WANTED: Beta Readers for STAR RACERS

Happy Friday, Friends!

Today I have a "wanted ad" for a writer seeking beta readers. Martin's written a YA sci-fi called STAR RACERS that sounds pretty cool, and he's looking for detailed feedback.

If you've got the time, please read his summary and excerpt as follows and consider getting in touch!

Star Racers by Martin Felando

It’s not just about a race. Star Racers is a fantasy space opera full of sci-fi action with a young space pilot named Rev Arden falling in love with his racing sponsor Sashi Oon. The fate of their planets depend on the two of them working together to win a dangerous, obstacle-filled race called Grand Battle. But Rev, Sashi and their adventurous friends Stepp Gro and Krissy Hott (and their numerous, adorable action figure dolls), Dupaon, and Stepp’s boyfriend Kaedn have to battle their way off Earth and across the galaxy just to get to the race at the Milky Way Grand Hotel.  Once there, Rev has to compete against a hundred other hypersonic scramjet pilots, including Scrap Meat and Betsy’s Lover, all wanting to save their endangered planet, and the Xx-scarred Maelae of the Injurious will do everything in his power to stop all of them, especially Rev.  

Appropriate for children ages 12 and up, Star Racers was written for teens and young adults.   

 YOU NEED A WATCH

Deep space.  The Milky Way Grand Hotel.  Verus Live!

Verus Live! appeared on billions of screens across millions of galaxies.  The show often started with Verus head and shoulders in shadow, a black silhouette against a backlight of midnight blue.  So it was this night, with Verus wearing another perfectly tailored suit, smoothly and politely asking, “Are you like me?  Do you like putting a smile on your face?  A smile that isn’t an empty smile?”

Floating cameras blinked like tiny stars, leading and following Verus as he rose from his broadcast studio chair and walked past his showrunner and assistants.  Verus remained in shadow as he sauntered down a dark corridor, cameras crisscrossing like fireflies.

Outlines of people, creatures, and robots could be seen crowded against the corridor walls waving and reaching out to Verus like giddy teens.  

“You’ve rooted for someone to win something, haven’t you?  What are you rooting for?  Why?  What’s the most important thing in your life right now?  A game?  A song?  A calling?  Is there something in your life you’d risk everything for?  Do you feel like you have all the answers, or are you like me?  Do you feel like you’re often walking in the dark?”

Verus turned a corner and headed down another corridor drenched in bumpy shadows.  Further ahead, something bright was glowing.

“Now, maybe where you’re from you couldn’t do this, but if I or something else wanted to show up on your planet’s doorstep, we could do it in a day.  The problem is too many of our neighbors aren’t acting neighborly.  Which is why we’re all here, and maybe why you are here.  Now, where am I?” 

Hundreds of star-studded, spiral galaxy holographs appeared in the blue corridor, and Verus gently waded through them with both hands.  Identifying air text graphics materialized next to every galaxy he touched.   

“I’m sure you’re in here somewhere, but what about me?  Here I am.  The Milky Way Galaxy.”

Verus expanded the holograph, and a galaxy of solar systems with planets, moons, comets, and colorful cloud nebulas filled the blue hall.  Expanded further by Verus, spaceship armadas could be seen attacking space station defenses and invading planets.  The air text graphics auto expanded, revealing war crime statistics rising in the billions.           

“The Milky Way Galaxy has over thirty billion inhabited planets, and too many bullies in their galaxy are showing up unannounced.  Look here though at these galaxies.”

Verus shrunk the Milky Way Galaxy and displayed other galaxy holographs.

“Here are galaxies with no bullies, no invasions, no wars.  Neighbors acting neighborly.”
Verus magnified one of these peaceful galaxies to reveal that orbiting nearly every planet were four Defender hyper-cruisers.   

“See these?  These are Defenders.  Someone from this galaxy and these planets won a race called Grand Battle.  Win the race, save your planet.  How do you win Grand Battle?  How do you live in peace for all time?  Well, first you need a watch.”             

Interested in beta-reading for Martin? Please e-mail him directly at martinfelando(at)yahoo(dot)com.

WANTED: Beta Readers for Tiffany

Happy Friday, everyone!

I'm posting a "wanted ad" for romantic suspense writer, Tiffany Carmouche. While this is mostly a kidlit blog, I know some of you read and write other genres and might be be a fit for Tiffany. Here's what she's looking for:

Looking for Beta Readers for a Romantic Suspense. This novel is the first in a Suspenseful Romantic Trilogy about a woman escaping abuse, finding unexpected love, reclaiming her passion and her fight to survive. The book is 97,883 words and 306 pages.

Running from an abusive relationship, Nicole Carlise flees to Alaska into the sexy arms of lead singer Dylan Richardson. She came in search of a better life for her daughter but soon finds herself experiencing life like she never imagined. Bradley, Nicole’s boss, warns her of Dylan’s reputation with women but she can’t help her attraction. The closer she gets to Dylan however, the more she realizes she needs to tell him she is a single-mother. Will she lose the man she loves?

Nicole is unaware that her innocent beauty has taunted a sinister man, and she is caught in a web of deception. Someone she trusted has been stalking her. Her daughter arrives. People start disappearing. Nicole needs to decide who she can trust, not just with her heart, but with her life.

Interested? Please e-mail Tiffany directly at tiffanycarmouche(at)rocketmail(dot)com

Public Critique and Wanted Ad: EVER

Thank you for all the fabulous feedback you gave Jamie on her query.  You guys are fabulous critiquers!  As mentioned, here's a brief excerpt of EVER for critique.  Jamie is also looking for a critique partner.  In her words, "I write YA Paranormal (vampires, witches, wolves, etc) and would love to pair with someone who writes the same so we can really fuel each others' works!"  If you're interested in pairing up with Jamie, e-mail me at caseymccormickya (at) gmail (dot) com and I'll put you in touch!

EVER
(excerpt)
YA Paranormal
By Jamie Manning

1. REBORN

I woke to the coppery smell of blood and a hunger unlike anything I had ever felt. My head burned hard and fast, sending shards of pain and heat over my entire body. I could hear and feel my own breath, short and raspy, choke its way out of my lungs and up my throat. My nose burned with the smell of dirt and sweat and I was surrounded by total darkness. A helluva way to wake up.

As the pain in my head eased, the hunger in my stomach grew stronger. It seemed to spread out over my entire body, making my skin crawl and my mind spin. All I could think about was eating and eating soon. But I wasn’t craving food.

I was craving blood.

The thought of it filled my mind like molten lava, sweeping in and burying all other thoughts and ideas and leaving me with an aching emptiness that only it could fill. I had to have it, and I had no idea why.

What’s wrong with me? Am I seriously lying here thinking about blood? Have I totally lost my mind?

All good questions that I had zero answers for. I couldn’t even stomach watching someone being killed in a horror movie. Just the idea of having my blood drawn at the doctor’s office caused me to break out in hives. So how in the world could I now be actually considering drinking blood? I tried to push the overwhelming and totally disgusting thought of blood – and what I wanted to do with it – out of my mind and focus on figuring out where the hell I was.

WANTED: Beta Readers for Lori

Hi everyone!  I hope you had a great weekend.  I did some catching up on school work and blog stuff, but I had plenty of time to spend with my family, too.  It was lovely.

I have a WANTED ad today for Lori Johnson who is looking for beta readers for her YA novel.  Check out her details and excerpt below.  If you're interested, please e-mail her at lodjohnson (at) comcast (dot) net.

Hi. I'm looking for beta readers who are writers as well. Three teen girls have read my novel and they love, love, love it (Their words, not mine). What I'm looking for is an objective opinion and someone who doesn't mind telling the truth. I'm willing to return the favor. Following is an excerpt from the first chapter. If anyone is interested, please let me know. Thanks.

BREATHE
By Lori Johnson

The first time I met him, it wasn’t an accident. I didn’t know it was a planned chance meeting. He chose me and it didn’t take much for me to reciprocate. I only had to see him once. Once was enough. I fell for him and fell and fell, but he knew I would. I never had a choice. That’s what happens when he’s omnipotent and you’re not.

Dark rolling clouds passed over. Erik pulled me closer; the biting January winds chilling me through my down jacket. No one thought to go inside. This is what we did every morning – hung out in the senior parking lot until the first bell rang. Our group of friends was compact and closed to new entries. We’d all known each other since we were little kids. Sounds boring, I know. But when you live in a transient town like Greenston, Georgia, locals stick together.

“I’ve got to see Coach,” Erik said as he stroked my long hair. “See you in English?”

“Yeah, sure, I . . .” I began. His lips closed over mine, kissing me breathless.

Easing back; my face hot, I tried to remain casual. “Erik, not here. People are watching. Later.”
He blew out a stream of air, dropped his arms and mumbled words I couldn’t, and probably didn’t want to hear. I reached for him to make things right, but he turned away, probably to teach me a lesson. He sauntered off, waving at the lowly ones he felt were worthy of his attention.

“I’ll miss you,” I called after him. He turned and grinned.

That chiseled body. The tousled blond hair and piercing blue eyes. I couldn’t get enough.

“I’m gonna throw up,” Courtney groaned; making gagging sounds. “How can you be so romantic? You two are boring. Just go ahead and do it.”

I narrowed my eyes, tossed my hair over my shoulder and said under my breath, “Sure, that’s your answer.”

Courtney grinned. “Okay, okay, okay. Taboo subject – but you have no idea what you’re missing.”

“Court,” I warned. “Just because I love you as my best friend and just because you’re Erik’s cousin doesn’t give you the right to butt in . . . If he’s happy, why can’t you be?”

“You do what you want. I’m telling you, as your very best friend who knows a little something about the subject, it isn’t normal for an eighteen year old guy – it’s all they think about. Understand?”

“This is not a subject I’m willing . . .”

“Oh my gosh! Would you look at that?” Courtney cried. Her eyes were peeled toward the lower parking lot.

“At what?” I followed her gaze. A guy, I hadn’t noticed before, was practically slinking as he slid out of a

Porsche and walked toward the school. He appeared pretty cute from where I stood, and Courtney sure was in a heated tizzy.

She grabbed my elbow and dragged me toward the door. “Did you see that guy?” she babbled. “I’ve never seen anyone that hot!” I assumed that was a good thing, and I was sure I’d never hear the end of that.

At the same time Courtney babbled about the hot guy at school, the other two girls in our little group, Olivia and Sarah, AKA Beauty Queen One and Two, ran up to us. “Did you see him?” asked Olivia. “Got-a-mighty-damn! Too bad I’m taken.”

“There are no words; no sonnets – more like male perfection,” sighed Sarah. The tittering conversations continued until a second warning bell pierced our ears.

WANTED: YA Readers for Sherry

Hey all!  Sherry has another request.  She's looking for some teen/college-age readers to read the first 50 pages of her YA manuscript.  If you're a young adult, please check out her ad below. For a sample of her writing, view her ad from last week (now closed) or go to her website.  Interested in being a reader for her?  She can be reached at paranormal_writer @ yahoo.com

Here's Sherry:

YOUNG ADULT READERS WANTED!

Do you love to read? Do you enjoy helping others? Do you review books on a blog or website?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, than you're perfect for my Reading Evaluation! Yea!

I am looking for YA readers to review the first 50 pages of my manuscript.

I'm presently working on a YA paranormal/romance and would prefer a reader who loves reading supernatural love stories, horror, and/or paranormal suspense.

If you love scary, romantic or fantasy fiction, you might enjoy this process.

Who? High School or College Students who love to read.

What? You will be reading 50 pages of an unpublished work of fiction that I’m trying to find an agent for. After reading it, you will formulate an opinion and offer insightful feedback.

This will include a short questionnaire to be filled out after reading the text. Questions like: Does the heroine sound and act like a typical teenager? Do her reactions seem believable?

Where? You can do this from school or home, on your computer.

How? I will send you the pages via email. You get a two-week turnaround deadline. That is, you have two weeks to read the 50 pages and fill out the questionnaire.

Why should I help? Wouldn't it be wicked cool to get to say, "That book got published because of me?”

And if the book does get published, I will include your name in the dedication page and send you a signed copy in the mail before it hits the shelves.

WANTED: Critique Partner for Sherry

Hey everyone!  I have a "wanted ad" today for a YA writer looking for a critique partner. Please read her details and excerpt below and consider swapping some pages to see if you're compatible.  Here's what she's looking for:

I am a previously published author, trying to find an agent for my latest novel. I am looking for a critique partner to exchange a chapter with per week. I work with published authors and struggling writers who share a love of the written word. I cannot, however work with first drafts right now. Sorry!

I have a completed, 90,000 word YA paranormal/ghost story that I'm working on and would prefer a partner who writes in the YA genre. Please contact me if you're interested in working together. My email: paranormal_writer @ yahoo.com

Thanks!! And thanks to Casey for letting put up this ad. ;-)

***

First page of working title, DARK ANGEL (A Girl's Guide to the Supernatural)

For as long as I can remember, I’ve heard whispers in the shadows. Dark twisting shapes that chilled my blood. During the day I was safe, felt the heat of the sun on my skin chasing away the chill. This morning the gloom did little to abate my fears or warm my bare flesh.

I was tempted to jump back into bed and pull the covers over my head. Instead, I went over to the closet to pick out my clothes. I threw a dress on the bed, and then rummaged in the closet again.

The rush at the edge of my skin made me shiver.

Out of the corner of my eye, a maelstrom of shadows glided over the walls, murmuring in an ancient language. Ah, hell.

I glanced over my shoulder—and froze.

An amorphous darkness crept along the wall, different from the others. This shadow slid closer to where I stood, vague in shape, yet growing in size. It shifted, altered, trickled into blood and limbs and then...

Oh god, the thing was almost touching me. I blinked, but it didn’t go away.

I let out a yelp and stumbled back, bumping into a chair. The temperature dropped, my breath made white puffs in the air.

My eyes darted to the window. I figured that if I could get the shade up, the sunlight would swallow the darkness. I inched forward, yet kept a keen eye on the otherworldly beings. Within the shadows were shapes, hands, arms…faces. Obsidian fingers reached out, trying to grab my ankles. I knew these creatures fed off my fear, doled out like so much bitter candy. Black, evil things with darkling eyes, probing for weakness, a way to steal my soul. The biggest shadow swelled to a bulky mass and blocked my path. The other shadows backed away, helpless in the dim light—more silhouette than solid—and the large one rose higher, it’s head bobbing like a serpent near the ceiling. He watched me, with red eyes, and inside my heart, something awakened. Something dark as the creature before me. My mouth tightened.

Move. Now. My legs refused to budge. Terror, stark and vivid, squeezed my throat, so I was unable to make a sound. My fists clenched and unclenched at my sides.

This was just a nightmare, only a bad dream. And nothing more.

But it wasn’t, because I was wide awake.

A knock on my door made me jump. “Serenity?” my mother cried. “Are you all right?”

I knew I should go to the door, but I couldn’t let her in. Couldn’t let her see those indiscernible shadows that I couldn’t tell anyone about. She wouldn’t understand. Parents told children monsters weren’t real. But they were.

“I’m sorry.” I tried to steady my voice. “A nightmare.”

“Is that all?”

“Yeah.”

“You shrieked.”

“Sorry. I’m fine.”

The shadows shifted and moaned.

“All right…hurry up. We’re going to be late.”

Silence descended.

The dismal March weather mingled with the quiet made my bedroom seem oddly dim and barren, hollow just like me. I tried to ground myself as I glanced around the messy room, at the mound of clothes in the corner, stuffed animals littering the shelves, and the pile of books stacked under the windowsill. The walls were painted a dusty-rose and covered with posters of my favorite bands, and one of the hottie actor Zac Efron, and the film, High School Musical. The iron frame bed had a pink and lime green comforter trimmed in white trim that matched the curtains. The urban IKEA dresser and desk were light-colored pine. It looked like a normal teenage girl’s room except for the silhouettes moving stealthily over the crème colored carpet. They covered everything in their path like a dense, opaque blob.

I swallowed. Hard. My heart beat so fast it wanted to leap from my chest.

The hulking mass before me pulsated with death.

Well, hell. I knew I couldn’t just stand there doing nothing.

WANTED: Critique Partner for Kim

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I'm posting up a "wanted ad" today for a suspense writer (adult). If you write and/or read in a similar genre, please read her details and excerpt below and consider swapping some pages to see if you're compatible. In her own words, here's what Kim's looking for!

My name is Kim Cresswell and I'm looking for a critique partner.

I'm a full-time author (agented) of romantic suspense and paranormal suspense thrillers.

I am looking for an experienced partner to exchange a few pages with per week. I'm presently working on a four book paranormal series and would prefer a critique partner who writes in my genres or loves reading romantic suspense and/or paranormal suspense. :)

I've posted a short excerpt below and can be contacted at writer1(at)rogers.com

Sincerely,

Kim Cresswell

***

Excerpt from REFLECTION by Kim Cresswell
(Romantic Suspense)



In the donut shop, Andrew West sat on a hard stool at the end of a worn Formica counter and ordered another coffee, this one to go. Cinnamon and sugar icing collided with the sharp tang of bleach as the waitress wiped the counter beside him.

Outside, traffic built up. While a half-moon poked through the clouds, he eyed the woman heading into the store next door. Anticipation nipped his skin.

She’d be dead by sunset. Sweet retribution.

Thanks to Nathan’s unlimited resources, including the use of his helicopter, Andrew could keep a step ahead of the reporter. Of course, knowing where she’d be every minute came in handy. He couldn’t bring himself to say her name. Her name was like sour vomit on his tongue.

How could a jury have believed her lies? Her bullshit had helped put his father behind bars. Her lies had forced his father to kill himself.

She’d said his old man was a dirty cop, implicated him in the theft of million of dollars’ worth of cocaine from the Miami-Dade evidence-storage facility, and accused him of selling the drugs on the street.

His father had been set up. He wasn’t a thief or a drug dealer. He was hardworking man who’d dedicated his life to protect others.

Andrew heard she had gotten a friggin’ award.

Bitch.

And his father? A wooden box.

From the get-go, Andrew’s plan was simple. Take out everyone the woman cared about. Make her suffer. Experience loss like he had. Worked like a charm when he’d shot her ex-husband. Funny how things work out. The old guy, George had been a bonus, a two-for-one deal.

She was next.

His palms itched. He couldn’t wait.

The woman crossed the street, carrying two plastic shopping bags. Andrew shot to his feet. Once she was on the other side, he tossed two dollars on the counter, grabbed his coffee and left Donut Junkie with a smile on his face.

Tucked inside his rental car, he clutched the PDA Nathan had given him and turned on the device. It felt good to have such control. The Palm Pilot beeped. The small LCD screen burst to life. On a miniature green and blue street map, a red light blinked.

The bitch would be moving soon.

In the semi-darkness of the alley Andrew started the engine and waited.

***

WANTED: Critique Partner for Kareena

Hello, everyone!

Kareena, a YA writer, e-mailed me wanting to know how she might find a critique partner online. I asked if she was interested in posting a "wanted ad" here on Lit Rambles and she agreed! Please read her details below and consider exchanging a few e-mails and pages with her to see if you're compatible.

Note: Comments are welcome; however, derogatory and/or harsh criticisms will be deleted if they arise. That's not what we're looking for with this posting.

***

My needs are simple. I am looking for someone to exchange a few pages with from time to to time and to bounce ideas off. They don't need to be editing experts- I have a friend who does that for me already- I just need someone who is widely read in my genre, who instinctively knows when something sucks or not and who can the grade the level of suckiness on a scale of 1-10, and of course can give some insight into why it sucks.

If they would be available for phone conversations at would be great too. I have skype. Just in case you are not familiar with it Skype is this great program that you can download for free from www.skype.com and once both parties have it on their computers you can talk or free anywhere in the world.

This book is written for teens ages 13-16. I would prefer a one on one critique with someone who writes in my genre (fantasy-science fiction) so I would love it if you placed the wanted add for me. I don't think I am ready to go totally public yet so I think I'll pass on the online critique group for now.

***

Excerpt From the Novel entitled, The Spinner's Wheel, written by Kareena Vassall

Chapter 2

Sara’s discovery

Earth-2010: Wichita Falls, Texas U.S.A

The soft morning light filtered into the sky blue room through filmy white curtains draping the two windows. A fragrant, warm breeze swept though a partially open window rustling the open pages of the science encyclopedia resting on top the bright yellow quilt covering the double bed, tuning the page from a picture of a DNA double helix to one of Halley’s comet.

At the foot of the bed, directly under the small figure huddled under the covers, lay a large brown and white cat sprawled inelegantly on his back, the tip of his tail twitching slightly. The small figure beneath the quilt flung out her foot suddenly and the cat leapt from what was obviously a comfortable spot with a frustrated hiss.

A soft chuckle emanated from the bed, and a small, heart shaped, freckled face framed by long dark red hair raised up briefly off the blue pillowcase and looked down at the disgusted feline glaring at her from the side of the bed and said without sympathy. “I told you to sleep in your own bed Mr. Piddles.” Mr. Piddles sniffed scornfully at her as if she smelled like a wet dog, turned and stalked off towards the corner of the room, his tail held high.

Sixteen year old Sara Gallagher looked to the left of her bed at the small white side table and reached out to shut off the alarm to the clock just as it struck seven. Looking at the clock, she glared and stuck out her tongue at the cheerful face of bug’s bunny whose head was currently cut in half by the long hand of the clock pointing at twelve.

Rubbing her eyes with the cuff of her black and white polka dot pajamas, she swung her legs off the bed unto the fluffy beige carpet and sat up. She peered at herself in the mirror that ran the length of the closet door and began the typical morning ritual of looking for any new freckles that might have miraculously popped up on her face overnight.

After satisfying herself that there were only the usual twenty two freckles adorning her nose, she stood, winked at Albert Einstein who gazed down at her from the poster pasted over the side table, his black pipe perched at the corner of his mouth, and shrugged on her fluffy white dressing gown.

Sitting down at the small dressing table with its heart shaped mirror, Sara carefully pulled back her hair into a ponytail, picked up her rechargeable toothbrush and headed towards her bedroom door. Suddenly, there was a loud crash from downstairs, and her mothers’ frustrated screech resounded through the house as delighted masculine laughter filtered up the stairs.

Sara grinned and threw down her toothbrush unto the bed. This domestic unrest could only mean one thing, her uncle Valerius had come to visit. Wrenching open her bedroom door Sara and Mr. Piddles bounded down the stairs, stopped by the entrance of the family room and watched the proceedings with interest.

Uncle Valerius was hiding behind the blue living room sofa. His muscular, six foot three frame was crouched down low, a difficult thing Sara thought for a man of his size and weight.Vibrant green eyes the exact shade of her mothers caught sight of her.

“Sara” he said with a gleeful smile upon his face, “take cover, your mother is on the warpath again.” He warily raised his head above the edge of the sofa and pointed to the tall, slim woman with the waist length dark brown hair who was currently rifling noisily through the broom closet in the far, right hand corner of the room, no doubt looking for something pointy and dangerous to jab her brother with. Mr. Piddles took one look at this irate vision in bright pink pajamas and ran back up the stairs.

Sara ducked behind the sofa and said laughingly, “you make it sound like she is this way all the time uncle Val, she is only like this when you visit,” she added, both of them wincing simultaneously when a large wooden carving came sailing over the sofa to hit the wall behind, bouncing to the exact spot where Mr. Piddles had been standing. Evidently her mother hadn’t been able to find anything in the broom closet.

Her uncle Valerius looked at the carving with an expression of great sympathy and said, “well I guess I bring out the best in her.” He was obviously enjoying himself immensely.

Valerius pushed out his booted foot and managed, with some effort to roll the bust to him. Indicating to Sara’s white cotton dressing gown he said,

“Lend me that for a minute Sara; I think its time to surrender myself to my fate.”

***

There's your teaser! If you're interested, please e-mail Kareena at kareenavassall(at)hotmail(dot)com. And if you're interested in placing your own wanted ad, e-mail me at agentspotlight(at)gmail(dot)com