Alec Shane

Q4: MG, opens w/ a boy walking home from school. What's exciting about a boy walking home from school? Nothing's happening! #tenqueries

Q3: Nothing fundamentally wrong w the MS, but the writing isn't quite there. This is probably my most common reason for passing. #tenqueries

Q2: Mystery, opens w/ cops standing around police tape surrounding the body of a dead girl. Sound familiar? Of course it does. #tenqueries

Q1: Medieval fantasy. Medieval fantasy isn't the same thing as historical fiction. Looking for the latter, not the former. Pass. #tenqueries

Q10: Book is already up on Amazon. Not sure what he wants me to do with it now that he already published it. #tenqueries

Q9: Horror. Were-people. Clans and societies and hunters and monster legends. We all know how this story goes. Pass. #tenqueries

Q8: Holy crap is this a cool idea. Execution is lacking, though. These are the queries that break my heart. #tenqueries

Q7: Opens with six lines of dialogue, all ending in exclamation points. My disdain for exclamation points is well-documented #tenqueries

Q6: MG adventure about a kid at a new school who joins a secret club of crime fighters. Cool premise, but not overly original. #tenqueries

Q5: Pet peeve of mine: queries typed in 18-20 point font. It's like you're hoping big letters will mask lousy writing. #tenqueries

Q4: Rhyming early reader. I don't really have a good read on projects geared towards readers this young. Not right for me. #tenqueries

Q3: Author says I was recommended by someone I never heard of. Nothing wrong w that...but the writing sucks. Lots wrong w that #tenqueries

Q2: 138K words, historical fiction. HF can be a little bit longer, but for a debut, 138K is way too long. #tenqueries

Q1: memoir about overcoming substance abuse. Stories like this aren't overly unique, and are impossible w no platform. Pass. #tenqueries

Q9: Horror novel. The beginning is really gross. I want to see what happens next, but no way I can sell this, so I'm passing. #tenqueries

Q8: 20K word middle grade. That's on the short side unless it's an early reader/chapter book, and that's not quite what I want. #tenqueries

Q7: MG time travel book. I already have one on my list, and time travel books are tricky. You need to keep track of everything. #tenqueries

Q6: Draws attention to protag's sexuality adversely. Gay characters shouldn't have a neon "I'M GAY!" sign above their heads. #tenqueries

Q5: Romance trying to pass as thriller. Romance trying to pass as anything besides romance is on my Manuscript Shit List. #MSSL #tenqueries

Q4: HF that takes place in Ancient Greece. I personally prefer my historical fiction to involve America/Americans in some way. #tenqueries