over his denim-manufacturing business.

    The more she spends time back in Manila, the more she feels torn between her life in America and her past life in the Philippines. It doesn’t help that she unexpectedly starts to fall for an aspiring dentist that her dad sets her up with. The big question is: is going for her dreams worth leaving behind her family?

    WHERE ARE YOU REALLY FROM is a contemporary YA novel based on my life as an Americanized Chinese-Filipina.

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    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Listen to our feedback on Where Are You Really From.

  • Joyce Krieg

    South Bay Beat by Joyce Krieg

    The summer of 1960: The Soviets and Ike are playing a high-stakes game of brinksmanship over the U-2 spy plane incident, Kennedy and Nixon are going mano a mano for the U.S. presidency, and the defense industry is rapidly paving over paradise in the South Bay—the region that one day would be famed the world over as Silicon Valley. Enter the world of SOUTH BAY BEAT, a 90,000 word historical thriller.

    Del Verhalden is a scrappy young reporter hungry for a career-making story. When local authorities are all too eager to cover up the death of a young woman found on the muddy shores of the bay, he teams up with a beatnik disc jockey and an annoyingly nosy ten-year-old to expose the truth. The case threatens to topple the aerospace industry that brought the first generation of tech geeks to the South Bay and sends fingers of suspicion far beyond the valley as the threat of nuclear annihilation hangs over the planet. Based on real people, places, and top-secret projects, as well as information in previously-classified documents, SOUTH BAY BEAT sends readers back in time to the dark side of the Camelot era—think “Mad Men” with a murder—and offers perspective on how this obscure farming community transformed itself into the high-tech capital of the world.

    I’m a traditionally published author with three mysteries from St. Martin’s Minotaur. SOUTH BAY BEAT is built upon my own experiences growing up during the dawning days of Silicon Valley.

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    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Listen to our feedback on South Bay. 

  • Ellie Tupper

    Iron and Lace by Ellie Tupper

    In 1890s San Francisco, a spirited young Irish housemaid and an Imperial Chinese agent join forces to bring down a ruthless tycoon.

    Feisty Norah Hourigan has taken a position as housemaid in the home of Hector Gaffney, businessman and railroad magnate, whom she suspects of being involved in the disappearance of Norah’s brother Aengus.  With her Mam’s ancestral skills of knotting magic, Norah creates lacy textiles that can soothe or sicken, reveal secrets, or protect a man’s life.

    Meanwhile, in Canton, China, merchant seaman Stephen Rollison rescues a Pinkerton investigator from a Chinese gang with the aid of Zhou Feiming, an agent of the Imperial Court who is pursuing the same criminals.  Someone is shipping hopeful Chinese immigrants to America, then selling them as slaves and prostitutes—including Zhou’s own brother and his crippled wife.

    Norah’s, and Stephen and Zhou’s, separate searches converge in San Francisco’s bustling, mysterious Chinatown and find their common focus on Hector Gaffney.  Opium smuggling, a massive railroad swindle, Gaffney’s unhappy wife and son, kidnapping and white slavery tangle in a terrifying knot that not even Norah’s spells may be able to unravel.

    Iron and Lace is a YA novel of history and magic, with glimpses into Victorian household management, life in the Chinese railroad labor camps, and the dangerous secrets of underground San Francisco.  My stories have been published in Mindflights, Every Day Fiction, Andromeda Spaceways Magazine, and Esther Friesner’s Witch Way to the Mall?

    [themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”5″ ]

    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Listen to our feedback on Iron and Lace.

  • Victoria Beck

    Cookie Rookie by Victoria Beck

    Middle Grade Novel

    With more at stake than a gold Medal and against her mother’s wishes, 12-year-old Eloise Hansen risks everything to enter a Baking Competition. Her Mother is baffled and annoyed by her baking obsession and wonders why her daughter isn’t more like her. When her Mother makes plans for a fancy weekend getaway for Eloise to meet her new boyfriend, on the same day as the Competition, Eloise must find a way to sneak out of the festivities and keep her nerves together to bake her trademark championship Cranberry Cutie.

    With the help of her savvy best friend she concocts a plan that will get her out of the nightmare starring her as the darling, dutiful daughter and propel her backstage with twelve grown up Finalists.

    One of the Contestants has swapped recipes and ingredients with Eloise – hoping the rookie will crumble and he’ll emerge victorious. He hadn’t counted on the power of her Dad’s lucky red socks and Eloise’ new-found strength as a capital B Baker. In front of the entire 7th Grade, her Mother and the city of Santa Barbara, Eloise pits her baking know-how and the classic goodness of a straight-up chocolate chip cookie against the experience and determination of the best Bakers in California.

    [themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”5″ ]

    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Listen to our feedback on Cookie Rookie. 

  • H.M. Shander

    Audrina’s Moments by H.M. Shander

    Audrina may be a witch to her co-workers, but at home she’s somebody’s hero. Since her mother’s death a few months back, she’s become her twenty-two-year old brother’s legal guardian. Michael suffers from muscular dystrophy and cerebral palsy, and while her home suited her, it’s not for someone with disabilities. With his comfort in mind, she sets out to hire the perfect person to make the required changes.

    Chad is the well-researched carpenter for hire. Rugged yet endearing, he agrees to rebuild the deck on one condition–that Audrina help. As the renovations get underway, Chad charms Audrina by having Michael assist, slowly winning her over by treating Michael like a real person. She relishes in these moments with Chad and finds her hardened heart softening.

    As many magical moments as Audrina shares with Chad, beyond the renovations, she knows it’ll never work out. Her heart and energy belong to Michael and his well-being, and despite what Chad thinks is best for her, there’s really no time for frolicking. The more he pushes her to live a little, the harder she fights against him. When Michael’s health rapidly declines, she shuts out everyone; Chad included.

    However, it forces her to see the depth of her loneliness. Maybe Chad really was the perfect person to make the changes… in her. Is it too late to tell him? Or did she push him away forever?

    Audrina’s Moments is a 67,000 word contemporary romance novel set in my hometown of Edmonton, AB.

    [themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”5″ ]

    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Listen to our feedback on Audrina’s Moments. 

  • Mike Drew

    Casey’s Star by Mike Drew

    Casey was certain she found exactly what she was looking for when she arrived on her star so long ago.  Time has passed though, and she begins feeling that maybe this isn’t where she truly belongs.  As Casey’s star begins to dim, she’s given the chance to see and travel through the galaxy, peer into amazing new worlds and, potentially, a new place to call home.

    [themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”5″ ]

    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Listen to our feedback on Casey’s Star.

  • Lucy Hallowell

    The Library of Unspoken Things by Lucy Hallowell

    Seventeen-year-old Charlotte Fairfax has spent the past two months listening to her conservative father give campaign speeches. While he spewed rhetoric about “traditional values” and “the good old days,” she planned a very different kind of speech: coming out to the roommate she’s been in love with since freshman year.

    The night before she’s due to return to Holmes Academy for senior year, Charlotte finds solace in her favorite queer novel, psyching herself up to come out to her roommate. But when her father interrupts and realizes what she’s reading-and what it means about Charlotte herself-he forbids her from coming out. Ever. If she does, he’ll send her away, somewhere far enough that she can’t hurt his campaign for senate. Or see her roommate again.

    Afraid to lose her best friend, Charlotte agrees to stay in the closet. But when all the queer books disappear from the school library-including the one her father caught her reading-Charlotte refuses to remain a silent prop any longer. With the help of her roommate, who Charlotte is half-convinced might be flirting with her, Charlotte launches an underground library. And maybe, just maybe, she’ll find the courage to put her true self on the shelves, too.

    THE LIBRARY OF UNSPOKEN THINGS is a complete YA novel at 78,000 words. It’s MOXIE with a lesbian romance at its heart.

    [themify_hr color=”light-gray” width=”5″ ]

    Vote for your favorite pitch. The pitch that receives the most votes will be named Fan Favorite, and the author will receive a free one-hour consult with us (worth $250).

    Listen to our feedback on The Library of Unspoken Things.