Cracked Jacket

You know those books I've been telling you about. The ones I've written and am searching endlessly for an agent to represent. Well I've decided to post the cover letter I've written for suggestions if anyone has any. Also, I have linked a sample chapter of the book for you to read as well if you are interested. And of course, by all means, if you know anyone who might be interested in representing me, please pass this along. Thank you for all the continued support. I look forward to your comments. Have a great holiday weekend.

Sincerely,
Amy

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Newly Updated June 20th.

Dear Mr. McVeigh,

I am generally hesitant in sending my work to male agents, but when I read that you are someone who believes that we have entered a time of trying new ways, I just had to query.

So, I will have to ask that you imagine that you are a thirty something mother (of at least two) who has just dropped her children off at the local bookstore for reading hour. It’s just the thirty minutes of complimentary quiet time you need to get you through your long summer days. As you are browsing the shelves for an interesting book, your eyes land on CRACKED, by Amy Platon. You open the book to read the jacket…

The question is not if, but when. Just how long can Jill Buchanan withstand the chaos that is her life, before she cracks?

Jill Buchanan is a woman with dreams, drowning in an ocean of problems. She is served a heavy helping of reality, in the form of fast food humiliation as her debit card is declined for a mere $4.19 purchase. It is as if she wakes up in her cozy suburban life to find that her kids are spoiled rotten. Her neighbors are plotting against her. Her husband’s checked out, and now her check card’s declined. However, this reality is the draft notice for a battle she wants no part of.

Jill has no choice but to trade in her Coach-bag existence for an apron. Choking down inferiority like a shot of warm house tequila, she takes a job bartending at Mickey McAllister’s. She’s working hard nights, and long days as an at-home mom to her out of control boys. Pushed to her limits, Jill tells her neighbor how she really feels about her. But her newfound strength becomes shaken as she discovers the woman, later, lying in a self-inflicted pool of blood. It’s an event that brings Jill closer to her husband with every detail.

But Jill has a plan that just might pull their family out of the debt that is burying them alive. And just as things begin to look up, Jill answers a call that changes everything about who she thought she was.

You can trust this author to tell a good story, because she is just like you. You’re even familiar with this book because you’ve read about it in cyber blogging halls, a place where you hang out when the kids are sleeping or when they are accidentally entertained by the newly emptied laundry basket.

And what do you do next? You flip to the first page and begin learning about the life of Jill Buchanan, and how similar she is to you. You bond with her immediately, as she whisks you away in the flurry that is her life. And before you know it, you’re fifteen pages deep, waiting in line, and deciding on a new bookmark before the clerk calls, “Next please.”

Mark, those fifteen pages, or if you would prefer, the completed manuscript is yours to read at anytime.

Please visit my Web site for examples of published work at www.ScribbleInkCafe.com. But above all, thank you for taking the time to read this query. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Take Care,
Amy Platon


And here's a new one:

I’m Jill Buchanan. I’m the one this book is all about. And yeah, I guess I’m a pretty good mom. Ok well, I’m not totally proud of the chapter where my neighbor Tess and I run into each other in the grocery store. No. Not one of my finest moments. But, we all have those moments. Moms, I mean. We can’t always be perfect.

Let’s face it. Tess isn’t perfect either. The cop even said, women who cut the vein in their leg as a form of suicide, do it there, in case they live. Wrist slits are just too visible. She knew she was going to live.

But she had a lot going on in her life. It wasn’t just over what I said.

And she’s not the only one with things happening. We’re all overwhelmed. This crappy economy is no help either. My husband Mike and I have had our share of trouble. Real estate ain’t exactly payin’ the bills anymore.

But I’m not like Tess. I knew what I had to do. And I did it. I got a job. That’s right. I traded my Coach bag poshy existence for an apron. And you know what? Bartending - it’s like riding a bike. No, scratch that. It’s more like The Perfect Storm. You know, when the guys get to that great fishing spot and they are catching all that fish? It’s like that. But it’s hard work. Great when I was fresh out of college, but not something I can do ‘till retirement.

Menu-less restaurant.

What do you think? I know. It’s a hard sell. After all, I did just call this economy crappy. Even Mike is skeptical. But I think it can work.

Or at least I did, until I got the call that had me collapsed on my kitchen floor. I would never do that to my children. But even though I’m a mom, I’m still a daughter. And if my own mother couldn’t trust me, let’s be honest, how could I trust myself?

I can assure you, her death will haunt me for the rest of my life. It stripped me of what little hope I had left.

And about my life, if you’re interested in reading more, then contact Amy Platon at AdPlaton1@Hotmail.com. She’s the one who created me for the book CRACKED and for the world of Women’s Fiction.

Take Care,
Jill


Here is a sample chapter from the completed book. Please explore this site for additional examples of my published work. But above all, thank you for taking the time to read this query. I look forward to hearing from you soon.