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29. THE MEMORY OF OBJECTS – Young Adult Paranormal Mystery

Monday, 3 November 2014  |  Posted by Brenda Drake

Assorted_Uzi_Water_Guns_lgMentor Name: Kate Karyus Quinn

Mentee Name: D.A. Mages

Title: THE MEMORY OF OBJECTS

Category: Young Adult

Genre: Paranormal Mystery

Word Count: 80,000

Pitch:

Megan Brown has four weeks to clear her dead brother’s name before the police brand him an addict and a criminal. When she discovers she can see memories attached to the objects he left behind, she finds herself hunting not just her brother but the legacy of a famous assassin.

Excerpt:

My brother Tyler died three times: first in an abandoned building in Washington, D.C.; then in the back hall of a funeral home in McLean, Virginia; and finally on the stage of Ford’s Theatre, just a few feet from where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. I couldn’t blame myself for the first two, but the third one? That was entirely my fault.

On the day of my brother’s funeral, I sat outside the Viewing Room in a pink upholstered chair, hoping the cops would show up. Not the young ones, those freshly shaven go-getters who respected my parents’ wishes and told me nothing. I wanted an old-timer, a chatty veteran on the brink of retirement, who might let a few things slip.

The instant I spotted their dark, cookie-cutter suits, I was on my feet. The one on the left, I could’ve cut a finger on the clean line of his jaw. But the other one, he had grizzle. I needed to move fast.

I ducked past two girls tangled in a hug by a photo of Tyler in his varsity baseball uniform. But before I could reach the cops, a warm hand on my shoulder stopped me, and Squarejaw and Grizzle pushed open the door of the Viewing Room and disappeared.

“You okay, Brown?” asked the boy who’d stopped me. He seemed familiar, although he didn’t look like anyone else in the room. He was all rich colors and textures—an oil painting in a room full of charcoal sketches.

Filed: Pitch Wars

11 Comments
  • Jessica Sinsheimer says:

    Yes yes yes. Please. Please send query (in the body of email) with full manuscript and synopsis (attached as Word docs) to Esubmissions at SarahJaneFreymann dot com. Extra credit: Pitch Wars in the subject line. Thank you! 🙂

  • I’d love to see a query and full ms as well, sent to emorgen at stonesong.com. Thanks!

  • Stefanie Lieberman says:

    I’d love to see more of this. Please send the query, synopsis and first ten pages to submissions(at)janklow(dot)com. In the subject line of your email, please type: For Stefanie Lieberman – PITCH WARS REQUEST

  • Thao Le says:

    Hi D.A.,
    I enjoyed that excerpt quite a bit! Could you send me the first 50 pages as word doc attachment to: thao(at)dijkstraagency(dot)com? Please also include a query letter, complete synopsis, and a short bio in the email and have “PITCHWARS Request: THE MEMORY OF OBJECTS” in your subject line. Looking forward to hearing from you!
    Best,
    Thao

  • Amanda Panitch says:

    I love the voice in your sample and would love to read more. Please send your first 100 pages to me as a Word document at amanda[at]LMQlit[dot]com.

  • Peter Knapp says:

    Very intrigued. Please send a query letter and attach the first 100 pages to queries (at) parkliterary (dot) com. Please put “Peter Knapp: Pitch Wars Request” in the subject.
    Looking forward to reading!
    Pete Knapp
    The Park Literary Group

  • Rachel Brooks says:

    I’d love to read more! Please send the query plus first 50 pages as a word doc attachment to rachel(at)lperkinsagency(dot)com with “Pitch Wars Request: Title” in the subject line. Thanks!

  • Laura Cummings says:

    Hi D.A.,

    This voice has me hooked. Could you please send your query letter, synopsis, and first 10 pages to querylaurie(at)fuseliterary(dot)com? Please make sure to include the subject “Pitch Wars: THE MEMORY OF OBJECTS” so I remember to give this priority. And to clarify, I am Laurie McLean’s assistant and am requesting this on her behalf, so go ahead and address the materials to her.

    Thank you so much!
    Laura Cummings

  • Lana Popovic says:

    FANTAAAAASTIC. Can I see the full ms please, as a PDF, sent to lana@chalbergsussman.com? “PitchWars: THE MEMORY OF OBJECTS” in the subject line, please!

  • Victoria marini says:

    Love the voice here I would love to see this manuscript! Please send a query plus the full to victoria.gsliterary@gmail.com Thank you!

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