GENRE: Character Driven, Humor, Historical Fiction
WORDS: 598
Query:
Dear Agents and Editors, Mindy and Judges,
I am pleased to submit my 598-word informational fiction picture book, A White House Pardon as told by Rebecca Raccoon.
In her own words, Rebecca will tell readers how she arrived at the White House excepting to join President Coolidge for Thanksgiving dinner. She gussied up readying for their introduction only to hear words that struck like the crack of an ax—
“I’ve never eaten raccoon and I don’t intend to now!”
But, in a quick flash of fate, Mrs. Coolidge flipped things around when she declared,
“This raccoon is staying!”
Rebecca will reflect upon how she was served favorite delicacies, allowed to splash in the House bathtub, and sleep on velvety beds. She’ll take readers with her on outings around town and to tea parties with Mrs Coolidge. Most importantly, she will let readers in on what she witnessed while draped across President Coolidge’s shoulders as he worked on new laws and signed official papers
With the informational text or unique voices, children’s books that come to mind as comp titles for Rebecca’s story are: Hannah Holt’s, A History of Underwear With Professor Chicken, Mac Barnett’s, President Taft Is Stuck In The Tub, and Irene Baker’s, Love Agnes:Postcards from an Octopus.
I belong to SCBWI, 12×12, RYS, and have attended conferences, retreats, and classes to learn and improve my craft of writing for children. And, as always, my critique partners are my lifeline to perfecting my manuscripts.
My stories and poems have appeared in Babybug, Ladybug, and Appleseeds magazines, one of which was chosen by McGraw Hill to be used on a testing website. My experience as a longtime elementary school volunteer and substitute teacher is what motivates me to write stories of truth and fun that help children relate to nature, family, and amazing accomplishments of little known people. In this case a little known White House pet.
Thank you for your kind consideration and the opportunity to submit Rebecca Raccoon’s story to you. I have an array of other polished manuscripts if you wish to see more of my work.
Excerpt:
Now that PBParty 2023 is over, the author asked me to remove the excerpt.
What inspired you to write this story & what do you have in common with it:
An old newspaper article showed up on a FB feed with Mrs. Coolidge all dressed up in a lovely hat, posing with a raccoon in her arms. Being the curious person that I am, I started my research investigation. The deeper I dug, the more I felt that Rebecca’s story was hers to tell. I feel that when kids hear Rebecca’s tale and read the back matter they’ll learn fun facts about our thirtieth president without feeling bored. And I’ll tell you a little secret. I knew that Calvin Coolidge was one of our presidents, but I couldn’t have told you where he came in line. Now I’ll never forget!
Leave a Reply