Pitch Wars Blog Archive

PW-18 (YA): AURORA

MENTOR: Michelle Painchaud MENTEE: Ashley DeYoung TITLE: AURORA CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Sci-Fi WORD COUNT: 80,000   PITCH: 16-year-old Cassandra Vicars knows two things – the lizard alien Serokans who’ve taken over Earth and turned it into a human meat factory have to be stopped, and she’s the best Alliance soldier for the job.   EXCERPT: The trick to getting anywhere you aren’t supposed to be is acting like you actually belong there. Especially in the middle of a Serokan raid. I Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-19 (YA): MERLIN’S FLIGHT

MENTOR: Fiona McLaren MENTEE: Jordan Teos TITLE: MERLIN’S FLIGHT CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Sci-Fi WORD COUNT: 72,000   PITCH: Amelia Earhart meets MORTAL ENGINES with an Arthurian twist. When sixteen-year-old Gwen stumbles into a plot to destroy her beloved sky city, she’s thrown overboard in a broken plane. She fights to return in time, but the more she learns, the more she questions if she’s on the right side.   EXCERPT: “Are we ready for the Joining?” Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-19 (YA): MERLIN'S FLIGHT

MENTOR: Fiona McLaren MENTEE: Jordan Teos TITLE: MERLIN’S FLIGHT CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Sci-Fi WORD COUNT: 72,000   PITCH: Amelia Earhart meets MORTAL ENGINES with an Arthurian twist. When sixteen-year-old Gwen stumbles into a plot to destroy her beloved sky city, she’s thrown overboard in a broken plane. She fights to return in time, but the more she learns, the more she questions if she’s on the right side.   EXCERPT: “Are we ready for the Joining?” Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-20 (YA): SCAPEGOAT

MENTOR: Mónica Bustamante Wagner MENTEE: Rachel Coleman TITLE: SCAPEGOAT CATEGORY/GENRE: Contemporary YA WORD COUNT: 75,000   PITCH: After eighteen-year-old Gideon disables his girlfriend, Lilly, in a car accident, his life spins out of control and he ends up in rehab. But when his mom falls ill, he leaves treatment early to keep his siblings out of foster care. White-knuckling sobriety while taking care of his family proves difficult. First, there’s the new girl in town, Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-21 (YA): WHERE DEVILS BREED

MENTOR: Meredith McCardle MENTEE: Addie Thorley TITLE: WHERE DEVILS BREED CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Fantasy WORD COUNT: 91,000   Pitch: When her sister and friends are sold to the Imperial harem, seventeen-year-old Nia vows to save them— even if that means conspiring with mystic Bedouins, betraying the boy she loves, and slitting the Sultan’s throat.   Excerpt: The harem traders circled my sister like wolves— lips curled over yellow teeth, fingers clawing at her face. I couldn’t Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-22 (YA): THE HARP OF BONE

MENTOR: Diana Gallagher MENTEE: Neely Stansell-Simpson TITLE: THE HARP OF BONE CATEGORY/GENRE: YA paranormal thriller WORD COUNT: 82,000   PITCH: Six days before her birthday, Ruby discovers all the women born into her family die the day they turn 18. To save herself, she must unravel the secrets of a ballad found on a headstone in the family graveyard.   EXCERPT: I run my fingertips slowly over the weathered writing on the gravestone: Rosemary, 1676-1727. The air Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-23 (YA): THAT NIGHT ON BLOSSOM HILL

MENTOR: N.K. Traver MENTEE: Alison Green Myers TITLE: THAT NIGHT ON BLOSSOM HILL CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Horror WORD COUNT: 48,000   PITCH: Mary’s flawless acting may have the starstruck detectives fooled, but her sister Maureen knows Mary’s the devil behind their mother and brother’s brutal murders. Now Maureen must prove it before Mary adds her to the body count.   EXCERPT: [Mary] September 15 3:03 am I’ll have to start running soon. I detest running. But Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-24 (YA): ONLY IN MY DREAMS

MENTOR: Jessie Humphries MENTEE: Andy Hertzenberg TITLE: ONLY IN MY DREAMS CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Contemporary WORD COUNT: 55,000   PITCH: When fangirl Olivia Davis saves Hollywood hunk Kit Taylor’s life it should have been a good thing. Except that he ends up in coma, his family mistakes her for his girlfriend, and despite best intentions, she gets tangled up in a messy web of lies that is bound to break more than one heart.   EXCERPT: Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-25 (YA): A SEA OF HOLLOW HEARTS

MENTOR: Stephanie Garber MENTEE: Kate Bucklein TITLE: A SEA OF HOLLOW HEARTS CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Epic Fantasy WORD COUNT: 88,000   PITCH: After being marooned by his pirate crew, Alek finds himself stuck on an island with a girl he doesn’t trust. She comes with a curse that binds them together. To break it they’ll have to commandeer a ship, find five lost relics, and avoid killing each other in the process.   EXCERPT: It took Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago

PW-26 (YA): CONFESSION

MENTOR: Sean McConnell MENTEE: Jak Szabo TITLE: CONFESSION CATEGORY/GENRE: YA Historical WORD COUNT: 75,000   PITCH: In exchange for her birth name, liar extraordinaire “Soledad” must con the Inquisition on orders from her guardian, a mysterious masked man rumored to be the Devil himself. V for Vendetta meets Les Misérables, with flamenco.   Excerpt: Today my name is Martirio, as in martyr. Whenever my partner speaks it, he holds each letter on his tongue, stacking Read more…

By brendaadmin, ago