Title: A Magic Dark & Bright
Word Count: 84,000
Song: Storm Comin' by the Wailin' Jennys
Pitch: Amelia wanted to help the ghost in the woods; she didn’t count on unleashing a curse. As her classmates’ bodies pile up, she must exonerate the boy next door—or end up the next victim.
250:
A woman haunted the woods behind my house.
I used to watch her from my bedroom window. She glowed silver in the moonlight, a pale wraith in a white dress that curled around her ankles and twisted in an ancient wind that didn't touch the pine trees around her.
My brother, Mark, used to tease me about my interest in her. Some days, he called her my obsession. On others, my overactive imagination. "Watch out, Amelia," he'd say, throwing his hand against his chest, "She’ll lure you out into the woods and steal your soul."
But that was before. I hadn't seen her in six months, not since the night she watched Mark die.
I pressed my palm flat against the screen and waited, like I had almost every night since I'd come home from the hospital. Nothing stirred outside; the line of forest along the edge of our yard stood still, black branches stretched toward the sky. Not even a breeze fluttered the gauzy curtains around my windows. The woods were empty.
Everything was empty.
"Come on," I whispered, like I could summon her with my words. The clock in the hallway chimed, its bells echoing through the silent house. Three in the morning. I sighed and turned from the window--if she hadn't shown up by now, she wouldn’t show up at all. Sometimes, on nights like this, when the corners of my brain went fuzzy from exhaustion, I wondered if she disappeared because of me.
I used to watch her from my bedroom window. She glowed silver in the moonlight, a pale wraith in a white dress that curled around her ankles and twisted in an ancient wind that didn't touch the pine trees around her.
My brother, Mark, used to tease me about my interest in her. Some days, he called her my obsession. On others, my overactive imagination. "Watch out, Amelia," he'd say, throwing his hand against his chest, "She’ll lure you out into the woods and steal your soul."
But that was before. I hadn't seen her in six months, not since the night she watched Mark die.
I pressed my palm flat against the screen and waited, like I had almost every night since I'd come home from the hospital. Nothing stirred outside; the line of forest along the edge of our yard stood still, black branches stretched toward the sky. Not even a breeze fluttered the gauzy curtains around my windows. The woods were empty.
Everything was empty.
"Come on," I whispered, like I could summon her with my words. The clock in the hallway chimed, its bells echoing through the silent house. Three in the morning. I sighed and turned from the window--if she hadn't shown up by now, she wouldn’t show up at all. Sometimes, on nights like this, when the corners of my brain went fuzzy from exhaustion, I wondered if she disappeared because of me.
I'd like to award this band member a Platinum Record!
ReplyDeleteI love anything with a gothic feel, so this is right up my street! ANNA DRESSED IN BLOOD immediately sprung to mind as I read this pitch and I think this novel could appeal to the same readership. If you'd be interested in querying me with this, I'd love to read more!
My submission guidelines:
Please send a query letter (including author bio) and the requested pages (attached as a Word/rtf file) to "submissions[at]broadlandliterary[dot]com" with the subject line "Pitch Slam Submission – Your Novel's Title (Genre)".
Gold for me!
ReplyDeleteGold
ReplyDeleteOoh, I like everything about this. *Diamond* please!
ReplyDeleteAwesome opening! Loved it! Congrats on the requests! ;)
ReplyDeleteThannks for sharing
ReplyDelete