Spooktacular Pitch #35: THE LIGHTS IN THE SKY ARE STARS

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Title: THE LIGHTS IN THE SKY ARE STARS
Genre: YA Fantasy
Word Count: 91,000 words

3 line Pitch:

When Evie’s doctor tells her she must live in the hospital for the rest of her life, she flees to the lighthouse, where a light from the sky transports her to another world. In Gaea there are two moons hanging in the sky and a glass lake with waters only the dead can sink beneath, where Evie is healthy, more alive than ever before. Even though a bloodthirsty Queen seeks to destroy her and a sorrowful Knight wishes to keep her, Evie must ultimately decide for herself whether to return to Earth and risk fate or remain in Gaea and live forever.


First 250:

At first the sound seems like it comes from inside the room, but we have no cuckoo clocks or wind chimes or music boxes with ballerinas dancing. And, Lucy hasn’t woken. I see her now. Her hands are tucked underneath her bandaged cheek, eyelashes resting. In the night, we pulled aside the curtain that divides our room so that we could whisper to one another, pink bed to purple bed.

Lucy, you look very peaceful. You’ll be better in a couple of weeks. You’ll leave me and another girl will take your place, but you’ll be better.

If only you had heard it. That sound. It shivered in my heart, twinkle, twinkle, like the stars in the sky. But, it’s gone now. Maybe it didn’t even exist. Maybe it belonged to a dream.

It had been a beautiful sound.

A chime.

A calling…

I don’t want to fall asleep.

No…

Don’t want to go to sleep…

Wait.

There it is again.

Loud, from outside the room.

Excuse me, Kitty and Panda, I have to go. Excuse me soft little friends; I have to get out of bed. My room has a carpet, sewn by my grandma before she went away, so the floor isn’t cold when I tumble from the bed, stuffed animals flying out beside me.

I tip toe across the room. I mustn’t wake Lucy. Tomorrow is a big day for Lucy says Mama. Lucy will have her broken heart fixed. They’ll put a big, strong band-aid over the break in her heart, and then everything will be all right.