GENRE: Humor, Character Driven, STEM/STEAM
WORDS: 366
Query:
Dear Human,
I didn’t mean to invade your home. Honestly, I didn’t. I was just trying to get out of the rain. Before you squish me, hear me out – I would make a really great roommate! I’m quiet, I keep to myself, and I won’t eat any of your food. On top of that, I’ll keep your home free from pests. Please consider letting me stay, or at the very least, letting me go. Just please don’t stomp!
Signed,
Mr. Arachnid
P.S.
I’m pleased to submit to you my 366-word picture book manuscript titled “Ick! Eww! Ahh!”, which aims to help children (and adults) overcome their fear of spiders, like Netflix’s “Lucas the Spider”, while introducing interesting information in a humorous way, such as “I Eat Poop: A Dung Beetle Story” by Mark Pett (Roaring Brook Press, 2021). This story is a rollicking read aloud with amusing alliteration that teaches children compassion and includes back matter about our eight-legged cohabitants.
I am a PAL member of SCBWI, a member of an active critique group, secretary of my local writers’ guild, and a 2021 PBParty finalist. My debut middle grade novel, “The Girl in the Window”, was released in April 2024 from Monarch Press, and will be followed by a picture book titled “Dark Skies” in Fall 2025 from The Little Press. I also have a non-fiction piece titled “Across the Frozen Sea” in the January 2024 issue of Highlights magazine.
Thank you for your consideration.
Excerpt:
I’m an Ick.
Or an Eww.
Sometimes an AHHH!
I give everyone the heebie-jeebies…
But not on purpose!
When I lived outside, things were different!
I was a dazzling designer.
A natural ninja.
And an effective engineer.
But when I accidentally wandered inside to get out of the rain, everything changed…
SCREAM!
STOMP!
Now, instead of showing off my skills,
I hide in dark corners, trying not to get squished.
What inspired you to write this story & what do you have in common with it:
Like most people, my knee-jerk reaction to seeing one of our eight-legged cohabitants is to scream, then stomp. That is, until an arachnid spun her web in the corner of my bathroom window and settled in, content to wait patiently for breakfast. It made me wonder why we react the way we do towards these little creatures. They’re quiet, clean, and self-sufficient – the perfect roommates! Thus, “Ick! Eww! Ahh!”, told from the perspective of a spider who finds itself accidentally trapped indoors, was born.
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