| Do
I need an agent? * Active Projects * Projects Finished * Open Letter From Rebecca * Site Map * Formatting Guidelines * Submitting a Query * Contacts * HOME PAGE * Writers Links |
| --Active
Projects-- |
|
| --Fiction-- |
|
We are proud to
announce the
signing of a two-book contract with Total Recall Press
ACID
by Jeff Lovell.
Rick Howell, living in the shadow of two women
who have the power to change reality, must risk his life to stop the
genocidal exploits of a desperate lunatic who wants to acquire their
powers. The discovery of a mind controlling drug opens a
pathway
to frightening mental abilities for Rachel Farrell, who can move
backward and forward in time at will, while Donna Riske,
Rachel’s
best friend, can control the thoughts of others. Good versus
evil
spreads form a chemistry lab at the University of Illinois as desperate
characters in search of power and wealth travel the globe pursuing the
Time Shifting secret drug. Good destroys evil, but not before
greed, maniacal mayhem and a perfect crime put to rest the mind
controlling drug. The manuscripts for ACID and THE COVEN OF THE SPRING by Jeff Lovell are now off the market but publishers are invited to consider some of the other fine works shown on this page and represented by the Rebecca Pratt Literary Group. [Under
Contract]
|
| THE COLONEL'S WAR by Bill
Simpson.
When head of U.S. intelligence in Europe
Colonel Nathan Steele visits Berlin in 1914, femme fatale Despina
Storch reveals Germany's strategy for war with Britain, France and
Russia. Returning to Brussels, Steele is frustrated by Washington's
orders to remain neutral, while demanding that the American Legation
represent German interests in the city. Seduced by agent provocateur
Véronique Richelieu, Nathan agrees to help the French Douzième Bureau
and visiting the giant Krupp works in Essen, he uncovers details of a
new secret weapon. But Germany suddenly invades neutral Belgium, and
Nathan's daughter Jodie becomes a refugee. Intent on locating her, he
joins a Belgian raiding party operating behind German lines as it
ambushes gigantic superguns deployed to attack Liège. But
the
village where Jodie was staying had been destroyed, and the raiders
link up with Belgian defenders who inflict a stunning defeat on a
German cavalry division. Returning to Brussels, Nathan learns of a
possible sighting of Jodie. After a British defeat at Mons, she has
been nursing wounded soldiers. Determined to rescue her, he is assisted
by hospital matron, Edith Cavell, and Nathan sets up an escape route
for his daughter and the British Tommies.
Can they evade capture though? It all rests on the slender shoulders of
agent Despina, now the mistress of the German Military Governor of
Belgium. [Historical
Fiction. Approximately 120,000 words. Manuscript
Completed]
|
| CONS FROM
THE ROCK by Robert
VanDeventer is, finally, the full story
of the most famous escape from Alcatraz prison. What really happened in
1962 has never been told before. Just one convict makes it. And he may
owe his success less to savvy and luck than to that ever shining moment
called Camelot. That’s right. A Kennedy is pulling strings,
recruiting a mole to infiltrate Alcatraz, ostensibly to find out if an
escape is possible. Meanwhile, near-genius inmate Fred Morgan already
has an escape plan in motion. Fed plan versus Morgan plan. We watch
both develop, neither known to the other. Will Morgan make it? Are the
Feds working for or against him? We can’t be sure. They often
seem unsure themselves, as we listen to them inside the Washington
Monument, on a New Jersey golf course, aboard a
“clocker”, on the Golden Gate Bridge, at the Top of
the Mark. Morgan’s plan is a known page of history, revealed
here chip by chip – with detail and emotion never before
published or filmed. Morgan is often funny, more often serious, as we
watch him deal with inmates sage to insane and officials also sage to
insane. CONS FROM THE ROCK is less revisionist than a re-imagining of a
fantastic coup – the kind of brave, if often futile,
derring-do about which people will always wonder. [Suspense,
Approximately 83.000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
|
We are proud to
announce the
signing of a two-book contract with Total Recall Press
THE COVEN OF THE SPRING
by Jeff Lovell.
Grace DeRosa, a gifted research chemist finds a hidden spring in the
woods near Salem, Massachusetts. She discovers that the
consumed
water imparts unique and fearful powers that lead to the ability to
read minds, create terrifying mental pictures and force the
user’s will on others. Grace, her husband and their
seventeen year old daughter, Crissy find they have frightening new
powers that allow them to hear people’s thoughts, give them
visions and change behaviors. The powers affect each
differently.
Crissy’s father turns against his wife and daughter and tries
to
kill Crissy to protect the secret. Clay Foster, a former Navy
Seal saves Crissy from drowning in Lake Michigan’s icy waters
where her father has pushed her. Clay and his friend, Sharon
take
Crissy into protection. Along with Crissy’s mother,
they
return to Salem where they use the spring to defeat The Coven. The manuscripts for ACID and THE COVEN OF THE SPRING by Jeff Lovell are now off the market but publishers are invited to consider some of the other fine works shown on this page and represented by the Rebecca Pratt Literary Group. [Under
Contract]
|
| THE
DEVIL MADE ME . . . .
by Stephen
Tobias.
Everyone knows that Satan collects souls, but his other
passion
is to amass a fabulous art collection. Much of the art that has been
lost or stolen over the ages now hangs on the walls in his
“Museum of the Lost.” His claim that his is the
only
collection free of fakes and forgeries is undisputed. When rumor of a
previously undocumented Vermeer, appropriated by Nazi Air Marshal,
Herman Goering in the closing days of WW II reaches him, Satan sends
his chief demon curator; Renaissance sculptor, Pietro Tacca to buy it
from a dying war veteran who has it hanging on his wall in Houston,
Texas. Pietro returns with the painting which has been damaged by years of neglect in a bombed out farm house basement and Satan (AKA-Staggs, Stagger Lee) picks an innocent New York painter to do the restoration; hoping to obtain her soul and the painting both in one fell swoop. It is only when Pietro takes one look at her and falls madly in love that Satan’s plans go awry; as everything Pietro does to make the artist suffer backfires and Satan can see the painting slipping out of his grasp. Add a Capuchin monkey that is the artist’s guardian angel, an Israeli Mossad agent trying to repatriate the painting to its original owner, and a rapacious demon with fetal alcohol syndrome anxious to score points with the boss and, as they say in Hollywood-hilarity ensues. [Approximately
80,000 words, Manuscript Completed]
|
| DO YOU STILL CHA CHA? by Fran
Metzman is a
women’s mystery
novel where The Golden Girls meet Sex
& the City and will appeal to boomers, women aged 20 plus,
mystery buffs,
and romance readers. It is an off-beat, upmarket novel laced with humor
and
romance and is diabolically quirky. It takes place in a Florida
retirement
community where the sixty-year old protagonist along with two friends
and her
thirty-two year old daughter, find themselves dangerously enmeshed in
serial
murders. They must unravel the
mystery or be arrested themselves. The game of love among the 55
plus population is revealed and juxtaposed to more youthful romantic
life. Amusing
antics of retirement communities take on a personality of its own. A
surprise
ending exposes a darker side of society that plagues the present era of
greed.
[Woman's
Fiction. Approximately
80,00 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| EMERSON'S HOME
by Wendy
Fiore. When
Emerson LaMonica, an
over-achiever working as an
archivist in [Approximately
75,000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| THE GODDESS SCROLL by Pam
Chillemi-Yeager:
Following a whirlwind courtship, Rick Dearborn marries the enigmatic,
beautiful clairvoyant, Rubilee Hunter. The couple is blissfully unaware
that an ancient prophecy predicts that they are destined to join forces
with the Goddesses of old to bring to an end the alarming number of
international child killings. The Goddess Demeter, in shifter disguise,
comes to their home to help them thwart the God of war, Ares, who is
behind the dastardly plot. After Rubilee miscarries in an eerie event,
Rick's favorite client disappears, leaving behind a map with cryptic
symbols similar to those Rubilee carved in the ground the night of the
miscarriage. The fate of the planet hangs in the balance as the couple
embark on a cross country journey in search of answers, culminating in
mayhem, magic and more.
[Paranormal Romance. Approximately
75,000 words. Manuscript Complete]
|
|
Congratulations to Frank Cavallo Publication rights to THE HAND OF OSIRIS have been sold to Necro Publications and pre-print production has begun. While this novel is now unavailable, publishers are invited to consider the other projects by talented, motivated authors who are represented by The Rebecca Pratt Literary Group. Contact Rebecca to discuss your interests. THE HAND OF OSIRIS by Frank Cavallo. 1879. Bounty hunter Jacob Hatcher has pursued the outlaw Jedediah Sykes from the Texas prairie to the deserts of the Arizona Territory. On the verge of capture, Sykes escapes into a valley that Hatcher’s Apache guides refuse to enter, warning that the lands are cursed by an ancient, nameless evil. The trail leads him to a town, a dark paradise of sin and vice called Gehenna. Though gambling and gunfights rule the day, no one in Gehenna ever dies. Unless everyone in Gehenna is already dead. Hatcher and Sykes soon find themselves entangled in the mysteries of Gehenna’s peculiar denizens – a pale dandy, a fire & brimstone Jesuit preaching to a city of lost souls, and a shadowy figure who rules over the town like a living god. When one of them makes a choice that threatens to damn them all, the rest must work together, confronting not only their own demons, but the hidden horrors of Gehenna itself, to find a stolen key that can unlock the domain of the dead. [Approximately
100,000 words. SOLD]
|
|
IN THE DEVIL'S THRALL
by Bill Simpson .
After the shock resignation of the Pope,
the ensuing chaos prompts a secret Satanic society to conspire to
secure the election of an anti-Christ to the Vatican's throne. They
prepare plans which include an assassination attempt by al-Qaeda on the
newly elected Pontiff. However, experienced CIA Agent Scott Wilson, and
his veteran FBI buddy Josh Donovan, get wind of the plot, discovering
that militant Islamist terrorists have been duped by the Satanists into
targeting the Holy Father during his visit to the United States. After
a headlong chase across the capitol, Al-Qaeda's sniper is discovered
lying dead on a Washington rooftop, but it is already too late. The
assassin's mission has succeeded although a second sniper is eliminated
before he can cast any light on the Pope's murder. With the Pontiff
dead, will Satan's puppet prevail in the resultant Papal election? It
all rests on the explicit digital records of a New York hooker. http://www. [Literary
Thriller, Approximately 85,000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
|
THE
JANUS IMAGE by
Robert VanDeventer – Janus was the Greek god who
could look both ways at once and, if this deity really needs a new
image, Marvin Mercer – some call him “Mr.
Iconoplast” – might well get the call. Mercer is a
former pro wrestler who – some insist – will
burnish your image for a serious fee – except that he flatly
denies he does any such thing! No. He sells serious deals on classic
cars – and that’s all! His daughter, Nellie, tries
to believe him. She’s a junior at Penn and is sure that this
“Mr. Iconoplast” business is Baloney 101. Trouble
is, she’s facing a spring break of total boredom.
He’s facing a fiscal crisis with his used car lot. What
better solution for each than a quick about face? Which means they get
themselves roped into twin searches for hire – hers at the
Jersey shore for a lost mother (who wants to stay lost), his for the
image of Philly baseball (with murders just foul). Two villains to
capture. Two paths cross and diverge. Sometimes in fury, sometimes in
harmony – sometimes together and sometimes alone –
they deal with such dangers as pitchforks, black jacks, bullets, and
canoes. And, in the end, with reflective verse brushing both their
minds, they seem to find both evildoers on the same stage.
[Suspense, Approximately 95,000 words. Manuscript Completed] |
| OUTSIDER,
by Stephen
Tobias.
Nathan Lerner, photographer and art professor has been unable to work
since the loss of his daughter to leukemia and the subsequent break-up
of his marriage. He keeps his lack of creative output secret,
re-cycling his old negatives and sleep walking through his days. When
an elderly tenant in a building Nathan owns moves into a nursing home,
Nathan goes to clean out his apartment and finds a vast collection of
original art done by the reclusive and disturbed ex-janitor, Herman
Vireck. The art, done on cheap sketch paper with Woolworth water colors
and using sophisticated techniques of collage and blending of sacred
and profane images will eventually be recognized as the work of an
obsessive genius and effect the work of hundreds of contemporary
artists. For Lerner the discovery of Herman’s work sends him
on a tortuous journey into the nature of his own creative sensibility
and to the dark secrets surrounding his daughter’s hidden
relationship with “crazy” Herman.
OUTSIDER is loosely based on the life of outsider artist Henry Darger, about whom little is actually known. It is hoped that through this fictional exploration of the imagined relationship between Nathan and Herman an emotional satisfying conclusion can be brought to some of the questions that surround this disturbed and elusive genius. [Approximately 100,000 words. Manuscript Complete] |
| THE PROMETHEUS GATE
by Frank
Cavallo.
After more than four decades behind bars, notorious serial
killer
Al Grimsby stages an inexplicable escape. Christina Falcone,
the
FBI’s top behavioral analyst, is assigned to hunt him
down.
Her investigation leads her into a maze of conflicting clues: secret
government experiments, legends of lost gods and an archaeologist named
Carter McAlester—who works for a shadowy organization with
their
own agenda. From the streets of Berlin to the ruins of
Babylon
they race to find a legendary artifact that may hold the key to an
unspeakable power—a power that Al Grimsby may already
possess,
and which may have driven him mad. Plagued by nightmares and
dark
visions, they must discover the truth before Grimsby can finish his
bloody work. Before the Prometheus Gate can be opened. [Horror.
Approximately
120,000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| THE
VAMPIRE LOVER'S COOKBOOK by Pam
Chillemi-Yeager. Bram
Stoker would never have imagined his
seminal work would create such madness. For here in the new millenium,
vampires are all the rage. Girls swoon, boys scoff, and the sometimes
secretly smitten adults fund it all. But has anyone ever wondered how
this pop culture phenomenon plays out in real ife? THE VAMPIRE LOVER'S
COOKBOOK, a
Young Adult novel of first love, loss and today's
complex
family dynamic does just that. All fourteen-year-old Cal wants to do is
play football. When he accidentally breaks a church window, he and his
friends are corralled into a mortifying church cooking class. Enter one
Nikki Sixx Morganstien, the sultry teen clutching the Sunset vampire
books to her chest. Sparks fly as the class progresses, culminating in
the frightening kidnapping of Cal's young neighbor. Featuring
first love, blended families, rock and roll, sexuality, religion and
the power of friendship and forgiveness against the backdrop of small
town USA,
THE VAMPIRE LOVER'S COOKBOOK tells a
beguiling story which also shows how pop culture shapes each
generation. [Young Adult,
Approximately
75,000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| WHO IS MISTER I?
by Robert
VanDeventer is a suspense romp of cars
and characters. Some of each are pretty rare. It involves
Castro’s Cuba with America’s much maligned business
– used cars. Roger Deerman, the big Philly car dealer, is
secretly and illegally selling cars in Cuba and he needs a
“big, honest guy” to spin and cover the operation.
Fred Burns, the former pro wrestler and sometime sports writer, now
sells classic cars – Hudsons, Cords, and Nashes. Deerman
insists that Burns is also Mr. Iconoplast, Philly’s
mysterious image maker, and insists he take the job. Well, Burns is big
and probably honest but he swears, “I’m not Mr. I.
Absolutely not!”– even when bribed with a 1949
Hudson convertible. But Burns now knows about Cuba, so, Deerman frames
him for murder. Within hours, he’s dumped in the bay, trapped
aboard a yacht with daughter Nell, and attacked by a power boat on the
Delaware (it crashes into a battleship). He’s about to be
shot at an auction lot, too, but is saved by a tattooed lady. He winds
up in a chase all over New Jersey, attacked by thugs, elephants, and
rhinos. Still, he’s inscrutable. The tattooed lady thanks him
with a Mercedes 300SL. It’s for Mister I. Is that you? He
drools, but cries, “It is not!.”
[Approximately
72.000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| WORDS
OF GRACE by Pam
Chillemi-Yaeger
is the story of one woman's journey back to her
hometown, the calamities of her lively Italian family, as well as the
heartbreak of first love, family secrets and the surprising danger
facing old friends in small-town USA. [Approximately
80,000 words. Manuscript
Completed]
|
| XAGHRA'S
REVENGE;
Magic realism fantasy.
XAGHRA'S REVENGE by Geoff
Nelder, follows
the fate of a sixteenth century abducted family, and of two
contemporary lovers thrown together by the ancients. Reece and Zita are
unaware that one descends from the pirates, the other from the abducted
family. While the Gozo spirits seek revenge, so do the Ottoman
Corsairs, who intend to roll back history, and this time win the siege
of Malta. [Approximately
90,000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| --Nonfiction- |
| AN ACCIDENTAL PRISONER'S
SURVIVAL
GUIDE ; A memoir/black
comedy, by John
J. Reiner.
When a strait-laced attorney is jailed for a crime he didn’t
commit, he must use his background in psychology, sociology,
pediatrics, and, especially, his sense of humor to first thwart and
ultimately befriend his fellow inmates and the jail staff, who, thanks
to Erin Brockovich, peg him as “the enemy” and use
malevolent and comical methods in their attempts to wreak havoc upon
him and explode his “good time” release credits to
maximize
his jail term and prevent him from returning to his home and family
until the latest possible date. [Approximately
90,000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| THE COMING HEALTHCARE
REVOLUTION by Sheldon
Cohen.
Medical errors kill 98,000
patients per year in the United States. You, the patient, can play a
crucial role in not becoming part of this statistic. The coming
healthcare changes that will be implemented over the next ten years
will make the patient’s role more crucial then ever. You will
learn the important details about a complete medical examination
including a medical history, physical examination and screening
laboratory data; risk factor analysis for the major diseases; health
screening; symptoms that must never be ignored; and how to take charge
of your health. Once confident about your personal health information
you will be in a position to minimize medical errors and live a longer
and healthier life. [Approximately
90,000
words. Manuscript Completed]
|
| CONVERSATIONAL
SPANISH FOR ADULTS: SEEING WHAT YOU'RE HEARING
by Susan Roemer.
Learning a foreign language in a country where it is not spoken on a
regular basis can be difficult. Conversational Spanish for
Adults; Seeing What You’re Hearing! transports the learners
to
situations where they become comfortable speaking everyday forms of the
Spanish language. People learn a language by hearing words and then understanding what they mean. Many people think that to learn a new language they need to learn all the conjugations before they continue. My method is in essence a “mapping of sounds”. The advantage is clear: It is one thing to hear sounds and repeat the words. It’s quite another thing to have a visual image of what the sounds look like. The learners (how-to readers of the book) will be able to take what is illustrated in the book and reinforce it through additional practice written in phonetic transcription. The most important distinguishing point between Conversational Spanish for Adults: Seeing What You’re Hearing! and every other basic Spanish textbook is the phonetic transcription feature. Every word in the book has “sound mapping” to illustrate to the reader what the words sound like. [Manuscript
Completed]
|
| HEY
DOC: REVELATIONS OF A
MODERN FAMILY DOCTOR
by Richard
Bowles, MD.
Dr. Bowles, with his patients' permission,
shares his amazing and intimate dealings with them. He was
there. He spoke with them. He touched
them. He spoke with family members. They trusted
him, or they didn't. Things worked out well, or they
didn't. He was sued. The reader is invited on one
fantastic life adventure after another. [Approximately
75,000 words. Manuscript
Completed]
|
| LE GRAND DANOIS a photo
book by Andrew Park.
The Great Dane is a majestic animal, a remarkably large dog with a
graceful stature and gentle soul. LE GRAND DANOIS captures
this
beauty and effortless, modern elegance with innovative photos that
examine each unique trait of the Great Dane. Originating in
Europe, the Great Dane was bred as a hunter and was a protector of
large estates. The photos in LE GRAND DANOIS allow the reader
to
gain an appreciation of how this dog lives and historically what
inspired the development of the traits of the Great Dane that we admire
today, such as their large stature, long legs, and structurally clean
lines. These original photos also offer a glimpse into a more
sensitive side of the Great Dane and allow the reader to engage in this
soulful connection with the Great Dane. Anecdotes inspired by
the
late Lebanese poet Kahlil Gibran, written by Andrew Park, add a simple
but profound window to the intimate bond between animal and
human. All photos were taken by Andrew Park with a digital
SLR
camera. [Picture Book, approximately 3,000
words, 70 photos, Manuscript Completed]
|
| STUMP CITY
CHRONICLES--MEMOIR OF
A BLUE COLLAR KID is Robert
J. Porter Jr.'s
journey through the life he was handed, and made for himself.
It
is a wry, yet poignant look at blue-collar family life as it was in the
1950's and 60's in small town America, which was influenced by the
blessed trinity of church, school and tavern. STUMP CITY
describes life during the era of black and white TV's with rabbit ears
antennas, the imminent invasion from illegal aliens from Mars, who
somehow became Mexicans just a few years later, entering puberty in the
absence of biological instruction, thus, his first time (with a
partner), though memorable, was also forgettable. He found
out
early that his town expected blind obedience to the Republican Party,
and later, despite having 25% of his DNA derived from Mohawk
Indian blood, this did not insure the safe operation of a canoe. [Approximately
70,000 words. Manuscript
Completed]
|
| THIS IS NOT ABOUT
BASKETBALL by Tom Morgan.; A
Boy finds his voice; an Old Man finds renewal and purpose. Daniel, a little boy, is rescued from a serious malady - in part because of his uncle’s urgings. Twelve years later the uncle intervenes again. At 65, with a faulty heart, he builds a basketball court, buys balls and shoes and takes up the challenge to help his nephew learn to play the sport. This is the chronicle of Daniel’s progress from awkwardness, through goals, drills every morning, to his first game as a high school player. “This is not about basketball” is the uncle’s mantra. “This is about your piano lessons, your Spanish class. This is about life, Daniel.” The uncle explores his own painful memories of learning to play amidst neglect and disinterest from his parents. He reflects on a range of topics: The brilliant coach who never played. A speedster who had no speed. The anatomically impossible jump shot. A guru who knew nothing. Idiot twins who learn to read. A jazz pianist who has heard rumors “they’s writin’ music”. How the brains of John Nash (A BEAUTIFUL MIND) and Daniel tackle problems. Golfers who learned without clubs. The worldwide mystery of the 4-minute mile. The TAO/DAO of basketball. Death of a brother. A throwaway kid who becomes a Navy officer. The lesson that “Unusual, plus hard work, equals extra-ordinary.” As Daniel progresses and nephew and uncle grow closer, we realize that this is about more than basketball. It is about life - why the uncle’s was spared , extended. It is about something valuable to Daniel: How it is that he learns. [Approximately
50,000
words.
Manuscript
Completed]
|
| TRIAL IN COOPERSTOWN
by Tom
Morgan.
In Cooperstown you attend your first jury trial, in 2006, of
a
man accused of beating his wife to death. By the time the
jury’s foreman sings out their verdict you have befriended
the
accused’s parents and brother and minister, the dead
woman’s siblings, the district attorney who prosecutes and
the
colorful legendary man who crafts the defense for “an
innocent
man, ladies and gentlemen”. In his farewell he
beseeches
you to “Let the people know what you witnessed here this
week.” Questions he peppered us with in his
masterful
defense will resonate with you for years to come. You will
come
to appreciate COOPERSTOWN
as a celebration of an American treasure, the jury trial. [Approximately
85,000 words. Manuscript Completed]
|