An Agent's Inbox #14

Dear Mr. Taylor,

Alistair Toddlefin spends his days playing in the haunted woods near his house, wishing his too-busy parents would notice him, longing for a friend. So when spooky, freckle-faced Lucy Punch appears near his fort in the laurel bushes, he believes she could be the answer to all of his problems.

Ali follows Lucy deep into the forest, to a dark and looming willow tree. There, she pulls back the Curtain of Illusion, revealing a world where children rule. A world of lantern-lit treehouses and endless fun where Ali might finally belong. But soon, something sinister threatens his newfound happiness and thoughts of Ali’s old life begin to fade. He discovers that Lucy’s lost her memories too.

To save himself and his friend, Ali must find a way to take down the Left Behinders--cursed, dark spirits that destroy memories and devour imaginations, feeding on them for survival. If he doesn’t, Ali may never see his parents again, and he and Lucy will remain captive, their minds ensnared by the Left Behinders for eternity.

CHILDREN OF THE WOOD is a spooky, 32,000-word middle grade fantasy that would appeal to fans of A CURIOUS TALE OF THE IN-BETWEEN and SERAFINA AND THE BLACK CLOAK.

I amicably parted ways with my previous agent and am seeking new representation. A previous middle grade project of mine, THE TRINKET GUARDIAN, was a 2015 PitchWars finalist and the winner of the 2016 Pikes Peak Zebulon contest in the MG/YA category. My middle grade fantasy, LAIMA MONTROVE WANTS TO BE A WITCH, was a finalist for the 2015 Eldin Memorial Fellowship, an award to honor Christine Eldin’s memory and recognize talent in unpublished middle grade writers. I’m also currently interning at Inklings Literary.

The CHILDREN OF THE WOOD manuscript is available at your request. It has not yet been in front of any editors. Thanks for your time!

Best,
H.H.


CHILDREN OF THE WOOD

Alistair Toddlefin peered out his bedroom window for the fifteenth time that day. The world was still bleak and gray and sodden, only slightly more interesting than the world inside. He imagined he was a dragon and breathed plumes of fire over the forest, scorching it, burning it to a crisp, forcing his parents to move back to civilization. Then he leaned back and clasped his hands behind his head, resting against the wall behind his bed, admiring his smoke-singed work.

His parents had moved to the crisp Connecticut woods just four months earlier, wanting a break from the effervescent zip of the city, or so they’d said. Ali couldn’t deny the freshness of the air and the soothing trill of spring peepers, but he hadn’t quite gotten used to the loneliness of it all, and he figured he probably never would.

Ali shoved aside a stack of library books and climbed down the ladder of his bunk bed, shaking off the pins and needles. He jumped off the last rung and landed with a thud. If they’d been in the city, he’d have walked himself to a museum or to the iron-gated park around the corner. But here, there was nothing but miles of trees in every direction. No friends. Nothing much to do.

With a quick look down the hall, Ali dusted off his hands. Perhaps someone could take him to see a movie. Anything would be better than another minute trapped indoors, alone.

“Mom,” Ali asked as he rounded the corner and walked into her office.