This query is from Grant Hadley K for the novel Emerald Bearer. Thank you Grant Hadley K for the honour of allowing me to work on and post this!
~~~~~~~
ORIGINAL QUERY
Twelve-year-old Samantha never trained to use a magic gem. She never asked to be an Emerald Bearer--she'd never even heard of one. But none of that matters when she finds a palm-sized emerald in the foothills of Arizona. When she picks it up, the huge gem embeds itself in her hand and transports her to Centaunia; a world of peaceful centaurs, evil minotaurs, and a handful of powerful humans with magic gems of their own.
Samantha becomes famous overnight as news of her arrival spreads like wildfire. The centaurs bow before her as if she was royalty. It doesn't take Samantha long to figure out why.
It's been eleven years since the last Emerald Bearer appeared in Centaunia. Since then, raiding minotaurs have been polluting the sacred springs--pollution that turns the centaurs into mindless animals. The purifying powers of Samantha's emerald are their last hope. What's more, they're her only hope of getting back home. But there's something no one will tell her; what happened to the last Emerald Bearer? With the help of three other Gem Bearers, Samantha heads deep into enemy territory in search of the polluted springs. With the dark leader of the minotaurs after her, Samantha has no choice but to fight. That, or learn the fate of the last Emerald Bearer firsthand...
A middle grade fantasy novel, EMERALD BEARER is complete at 58,000 words. This book would appeal to fans of the UNICORN CHRONICLES by Bruce Coville.
Thank you very much for your time and consideration.
~~~~~~~
GOBLIN-EDIT
When Samantha finds a palm-sized emerald in the foothills of Arizona, she does what any twelve-year-old would: she picks it up. However, the gem then embeds itself in her hand and Samantha is transported to Centaunia, a world of peaceful centaurs, evil minotaurs, and a handful of powerful humans with magic gems of their own.
News of her arrival spreads, and the centaurs treat Samantha as royalty. It doesn't take her long to learn why. Eleven years ago, the last Emerald Bearer disappeared, and since then, raiding minotaurs have polluted the sacred springs, turning the centaurs who drink there into mindless animals. The purifying powers of Samantha's emerald can save these creatures, and in turn, they'll be able to help Samantha get back home.
With the help of three other Gem Bearers, Samantha heads deep into enemy territory in search of the polluted springs. However, the leader of the minotaurs learns of this and comes after her, and Samantha must fight if she wants to escape learning firsthand what the fate of the last Emerald Bearer was.
EMERALD BEARER, a middle grade fantasy novel, is complete at 58,000 words and would appeal to fans of THE UNICORN CHRONICLES by Bruce Coville. Thank you very much for your time and consideration.
Have any thoughts about either the original or the re-written query? Please join the discussion in the comment thread!
Also, I'd be delighted if you would please help draw more commenters to the site by mentioning this post to your online friends. Thank you!