Red Light/Green Light FINAL WINNER ANNOUNCEMENT

by Adventures in YA Publishing

Well, everyone, it’s that time. We started Red Light/Green Light out with some amazing first lines and progressed to some even more amazing first pages and queries. Today, it is my great pleasure to announce the winner of the contest, who will receive a full request with editorial notes from our judging agent, Kelly Peterson. But first, Kelly asked if she could address all of our contestants, and she had this to say:

First off, I want to say that everyone who entered into this
contest is amazing. You all are so talented and determined and if you
keep trying and learning, you WILL succeed! You took the first step by
wanting to learn and entering this competition. In addition, I have been
offering feedback to those who didn’t make it into the final rounds
because it’s the reason you all entered this contest. You came to be
better than what you were before. Reach out to me if you would like some
feedback. I may not get back to you until late next week, but don’t
hesitate to ask and discuss your first lines with me.

I seriously applaud every single one of you and encourage you to
find amazing beta readers and CPs and gather as much editing notes and
suggestions as you can because these only make you and your writing
stronger. When you finally feel you’re ready, (which may be never if
you’re anything like Marie Lu whose agent has to pry the manuscripts out
of her hands) query me, ask me questions, find writing friends, and
never be afraid to put yourself out there. You can do this. You will do
this. You will find your path. Keep pushing. Keep chugging along. Have
faith in your life and your happiness and please don’t hesitate to
contact me. You. Are. Wonderful.

On to the results that you’re all skipping ahead to anyways…

I based my final decision off not only the contestants’ synopses, but their writing as well. I put both
their synopses and first pages together onto one document to make the
best decision I could because goodness gracious, this was SO DIFFICULT!
With that being said, I’d like to ask ALL FIVE OF THE FINAL CONTESTANTS
to send me the first 50 pages of their manuscripts. Honestly, this was
probably the most difficult decision I’ve had to make yet, so thank you
guys for being amazing. I can’t promise you that I will get to them
within the next week or so, but I am trying to get through my query box
by the end of September. Seriously, all five of you, send it on over!

(A note from your friendly contest coordinator: If you are one of the top 5 Red Light/Green contestants, you’ll find Kelly’s agency query information here. Please use the subject “Red Light/Green Light Request” in the subject line of your email, and attach your 50 pages as a Word document. Should you have any questions, feel free to reach out to myself– laura.weymouth(at)hotmail(dot)com or to either Kelly or I on Twitter (@lauraeweymouth and @YAFantasyFan). We’re always here to help.)

Now the part you’ve all been waiting for…

Deep breath… And the winner is…

MARKED by Lindsey Myhr!

So, Lindsey astounded me from the beginning because
she has such a natural talent for writing. She caught my attention by
talking about a loose thread… Seriously, a loose thread. WHO DOES
THAT?! I knew that this woman has to have some crazy inborn talent in
order to write like that, and I was correct after reading her first
page, and I look forward to reading more! She starts with the smallest detail which enables her readers to not
only be pulled into the story, but the scene. She then goes on to open
up that small scene of a loose thread to encompass her main character in
a way that shows the reader who she is and how she probably acts. This
allows readers to begin to build a picture of her main character in
their heads and starts to draw that reader in like a fish on a hook. You
become entranced by her and her life, all because she was picking at a
simple loose thread awkwardly. This is a perfect example of my first
date analysis. You don’t want to give away too much, or else the reader
may run away, but be genuine and give them just enough to keep them
coming back to know more. If you haven’t read her first
page, you should probably do so!

(You can read Lindsey’s first page, along with those of our top 10 contestants, here.)

Not only that, but her book intrigued me. Honestly, I
first read the synopsis and was like, “Oh boy, this sounds a whole lot
like quite a few books I know,” but when I really analyzed it, her
synopsis was more about how she felt she didn’t belong anywhere and was
an outcast. This isn’t quite your normal story about an heir to the
throne, warrior-like woman. This looks to be a story about a girl on her
own, no help and no such luck, honestly working for everything that she
has to get through in life and just trying to find her place in a world
that seems to hate her no matter which way she turns. She’s not given
anything, and actually, it seems to me like she may turn out less than
lucky anyways. It’s almost like Red Queen meets Throne of Glass. It’s
not quite one or the other, but it finds a nice in between that can
still fit in today’s market. I love it!

What intrigued me even more is that this manuscript
is nothing like what I expected from the synopsis. I thought this was a
YA high fantasy of some sort by reading the synopsis, and I might still
be correct, but it came with a large twist. The main character isn’t
brash right out of the box, but is being treated as if she were upper
class in an 1800’s U.S.A. instead. It has this classic historical feel,
with lace gloves, parasols and governesses galore, mixed with a little
bit of magic. It’s honestly a fascinating combination, as normally
you’ll find a more adventurous, extremely independent, and very brash
young woman on her own in YA fantasy novels. You open up the manuscript
and you find a girl who just wants to fit in and have some class. It’s a
nice change of pace!

On top of this, her grammar is on point, her
descriptions are vivid and succinct, and her writing is extremely well
crafted. I can tell that she put a lot of time into her entry and I hope
that this shows through the rest of her manuscript. 🙂

Overall, you all did so amazing and I’m so proud of every single one of you. Keep going and never give up that dream!

Congratulations, Lindsey! Please find me on Twitter to get my submission instructions.

Adventures in YA Publishing

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Posted: Jul 28, 2016

Category: Imported from AYAP

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The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p>
<p>Your main character needs to be:<br />
• Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br />
• Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br />
• Active enough to drive the story<br />
• Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p>
<p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />

The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p>
<p>But your theme needs to be:<br />
• Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br />
• Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br />
• Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br />
• Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p>
<p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />

The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p>
<p>In general, your plot should:<br />
• Hook readers fast<br />
• Build tension that a child can follow<br />
• Create page turns that feel natural<br />
• Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p>
<p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.

The Arms of your story are the side characters.

The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p>
<p>Your setting should:<br />
• Make your character's world feel real<br />
• Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br />
• Connect different scenes and moments organically<br />
• Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p>
<p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black.

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