I have gone through the querying process for three books and many years. Send out query letters get rejected. Every once in a while more material is requested. I even had an independent publisher for my debut who went out of business soon after. So my writing career has been the following: self-satisfying accomplishments, awards won for good writing, and basically being ignored by readers. It’s a puzzle to how to get word-of-mouth buzz, and thousands of reviews. I advertise with Amazon and it’s only Amazon that makes money. I reduce the price of my books to 99 cents and sell a decent amount with schlock return after Amazon takes its cut and the cost of the promotion.
So, here I am again. Another decent book with a decent storyline. Here’s my query, tell me what you think:
The impending holocaust that will be brought about by the effects of global climate change is the underpinning of this magical realism novel and book one of a two-book series. Like a Lily Among the Thorns (91,000 words), for which I am seeking representation, focuses on how this potential disaster will have dire effects for us all and is currently becoming more top of mind as people are waking up to strange weather events such as the scorching temperatures that have gripped the Northwestern states. In this work, a small group of ordinary people who have some extraordinary abilities and enjoy a higher consciousness are brought together perhaps by cosmic forces and the Divine Feminine to create a refuge from the possible coming climate chaos. My hope is that through novels and articles, the realization that we need urgent responses to this pending catastrophe will become widespread in our collective consciousness before we reach the tipping point to where life can no longer be sustained. We as humans are charged with protecting planet Earth, our only home, and we have not done a good job thus far. Loss of species, unchecked CO2 emissions, and the prevalence of plastic detritus is poisoning the natural world. As an author, I chose to offer hope and promise in this work of fiction, but in reality, I fear for future generations. Earth is referred to as “mother” and in this work the Divine Feminine will save us.
Gabrielle Bernstein, the MC of Like a Lily Among the Thorns, is a woman in her twenties and has started her career as a librarian at a NYC public library. Abandoned by her father as a young girl and now orphaned by her deranged mother, Gabby longs for a family connection. Coincidentally, she finds this connection at the same time she inherits a B&B in Vermont from her estranged and now deceased father. This enchanted inn is under the watchful eye of goddesses of myth and legend who have been tasked to save mankind from destroying itself and this planet. These goddesses will use their powers to try and stall the onslaught of the effects of droughts, floods, and rising temperatures. But as a safety net they have collected human saviors all over the planet to erect safe havens at high altitudes away from flood waters and blistering temperatures. Book one details how this one group of saviors joins forces in Vermont to create one such refuge. Book two will be the call for all women to reach into their divine selves to help build and maintain these safe havens. Along the way there is romance, misunderstandings, internal growth, and forging lifelong familial friendships. Locations are Manhattan, London, Brooklyn, and Rutland, Vermont. Woven through this tale is Gabrielle’s inherent understanding that she must be grateful, mindful, and present in this journey called “life.”
I am a self-published author of three novels and two short stories who has won numerous awards for my work. My writing is focused on contemporary social issues to which we can all relate. I was a theater critic and celebrity interviewer for a weekly tabloid in Jacksonville, Fl and I earned a Master’s in Mass Communication from Oklahoma State University. For 15 years I worked in Corporate America as a technical editor/editor/writer.
Just yesterday, I read an article that our Gulfstream Current is collapsing. This is a catastrophe that will drastically change temperatures and sea levels. London will freeze. We should all be worried and DO SOMETHING. But my rejections say my topic doesn’t fit with their list. ?????
