With so much going on behind the scenes, it’s been awhile since I’ve shared any updates on the first book in my middle-grade science fiction series (SGT). And now that the manuscript is no longer bound by contest restrictions, it seemed like the right time.
This summer, I’m planning to engage my awesome critique group (whose already viewed the first four chapters) and my amazing editor to help prepare the manuscript for submission. The goal is to begin submitting by early fall.
Querying is a long hard road, so prayers would be appreciated.
If you’re wondering why I am pursuing the traditional route over the indie route I started with, it’s because this is a middle-grade series. I intend to continue indie publishing my YA stories, as it makes sense. However, the middle-grade market is different. There seem to be fewer avenues for indies to reach middle-grade readers than there are avenues for indies to reach YA readers.
On to the excerpts… :)
SGT Book 1, Upper Middle-grade Science Fiction
I’ve shared a couple of snippets on Twitter and Instagram recently and wanted to share those here as well. If you like them, I would love to know. Please feel free to comment or ask questions. I’ll do the best I can to answer.
One-line Premise
Transported into another world, twelve-year-old Sarah Ann Reisende must face a genetically-engineered warrior with an army of vicious hybrids.
Chapter One Excerpt
… Extremities tingling, I clenched my jaw. Everything else ceased to exist.
Ahead, the orange offender advanced. I pushed harder, lungs burning, muscles cramping. Fatigue nearly brought me to my knees. But I fought back, gaining speed. Two more blocks passed. The distance between us shrank. Now one meter away, my hands itched to reach for the fluffy felon. The end of the block upon us, we veered to the left again. With a twitch of its tail, the fiend taunted me as it disappeared around another corner, heading down a cobblestone alleyway.
Chapter Two Excerpt
With the cobblestone passage before me once more, the thought of leaving the shop fluttered into my mind. The prospect of exploring strange new places enchanted me, but, if I left Vienna, how would I ever find my way home?
Maybe it was a good thing the door to the other world hadn’t opened. ⠀
K.A. Cummins 