NoQS Monster 19 - Serengeti, Adult Science Fiction

Name: Jennifer Rockwell Ganoung (writing as J.B. Rockwell)
Twitter Handle: @Rockwell_JB
Title: SERENGETI
Genre: Adult Science Fiction
Word Count: 85K

NoQS Monster 18 - The Stolen Girl, YA Contemp

Name: Lora Douglas
Twitter Handle: @LoraWrites
Title: THE STOLEN GIRL
Genre: YA Contemporary
Word Count: 70K

NoQS Monster 17 - In the Space Between, YA Contemp

Name: Caitlin LaRue
Twitter Handle: @caitlinlarue
Title: IN THE SPACE BETWEEN
Genre: YA Contemporary
Word Count: 63K

NoQS Monster 16 - Such the Vultures Love, Adult Goth. Horror

Name: Meghan Harker
Twitter Handle: @ExquisitelyOdd
Title: SUCH THE VULTURES LOVE
Genre: Adult Gothic Horror
Word Count: 109K

NoQS Monster 15 - Jar of Hearts, YA Mystery w/ elements of Fant.

Name: Melanie Stanford
Twitter Handle: @MelMStanford
Title: JAR OF HEARTS
Genre: YA Mystery with a hint of Fantasy
Word Count: 74K

NoQS Monster 14 - High Crown Chronicles, YA Hist. Fantasy

Name: Jodi Gallegos
Twitter Handle: @DisgruntledMom
Title: THE HIGH CROWN CHRONICLES
Genre: YA Historical Fantasy
Word Count: 96K

NoQS Monster 13 - Drowning in Rivers, YA Contemp.

Name: Heidi Peitz
Twitter Handle: @hpeitz
Title: DROWNING IN RIVERS
Genre: YA Contemporary
Word Count: 76K

NoQS Monster 12 - A Trace of Madness, YA Fantasy

Name: Diana Pinguicha
Twitter Handle: @pinguicha
Title: A TRACE OF MADNESS
Genre: YA Fantasy
Word Count: 101K

NoQS Monster 11 - Battle of Wonderland Gardens, MG Fantasy Adv.

Name: Mike Hays
Twitter Handle: @coachhays64
Title: THE BATTLE OF WONDERLAND GARDENS
Genre: MG Fantasy Adventure
Word Count: 41K

NoQS Monster 10 - End of Magic, MG Fantasy

Name: Marc Moshcatel
Title: END OF MAGIC
Genre: MG Fantasy
Word Count: 29K

NoQS Monster 9 - The Coins of Mammon, Adult Epic Fantasy

Name: Steve Westenra
Twitter Handle: @SteveWestenra
Title: THE COINS OF MAMMON
Genre: Adult Epic Fantasy
Word Count: 164K

NoQS Monster 8 - Project Siren, YA Contemp Fantasy

Name: Karen McManus
Twitter Handle: @writerkmc
Title: PROJECT SIREN
Genre: YA Contemporary Fantasy
Word Count: 73K

NoQS Monster 7 - Messy, MG Contemp

Name: Joni Pope
Twitter Handle: LittleJoni00
Title: MESSY
Genre: MG Contemporary
Word Count: 41K

NoQS Monster 6 - All Hallows Lane, MG Fantasy Horror

Name: Darren Gannuch
Twitter Handle: @DGannuch
Title: ALL HALLOWS LANE
Genre: MG  Fantasy Horror
Word Count: 54K

NoQS Monster 5 - Romy Ever After, YA Contemp Romance

Name: Gillian Libby
Twitter Handle: @gillianlibby
Title: ROMY EVER AFTER
Genre:YA Contemporary Romance
Word Count: 65K

NoQS Monster 4 - King of the Wild Bunch, MG Adventure

Name: Emily Cushing
Twitter Handle: @emcushi
Title: KING OF THE WILD BUNCH
Genre: MG Adventure
Word Count: 47K

NoQS Monster 3 - The Wrong Side, NA Thriller

Name: Rachael Dahl
Twitter Handle: @DahlRachael
Title: THE WRONG SIDE
Genre: New Adult Thriller
Word Count: 88K

NoQS Monster 2 - Cheating Death, Adult Spec.

Name: Chris Jones (writing as CJ Lehi)
Twitter Handle: @cjlehi
Title: CHEATING DEATH
Genre: Adult Speculative
Word Count: 92K

NoQS Monster 1 - 28 Days, YA Contemp.

Name: Abbey L. Nash
Twitter Handle: @nash_abbey
Title: 28 DAYS
Genre: YA Contemporary
Word Count: 73K

The Monsters of NoQS 2015

Taking on the slush pile is a grueling task. With a limited number of slots to fill, SO many good entries went unchosen. I know the last word anyone wants to hear is 'subjective', but that's truly the best word to describe how we have to approach slush with so many contenders.

A HUGE congrats to everyone brave enough to take the plunge. Best of luck in the future.

Without further ado, it's time to reveal the Monsters of Nightmare on Query Street 2015!

In no particular order:

 

The Lamb
28 Days
Such the Vultures Love
The Coins of Mammon (New Addition)
Cheating Death
In the Space Between
End of Magic
Messy
Romy Ever After
King of the Wild Bunch
Jar of Hearts
The Treasures of Dodrazeb
Project Siren
The Battle of Wonderland Gardens
The Stolen Girl

Trace of Madness
Serengeti
Drowning in Rivers
All Hallows Lane
The Wrong Side

Be sure to check Michelle's blog for her picks.

Keep an eye on your inbox. Mentors will be contacting you through the email you used to enter the contest. If that's not your actual email because a friend mailed yours in, you'd better let me know. Each entry will get one mentor assigned to them. 

Please return your revised entry using the same format to the contest email by 8pm on October 26th. We need that time to swat down unruly formatting and create the posts before the agent round. Please do not be late. We will go live without you.

Come back on October 29th to see the agents Shriek, Scream and Shiver! 

Submission Day for NoQS!

The submission window opens today at 4:00 pm EST!

The submission window opens at 4:00 pm (EST) on October 15th. Don't send too soon or your entry will be deleted. There will be email confirmation. The window will close when we receive 250 entries.

Michelle and Mike will make twenty picks each, and those twenty picks will go up on our blogs from October 29th through the 30th. Before this, there will be a mentor round to whip that entry into shape. We've already got amazing mentors lined up, so know that your entries will be polished for the agents.

We are accepting all age categories and genres, excluding picture books and erotica. But be sure to check our list of agents to see if they represent your book's genre.

If you plan on participating in the contest, you have to be following all our blogs (Michelle, Mike). And you'll want to be on twitter for the party.

ONLY ONE ENTRY PER PERSON. DO NOT TRY USING MULTIPLE EMAIL ADDRESSES. THIS DOES NOT MEAN ONE PER WRITING PEN NAME. ONE AND ONE ONLY.

It's pretty simple, actually.

But there's a catch.

Along with your query and 250, you must write a SHORT paragraph (no more than 100 words) about your main character. This is the question you must answer:

What is your main character's most fearsome obsession?

The Format:

Send all your submission to nightmareonquerystreet (at) yahoo (dot) com. Only one submission per email address AND person is allowed.

Here's how it should be formatted (yes, include the bolded and everything!). Please use Times New Roman (or equivalent), 12 pt font, and put spaces between paragraphs. No indents or tabs are needed.

Subject Line: NoQS: TITLE, Age Category + Genre
(example: NoQS: GRUDGING, Adult Epic Fantasy)


INSIDE THE EMAIL:

Name: Michelle Hauck
Twitter Handle: @Michelle4Laughs
Title: GRUDGING (yes, caps!)
Genre: Adult Epic Fantasy (Age category and genre. YA/MG is not a genre.)
Word Count: XX,XXX

Note: Twitter handle is not required, just useful in finding you.


My Main Character's Most Fearsome Obsession is:

My MC's most fearsome obsession is potatoes. He can't stop eating those suckers--fried, mashed, frenched--gotta have them. (Please, spend some time on this! We will be looking at this to make up for gaps in the query and 250. It gives us a chance to know your characters better. It doesn't have to be horror-scary. It can be more subtle. Remember 100 words or less.)

Query:

Here is my fantastic query! DO NOT INCLUDE BIO OR COMPS PARAGRAPH.Try to stay in the 250-300 word range. Please put spaces between paragraphs and don't indent.

First 250 words:

Here are the first 250 words of my manuscript, and I will not end in the middle of a sentence, even if I hit 255 words. Do not abuse and send 260. Keep it fair for all by staying close to 250.


Entries will be disqualified at our discretion for rule violation.

And that's it! Send in that email during the submission window and you're ready to go. There will be a confirmation email.

We're Tweeting under the hashtag #NoQS. 

Topics for the twitter party are as follows:

October 15: All day, shout out the genre and age category you're sending. After 4:00 shout out if you got in.

October 16: What costume would your MC character wear for Halloween?

October 17: What's the most fearsome thing about querying?

October 18: Where do you hail from? It's kinda neat to find other writers near you. Shout out your approximate location and make new friends. 

October 19: What's your favorite part about contests? What benefits you the most? Help us make the next one better by telling us.

October 20: Picks released. Tell us how you deal with stress as a writer. What helps while you wait on query letters? 

Best of luck to everyone submitting today. Competition will be fierce.

Agents of Nightmare on Query Street 2015 (partial list)

 The submission windows opens this Thursday! Check this post for details.

This is HALF of our list of agents. For the rest, go to Michelle's blog. 

NEW AGENT 

Caitlen Rubino-Bradway

I joined the LKG Agency in 2008, thereby disproving the theory that no English major ever does anything with their degree.  Before that I worked at another literary agency, Don Congdon Associates, where I had the behind-the-scenes thrill of seeing Kathryn Stockett’s The Help first come in (and getting one of the first reads). And before that I was getting my Masters in English and Publishing from Rosemont College. I have enjoyed my apprenticeship under Lauren very much, and I am now actively looking to build my own list, which includes (after a surprisingly minimal amount of begging and pleading on my part), securing Lauren’s agreement to open the agency to considering middle grade and young adult fiction.

In my spare time, I am an author in my own right (or is that write?).  My first book, Lady Vernon and Her Daughter, which I co-wrote with my mother, was released by Crown in 2009.  We also contributed to Jane Austen Made Me Do It, published by Ballantine in 2011.  My first middle grade novel, Ordinary Magic, was published by Bloomsbury Children’s in 2012.

Agency

______________________________________________________________

  Alisa Gus

I am… a mother, a wife, a daughter, a granddaughter, a slave to a very persnickety cat, a writer, a publisher, a foodie, a shoe hoarder, a people watcher, a conservationist, a screenwriter, a Redditor, a reluctant (but apparently prolific) blogger... So who am I, really? Still figuring that one out. Update as I go along ;-)

Most recently, I am the Marketing side of Curiosity Quills Press, a new literary portal and publishing house aimed at exposing readers to new themes, ideas, and books to match, while supporting fellow authors.

I am also the co-author, along with my husband Eugene Teplitsky, of a Young Adult science fiction novel called Gatecrashers.

______________________________________________________________

 Adrienne Szpyrka

I am an assistant editor at Sky Pony Press, searching for new middle grade and young adult voices. I acquire mostly contemporary and historical fiction, but read all genres in my spare time and have a weak spot for a good princess story. I love books that make me feel something (bonus points if they make me laugh), and I'm always looking for stories that bring more diversity to the kids book world. Strong characterization is a must. 

Press

LinkedIn

______________________________________________________________

Danielle Barthel

Following her completion of the Denver Publishing Institute after graduation, Danielle began interning at Writers House. While there, she realized she wanted to put her English degree and love of the written word to work at a literary agency. She worked as a full-time assistant for three years, and continues to help keep the New Leaf offices running smoothly in her role of Coordinator of Team and Client Services.

In her downtime, she can be found with a cup of tea, a bar of chocolate, or really good book...sometimes all together.

Agency

Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Laura Zats

Laura Zats graduated from Grinnell College with degrees in English and anthropology. While completing her studies, she took advantage of her love of Young Adult (YA) literature and wrote a thesis on identity formation in YA. She’s been working as an editor since 2011 and has held positions at companies in both the US and the UK. In 2013, Laura joined Team Red Sofa as an intern but quickly became more of an apprentice, leveling up to Associate Agent in the same year.

Even though she loved YA books first, titles that are Middle Grade, romance, and Sci-fi/Fantasy have been slowly taking hold. Picking a favorite genre now would be like choosing between puppies and kittens. In her free time, Laura likes to craft, swing dance, bake, and binge on Netflix marathons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Doctor Who.

Agency

Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Melissa Jeglinski

A graduate of Clarion University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in English with a writing concentration, Melissa began her career as an editor with Harlequin Enterprises. Looking to work with a variety of authors and genres, she joined The Knight Agency in 2008.  With over two decades experience in the publishing industry, Melissa has fostered her clients to National prominence including a recent Newbery Honor. She is a member of RWA and AAR. Melissa is currently seeking projects in the following areas:  Romance (contemporary, category, historical, inspirational) Young Adult, Middle Grade, Women’s Fiction and Mystery. 

Agency

Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Uwe Stender

Literary Agent Dr. Uwe Stender is a Full Member of the AAR (Association of Authors' Representatives). He is interested in all kinds of commercial fiction, especially Young Adult, Middle Grade, Mysteries, and Women's Fiction. He is also interested in all kinds of non-fiction projects. But surprise him, his tastes are eclectic, and he may just love what you wrote!

His favorite five novels right now are: Eleanor And Park, How It Went Down, Code Name Verity, High Fidelity, and The Big Sleep.

Agency

Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Dawn Frederick

Dawn Michelle Frederick is the owner and literary agent of Red Sofa Literary, established at the end of 2008. She brings a broad knowledge of the book business to the table, bringing multiple years of experience as a bookseller in the independent, chain, and specialty stores; sales, marketing, & book development at a YA publisher, and a literary agent at Sebastian Literary Agency. She carries a B.S. in Human Ecology, and a M.S. in Information Sciences from an ALA accredited institution. Dawn is a co-founder of the MN Publishing Tweet Up, the News chair for the Twin Cities Advisory Council for MPR, and a teaching artist at Loft Literary. 

Agency

Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Victoria Selvaggio

Victoria A. Selvaggio joins The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency as an Associate Agent with a strong background in business ownership and with over six years of actively working as a volunteer and Regional Advisor for SCBWI: Northern Ohio.  Drawn to the publishing scene first as an author writing all genres, with her most recent publication in the 2015 Children’s Writer’s and Illustrator’s Market, Vicki’s passion for honing the craft carried over into reading manuscripts for the agency in 2013. Currently, she is excited to read compelling manuscripts that will resonate with her long after she’s done.

Agency
Website
Twitter 

______________________________________________________________

Jennifer Azantian

Founder Jennifer Azantian graduated with a B.S. in clinical and developmental psychology from the University of California, San Diego where she was an executive editor for the Trition Psychology Report. In 2011, she began her agenting career, first as an intern and then as an assistant and associate, at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency. In 2014, while working with senior agent and entertainment lawyer Paul Levine, Jennifer opened her own agency specializing in speculative fiction. 

Agency

Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Lisa Abellera

Lisa Abellera joined Kimberley Cameron and Associates in 2013 with a background in management, marketing, and finance. She has studied creative writing, design and business, earning her B.A. in Strategic Management from Dominican University of CA and her M.F.A. in Creative Writing from University of San Francisco.

Lisa had a successful career in the corporate world before joining the world of publishing. After editorial internships with an independent press and Kimberley Cameron & Associates, she now follows her true passion for books and writing. She leverages her business and marketing expertise to help authors navigate the complexities of publishing. She is excited to develop talented authors and help advance their careers.

She is actively building her client list with both debut and established authors. She is looking to form long-term, collaborative relationships with writers who are committed to putting forth their best work.

Agency

Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Beth Cambell

After an academic career filled with publishing internships, Beth joined BookEnds as a literary assistant in September 2012 and was promoted to Assistant Literary Agent in 2015. She's diligently building her client list and is always excited to meet an author with an excellent story. She's also spent years as the company's rights coordinator and now works alongside Moe to continue selling foreign and audio rights.

Beth's obsession with books began with a distinct fantasy/sci-fi flavor, and she's happily never kicked the addiction. She is primarily interested in signing clients within those genres, YA, romantic suspense, and mystery. She loves seeing diverse characters (sexuality, gender, race, you name it!) and strong friendships across all genres.

Beth currently lives in New Jersey with her husband and their cat. Outside of reading, her personal hobbies include drawing, cooking, gaming, and spending far too much time on the Internet.

Agency

Twitter 

______________________________________________________________

Stacey Donaghy

Stacey Donaghy is a strong advocate for her writers.  She believes in helping to build the careers of her clients, with long term goals in mind.

Stacey began her career with the Corvisiero Literary Agency in New York, where she wore many hats from team manager and trainer, to intern, to agent.   This coupled with her  experience and formal education and training in the areas of  Management, Social Services and Adult Education, Stacey brings a wealth of technical and professional experience to the literary world.  As a manager in the field of Education & Training, her roles have included people management, curriculum development, academic editing, marketing, creative design, publishing, proposal writing, contract negotiations and public speaking.  Her training also includes Principled Negotiation Techniques as it applies to relationships and contracts.

Stacey represents NY Times, USA Today, and Amazon Bestselling Authors, as well as Authors who have been nominated or have won awards for various works.

Agency

Twitter

Mentors of Nightmare on Query Street 2015 (partial list)

I know you'll want to get to know the mentors who will be helping the finalists perfect their query letter and first 250 words. But first a few dates for Nightmare on Query Street:

Submission Window Opens: October 15th 4:00 pm EST
Final Picks are Announced: October 20th undecided time
Mentors Go to Work: October 21th - 26th
Revised Entries Due Back: October 26th at 8 pm
Agent round: October 29th - 30th

Half of the list of amazing mentors is here. To see the other half of the list, visit Michelle's blog. Some of the mentors have been helping our contests for ages and some are brand new. Please give all of them a big welcome!

 Marty Mayberry

Marty Mayberry writes anything from young adult sci-fi and contemporary, to adult historical fantasy. When she’s not dreaming up ways to mess with her character's lives, she works as an RN/Clinical Documentation Specialist. She has a BA in International Affairs in German and an Associate’s Degree in Nursing. She lives in New England with her husband and children, as well as three neurotic cats and a geriatric chocolate lab. She's a member of SCBWI, YARWA, and a PRO member of RWA. Her young adult sci-fi thriller recently won the YARWA's Rosemary Award.

She’s represented by Jessica Watterson of the Sandra Dijkstra Agency: West Coast Literary Agents: Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency

Twitter
Website

______________________________________________________________ 

Michelle Hazen

Michelle Hazen is a nomad with a writing problem. Years ago, she and her husband ducked out of the 9 to 5 world and moved into their truck. She found her voice with the support of the online fanfiction community, and once she started typing, she never looked back. She has written most of her books in odd places, including a bus in Thailand, an off-the-grid cabin in the Sawtooth Mountains, a golf cart in a sandstorm, a rental car during a heat wave in the Mohave Desert and a beach in Honduras.

Michelle was awarded first place in the 2015 NTRWA Great Expectations Contest, New Adult genre. Her work is represented by Naomi Davis of Inklings Literary. Michelle is the author of YA suspense novella, Becoming Katelyn, and the Kindle Worlds bestselling author of the Desperate Love Trilogy, the In Time We Trust Trilogy, Happily Ever After: Salvatore Style, and Sanguine Veritas.

Website

Facebook

Twitter

______________________________________________________________ 

 Christina Dalcher

Christina Dalcher is an academic linguist and novelist from Somewhere in the American South. She writes adult thrillers featuring a down-on-her-luck phonetician under her real name, and middle-grade guy-reads under a pseudonym she hasn't invented yet. Once in a while, she tweets via @CVDalcher.

Between novels, Christina plays around with flash fiction. You can find her work in various corners of the Internet, including The Molotov Cocktail, Pidgeonholes, Platform for Prose, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, https://christinadalcher.wordpress.com, and sometimes in the circular file beside her desk. She also reads slush for Freeze Frame Fiction and Maniacal Anthology.

She owns a dog, but not a mobile phone, and is represented by Alec Shane of Writers House.

Website
Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Heather Van Fleet

Contemporary romance author Heather Van Fleet is stay-at-home-mom turned book boyfriend connoisseur She’s a wife to her high school sweetheart, a mom to three little girls, and in her spare time you can find her with her head buried in her Kindle, guzzling down copious amounts of coffee. Heather is represented by Stacey Donaghy og Donaghy Literary and is also a content editor for BookFish Books.

Website
Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Richard Pearson

Richard Pearson is the author of THE ROLE an LGBT Novel which explores the backstage drama behind a Broadway show. It will be published by Lethe Press in February of 2016. Richard is a triple threat: Author, Actor, and Attorney. When he's not performing in New York City, he writes and works from his home in Jersey City, which he shares with his loving husband and newborn baby daughter.

Blog
Twitter
Press

______________________________________________________________

Kim Long

Kim Long is an attorney in the Chicagoland area, where she spends her days expressing her clients’ (always true) stories to judges and juries. She writes MG and YA contemporary fantasy that contain a sprinkle of science and is represented by Sara Crowe at Harvey Klinger. When not managing her fantasy baseball and football teams, she can be found biking, watching Star Wars for the zillionth time, or teaching her nieces about the importance of choosing the correct racer (Toad) and vehicle (standard bike) to win in Mario Kart.

Blog
Twitter

______________________________________________________________

Judy Clemens

Judy Clemens is the Anthony and Agatha-nominated author of the Stella Crown series, the Grim Reaper Mysteries, and Lost Sons. She lives in beautiful rural Ohio and is represented by Uwe Stender of TriadaUS.

Website
Facebook

Twitter

Publisher page

______________________________________________________________

Betsy Aldredge

 

Betsy Aldredge is a former magazine editor turned communications professional who writes about quirky characters in many genres. Betsy and her co-writer, Carrie DuBois-Shaw, were named Grand Champions of Query Kombat 2014 for their YA Contemporary Romance, Sasquatch, Love, and Other Imaginary Things. The entry, nicknamed “Shalom Sasquatch,” led to signing with the wonderful Christa Heschke at McIntosh and Otis.

Blog
Twitter

______________________________________________________________

LS Hawker

LS Hawker grew up in suburban Denver, indulging her worrisome obsession with true-crime books, and writing stories about anthropomorphic fruit and juvenile delinquents. She wrote her first novel at 14.

Armed with a B.S. in journalism from the University of Kansas, she had a radio show called “People Are So Stupid,” edited a trade magazine, and worked as a traveling Kmart portrait photographer, but never lost her passion for fiction writing. She has a three-book deal with HarperCollins Witness Impulse, the first of which, THE DROWNING GAME, was released on September 22.

She’s got a hilarious, supportive husband, two brilliant daughters, and a massive music collection. She lives in Colorado but considers Kansas her spiritual homeland.

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Book

______________________________________________________________

Wendy Nikel

When Wendy Nikel isn't traveling in time, exploring magical islands, or investigating mysterious phenomena, she enjoys a quiet life near Utah's Wasatch Mountains with her husband and sons. She has a degree in elementary education, a fondness for road trips, and a terrible habit of forgetting where she's left her cup of tea. Her short fiction has been published by AE, Daily Science Fiction, and others. She is a member of the SFWA and contributor to Operation Awesome.

Website

Twitter

Facebook

______________________________________________________________

Erika David

Erika David is a Toronto-area writer of middle grade and young adult fiction, represented by Eric Myers at Dystel & Goderich. Given her life-long love of sci-fi and fantasy, it’s probably no surprise her favorite words are What if…? In other news, Erika is an unrepentant dark-chocoholic, a fruity tea drinker, and a huge dog lover. Sense 8 and Mr. Robot are her current, guilty pleasures.

Twitter

Goodreads

______________________________________________________________

Nicole Tone

Nicole Tone has always had a passion for writing. She is a current MFA Writing candidate at Savannah College of Art and Design and has a Bachelor's degree in Creative Writing and Literature. She is a current editor at Pandamoon Publishing and the Membership Director for the Women's Fiction Writers Association. When she isn't writing, she likes to dabble in photography, sketching, and traveling. She has a deep love for herbal tea, craft beer, and good coffee.

Nicole lives in Buffalo, NY, with her husband, three cats, and two very large dogs.

Website

Twitter
Facebook

 

 

Nightmare on Query Street: What you need to know.

We're back with over 20 agents and even more mentors!

It's Nightmare Time!

Don’t have a scary manuscript, DON'T WORRY. Just read on.

A brand new year, a brand new evil.

This contest, as it runs in the Halloween time, is all about FEAR.


The Details:

The submission window opens at 4:00 pm (EST) on October 15th. Don't send too soon or your entry will be deleted. There will be email confirmation. The window will close when we receive 250 entries.

Michelle and Mike will make twenty picks each, and those twenty picks will go up on our blogs from October 29th through the 30th. Before this, there will be a mentor round to whip that entry into shape. We've already got amazing mentors lined up, so know that your entries will be polished for the agents.

We are accepting all age categories and genres, excluding picture books and erotica. But be sure to check our list of agents when it goes live to see if they represent your book's genre.


If you plan on participating in the contest, you have to be following all our blogs (Michelle, Mike). And you'll want to be on twitter for the party.

ONLY ONE ENTRY PER PERSON. DO NOT TRY USING MULTIPLE EMAIL ADDRESSES. THIS DOES NOT MEAN ONE PER WRITING PEN NAME. ONE AND ONE ONLY.

It's pretty simple, actually.

But there's a catch.

Along with your query and 250, you must write a SHORT paragraph (no more than 100 words) about your main character. This is the question you must answer:

What is your main character's most fearsome obsession?

The Format:

Send all your submission to nightmareonquerystreet (at) yahoo (dot) com. Only one submission per email address AND person is allowed.

Here's how it should be formatted (yes, include the bolded and everything!). Please use Times New Roman (or equivalent), 12 pt font, and put spaces between paragraphs. No indents or tabs are needed.


Subject Line: NoQS: TITLE, Age Category + Genre
(example: NoQS: GRUDGING, Adult Epic Fantasy)


INSIDE THE EMAIL:

Name: Michelle Hauck

Twitter Handle: @Michelle4Laughs
Title: GRUDGING (yes, caps!)
Genre: Adult Epic Fantasy (Age category and genre. YA/MG is not a genre.)
Word Count: XX,XXX

Note: Twitter handle is not required, just useful in finding you.

My Main Character's Most Fearsome Obsession is:


My MC's most fearsome obstacle is potatoes. (Please, spend some time on this! We will be looking at this to make up for gaps in the query and 250. It gives us a chance to know your characters better. It doesn't have to be horror-scary. It can be more subtle. Remember 100 words or less.)


Query:


Here is my fantastic query! DO NOT INCLUDE BIO OR COMPS PARAGRAPH. Try to stay in the 250-300 word range. Please put spaces between paragraphs and don't indent.


First 250 words:


Here are the first 250 words of my manuscript, and I will not end in the middle of a sentence, even if I hit 255 words. Do not abuse and send 260. Keep it fair for all but staying close to 250.

Entries will be disqualified at our discretion for rule violation.

And that's it! Send in that email during the submission window and you're ready to go. There will be a confirmation email.

We're Tweeting under the hashtag #NoQS. As before, we'll have a twitter party once submission starts. Mentor and agent posts will follow before October 15th.

Good luck! And sweet nightmares!

Nightmare on Query Street 2015

October 15, 2015

 

Will you face your fear?