Saturday, July 16, 2011

Success Story


NV reports checking Across the Universe, by Beth Revis, out of the library and recognizing it as the book whose query appeared here in Face-Lift 637 (when it was titled A Long Way Home).

3 comments:

Trisha said...

WOW!! That's certainly a success story. hehe

batgirl said...

Since I find it interesting to compare the original query letters to the successful versions, I went here:
http://querytracker.net/success/bethr.php

and found the final:

"Seventeen-year-old Amy has no desire to become one of the first colonists on a new planet--but her parents do. So she agrees to be cryogenically frozen for the journey, even if it means giving up the life she loves on Earth.

"Much later, Elder--part of the generations of workers born on the ship--begins his training as the future commander. He has no idea of the cargo of cryogenically frozen people hidden beneath his feet.

"Then Amy wakes up fifty years early.

"Amy must now adjust to life without her still-frozen parents on board a space ship that is vastly different from her home on Earth. Trapped by both the metal walls of the ship and the lies that keep it running, Amy discovers her cryo chamber hadn't malfunctioned--someone had tried to kill her. As more and more helplessly frozen victims are unplugged, Amy combines her knowledge of the past with Elder's knowledge of the ship to find and stop the murderer...before Amy's parents are the next victims.

"Complete at 80,000 words, LONG WAY HOME is science fiction for teens who don't like science fiction. The character-driven plot with a focus on mystery, secrets, and an unreliable narrator will appeal to fans of Mary Pearson's THE ADORATION OF JENNA FOX, and the contained mystery may attract older readers of Jeanne du Prau's CITY OF EMBER.

"I am currently a high school world literature teacher and an active member of SCBWI, having been published in and working as the copy editor of the state SCBWI magazine. Additionally, I run a blog on writing for MG and YA audiences (bethrevis.blogspot.com) which has over 300 subscribers and an active community of authors and readers who share in blog tours, book reviews, and author interviews. I can be found online at bethrevis.com or [email].

"I am prepared to submit the entire manuscript upon your request. Thank you for your time and consideration with this project. Below are the first five pages as a sample of my writing."

Anonymous said...

That's a big congratulations on your success.