GENRE: **STEM/STEAM, Diverse, Biography
WORDS: 780
Query:
Dear Judges, Agents and Editors,
Thank you for the opportunity to share my manuscript. When a great famine gripped China, Yuan Longping set out to increase rice yields. Despite 3,000 failed experiments and doubts from scientists, Yuan believed in his work and created Hybrid Rice. His breakthrough feeds the world, yet remains little known outside China. Yuan passed away in 2021. I joined billions of Chinese to mourn him and that was the beginning of this story.
Free from Hunger is a 780 word lyrical PB Bio features a determined MC, akin to The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read; weaves in the STEM elements of Queen of Physics: How Wu Chien Shiung Helped Unlock the Secrets of the Atom; and shares the historical background of famine in Watercress.
An educator for 16 years, I am a Montessori lead teacher in a Chinese immersion program. I was a 2024 Picture Book Rising Star Mentee, a recipient of the SCBWI Pitch-Perfect Translation Grant and BIPOC Scholarship, and a two-time finalist for the Hongpifeng Chinese National Picture Book contests (2022, 2023). I also write for a Chinese children’s magazine and created leveled readers for Lingo Bus, a Mandarin education company.
I have additional picture book manuscripts in humor, fiction, and STEAM, should you be interested. Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours,
XXX
Excerpt:
Steamed and fluffy,
stir-fried and shiny,
you may not know the story of Yuan Longping,
but you’ve probably enjoyed
his incredible rice.
Under the gloomy sky of 1930s China,
Yuan played outside whenever he could.
Despite the war,
he noticed nature’s little wonders.
On a field trip,
Yuan drank in the sweet scent of ripening peaches,
feasted his eyes on juicy grapes,
chuckled as the flowers tickled his skin.
What inspired you to write this story & what do you have in common with it:
Rice eaters worldwide benefit from Yuan Longping’s scientific breakthrough and generosity, yet he remains little known outside China. Known as the father of hybrid rice, he passed away in 2021. I joined billions of Chinese to mourn him, and that was the beginning of this story.
Something I have in common with Yuan is that we both believe in our work and pursue our dreams.
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