Pitch Wars 2020 Wishlist
Hi, and welcome to my Pitch Wars 2020 Wishlist! Pitch Wars is a mentoring program that pairs an aspiring writer with a more established writer or editor—you can find the details here. I'm mentoring middle grade, and I'm looking for “contemporary-ish,” a wide umbrella that can include some genre elements (I’ll elaborate on that below). And I’d really love to work with a BIPOC mentee this year.
A bit about me: I’m an African Nova Scotian writer living on Canada’s Atlantic coast. My debut MG contemporary novel, Thanks a Lot, Universe, comes out in May 2021 from Amulet Books/Abrams Kids. It’s a book I worked on as part of the Pitch Wars Class of 2018, so I’m very familiar with Pitch Wars from the mentee side. I had a great experience working with the wonderful Eric Bell, and I’m excited to be mentoring for the first time in 2020.
My path to a first published novel has been a winding journey, but I’ve always made a living as a writer. I spent a decade as a newspaper reporter, I wrote a parenting column for five years, I’ve worked in communications and public relations, I’ve lectured and led writing groups in a university journalism program, and I do some freelance writing and editing. So I have a career’s worth of experience in writing, editing, and working with other writers. I’ll bring all that to the table as a mentor, along with my experiences in Pitch Wars and publishing. It’s an excellent combo deal, really.
My journalist background also tells me when it’s important to get to the point, so now that I’ve done the obligatory self-promotion/sales pitch, let’s dive into why you’re really here: my wishlist.
What I’m looking for
As I mentioned above, I’d really love to work with a BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, or person of color) writer. If that applies to you and you feel comfortable identifying in your query letter, please do so. We remain ridiculously underrepresented in kidlit and publishing, and I’d like to do what I can to help change that.
Genre-wise, I’m looking for something with at least one foot in the present world. If your setting is Mars in 2135, or a haunted castle in 1235, or a fictional kingdom with dragons, there’s a more appropriate mentor out there for you.
But I’m game for manuscripts that include elements of sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, etc. I enjoy books with a dash of the unusual, like Lisa Bunker’s Felix Yz (boy has crush on boy, boy is also fused with a hyperintelligent fourth-dimensional being that might accidentally kill him) or Matthew Baker’s If You Find This, a Goonies-esque treasure hunt where the MC’s narration is underscored with musical notations. And I'm still thinking about The Brave, in which James Bird draws on his Ojibwe heritage as a storyteller in some fascinating, reality-bending ways.
Whether a manuscript is straightforward contemporary or more high-concept, my real selling points are richly developed characters and a compelling voice. I love the first-person voice in Meg Medina’s Merci Suarez Changes Gears, and the terrific close third-person in Laura Ruby’s YORK series—a great example of a thought-provoking, ambitious contemporary(ish) fantasy where character is still the heart of the books.
Other elements that appeal to me:
- Black Joy. Give me all the books where Black kids (or Indigenous kids, or other kids of color) get to crack jokes, have adventures, make discoveries or excel at their interests. That doesn’t mean you can’t address big issues and difficult topics too… and if you can balance heartbreak and joy, like in Janae Marks’ From the Desk of Zoe Washington or some of the stories in Jason Reynolds’ Look Both Ways, there’s a very good chance I want to read it. But I’m a strong believer that Black kids need books where they get to be kids. Black lives matter in all their fullness, which means making space for celebration and joy.
- More broadly, stories where kids who are usually on the margins get to shine, including queer kids, neurodivergent kids, and kids with disabilities or mental health issues. Again, that doesn’t mean they should be unrealistically perfect or problem-free; it means they have richly developed lives on the page and their difference is not simply portrayed as bully fodder or an obstacle to overcome.
- Unorthodox structures. I like multiple-POV books; my debut alternates chapters between two main characters. I love how Varian Johnson blends present and past in The Parker Inheritance, and how Adam Gidwitz uses several narrators of varying reliability in The Inquisitor’s Tale. Stories that incorporate different styles or voices or try unconventional things appeal to me. (Note: if your manuscript falls into this category but it’s not clear from your submitted pages, please mention it in your query letter.)
- Teamwork/found family. I love when a group of wildly different kids have to come together for a common cause, like in Jacqueline Woodson’s Harbor Me or Trenton Lee Stewart’s The Mysterious Benedict Society.
- I have a sportswriting background and I coach youth basketball, so I like sport stories. I prefer when sporty characters don’t fit one-dimensional “jock” stereotypes or outdated gender expectations.
- Complex characters. The middle school years are such a complicated time. I have a soft spot for characters who waver between swagger and insecurity, who seem wise one minute and make bad decisions the next, who can be kind and thoughtful in one situation and prickly or unlikeable in another—just like real-life middle schoolers.
- Stories that surprise me, immerse me in a character’s culture, and/or introduce me to their interest or passion in a way that makes me curious to learn more.
What I'm not looking for
Again, if your story ventures far from the contemporary world, you’d be better served applying to other mentors. And as much as I love graphic novels and novels written entirely in verse, they’re not formats where I’m confident I’d be the best mentor. I’m also not looking for paranormal stories or animals as main characters.
Other things that aren’t for me:
- Plots that hinge on violence against Black or Indigenous people, including police violence. Those stories have a purpose, but 2020 has been heavy and I don’t have the capacity to work on one right now.
- White savior narratives, or stories where BIPOC characters exist to help a white main character learn an important lesson.
- Characters who fall into rigid ’80s movie-style stereotypes (jocks, nerds, mean but popular kids, etc.)
- This is probably obvious if you’ve read this far, but stories that stigmatize mental illness or promote any kind of prejudice (racism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia) aren’t for me. I’m averse to toxic masculinity as well.
My mentoring approach
If I’m your Pitch Wars mentor, I’ll go through your manuscript at least twice with you. On the first pass, I’ll give you an edit letter that looks at the big-picture elements of your manuscript, such as overall story development, pacing, world building, and character arcs. From a more nitty-gritty editorial standpoint, if I notice elements in your writing that I think would be helpful to address, I’ll highlight those too.
On second pass we’ll dive deeper into line edits, and/or revisit those larger elements, depending on where we’re at in the process. My goal as a mentor is to help you hone your skills and get your manuscript as query-ready as possible for the showcase and beyond, but I’m comfortable being flexible on what that process looks like. I’ll check in regularly—primarily via email, though I think it’s helpful to have an initial meet-up by phone or video—but whether you’re a “put my head down and tackle big sections at a time” person or a “here’s two chapters, how am I doing?” person, we can adapt and figure out what works best as our respective schedules allow.
Overall my style is to provide constructive critique, encouragement, and a calming presence if you’re stressing out (because let’s be real, Pitch Wars can feel stressful at times). I will push you to write your best book, but I’m here to help you write your best book. I’ll give the best advice I can, but I’ll always respect that it’s your book.
That’s the rundown, but if you have questions you can find me on Twitter (@ChadGALucas) or reach out via the contact form on my website. I’ll be participating in the next Pitch Wars MG #AskMentor Twitter chat on September 17 (8 pm ET), so feel free to ask me questions there too. Thanks for considering me as a prospective mentor, and check out the other middle grade mentors’ wishlists at the links below.