PW #242: Middle Grade Mystery: SIXTH GRADE SECRET SERVICE

Manuscript Status: Complete

Mentor Names: Kevin Springer

Mentee Name: Jason Franz

Title: SIXTH GRADE SECRET SERVICE

Category: Middle Grade

Genre: Mystery

Word Count: 55,000

Pitch: 

Twelve-year-old ABRAHAM TRUMAN comes from a long line of secret service agents. Unfortunately, every calamity involving a president happened during a Truman’s watch. When the student president goes missing, Abe must put the past behind him to find her before the class bully turns their school into a dictatorship.

Excerpt:

Chapter 1

Monday 2:25 PM

Snack wrappers, erasers, and waded-up paper flew around our packed political science room as other kids took advantage of Ms. Sunny’s struggle to finish her grading. Served her right—surprising us with a quiz on democracy so close to the end of election day. Only the top of her blonde hair could be seen behind stacks of paper on her desk.

My leg bounced nervously—the votes for student government had to be counted by now.

Tibby Roosevelt, my best friend, sat at the desk across from me, staring at the row of past student president photos above the whiteboard, and one empty frame at the end. The frame where we both hoped her picture would be very soon.

We knew she was a long-shot when she decided to run, being a sixth-grader and all. Even with her lifelong obsession with politics, school elections always went to upperclassmen, and usually only popular ones.

As always, Tibby’s dark, curly hair was held back with the headband she’d made with her grandmother during her trip to South Africa. It had strings of red beads on the outside, tan on the inside, and purple in the center. She thought it made her look good no matter what she wore.

Me? I thought she looked good no matter what.

Riley Regan, a writer for the school paper, tapped Tibby on the shoulder, her phone ready to record. “Excuse me, if elected, what’ll be your first act as student president?”