GENRE: **Diverse, Character Driven, SEL, NF backmatter
WORDS: 425
Query:
Dear Agents and Editors,
Hello! I am seeking literary representation and hope you will consider my picture book, CHAO DOES NOT LIKE MORNINGS.
Chao, a grocery store in Taiwan, does not like mornings. Unfortunately for him—and his bruised fruit and annoyed customers—grocery stores are supposed to open bright and early, when the sun is a soft scrambled egg in the sky. By the time Chao gets up, it looks more like a melted mango. He turns to his neighbors for advice, but they’re not much help: Bao the bakery suggests baking bread at dawn, while Yi the hospital doesn’t understand the concept of sleep at all. Finally, with a little help from Ying the movie theater, Chao starts to question why grocery stores have to open so early in the first place. Inspired, he takes a big risk—and transforms himself into Taiwan’s first night market. The rest is history.
At 425 words, CHAO DOES NOT LIKE MORNINGS combines the whimsical and endearing personification of a building from Adam Rex’s SCHOOL’S FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL with the vibrancy of Taiwanese food and culture. An additional 228 words of backmatter offer further context for readers to learn more about the history of Taiwanese night markets as well as the Mandarin Chinese roots behind the names of Chao and his neighbors.
After studying creative writing at Emory University, I lived in Kaohsiung, Taiwan for two years, where I taught elementary school English and fell in love with the country. With the help of a grant from the McGrath Foundation, I am excited to return this summer to write more picture books inspired by this incredible place. Currently, I am pursuing a dual MA/MFA in children’s literature at Simmons University. As the bilingual daughter of Chinese immigrants, I hope this story authentically honors East Asian culture. Moreover, as a night owl myself, I wanted to encourage readers to be active about creating a life that best serves their individual needs, even if it challenges social expectations. As was the case for Chao, it might actually benefit everyone!
Thank you for your time, and I hope to hear from you soon.
Excerpt:
Chao is not a morning person. [street in Taiwan, personified grocery store]
He loves sleeping in. But everyone knows all grocery stores open early…
“Wake up!” sings the sun, peeking in the windows.
“Wake up!” chime the pomelos and papayas, ripe and ready.
“Wake up!” say the people. Their feet tap. Their eyes roll. Their mouths flatten into frowns.
The sun is a melted mango when Chao finally opens.
What inspired you to write this story & what do you have in common with it:
From 2019 to 2021, I lived in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, where I taught elementary school English and fell in love with the country. With the help of a research grant from the McGrath Foundation, I am excited to return this summer to write more picture books inspired by this incredible place. Furthermore, as the bilingual daughter of Chinese immigrants, I hope this story authentically honors the East Asian culture that inspired it. And as a night owl myself, I wanted to encourage readers to create a life that best serves their individual needs, even if it challenges social expectations.
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