Manuscript Status: Finished
Mentor Name: Shari Schwarz
Mentee Name: Arianne Costner
Title: THE NOT-SO-HOT POTATO
Category: Middle Grade
Genre: Contemporary
Word Count: 49,000 words
Pitch:
After a hotdog-flinging mishap, thirteen-year-old Ben faces suspension at his new school in Idaho. Coach offers one way out: volunteer as the dorky potato mascot. Ben agrees—as long as it remains a secret. But if he can’t keep his story straight as he juggles two identities, he risks losing his friends and his chances of ever fitting in.
Excerpt:
I don’t know what I did to deserve it, but the fact is clear: I, Ben Hardy, am cursed by potatoes. The demon vegetable is out to get me—has been for years.
Evidence #1: When I was three, I tripped over a bag of potatoes and broke my arm. I had to wear a tiny green cast for six weeks. Talk about itchy.
Evidence #2: My mom makes the world’s gluey-est mashed potatoes. I’ve choked on them countless times, yet she keeps whipping them up like she’s trying to kill me.
Evidence #3: There’s a faded scar above my left eyebrow. The story? Let’s just say I got on the bad side of a cat named Tater Tot.
And then, there’s the matter of my school’s game day shirt.
“You have to get one, Ben. Where’s your school spirit?” Ellie sets her lunch tray down and tosses her long braid over her shoulder. On her shirt, a cartoon potato flexes his bulky biceps and flashes the kind of smile that should be reserved for clowns in horror movies.
What was the student council thinking when they designed that thing? If I were in charge, I’d petition for a change of mascot. At my last school, we were the Wildcats: ferocious and intimidating. All a potato could scare is…well, me, I guess.
2 Comments
Saba Sulaiman · November 1, 2017 at 9:57 pm
Hi Arianne,
You have such a fun voice—I’d love to read more! Please send a query, synopsis, and the first 25 pages (Word documents will suffice) to ssulaiman@talcottnotch.net — and don’t forget to mention #PitchWars in your subject line. Thanks—looking forward to my read!
Good luck,
–Saba
Naomi Davis · November 2, 2017 at 1:28 pm
This is such a fun pitch. Would you please send me the full manuscript as a word document, plus the pitch and any relevant details you’d like me to have, to naomi@inklingsliterary.com ? Thanks!!!
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