Emily's Current Projects

Completed:

RIFT RUNNERS

A 98,000 word YA Fantasy


When sixteen-year-old Shasta’s father falls seriously ill, the last thing she wants to hear is “sound advice” about accepting death. But in Gyra, no other help exists. Anything beyond herbal medicines belongs to another world – a world that lies on the other side of the rifts.

The rifts rage in the outer islands, erratic storms that suck away chunks of land and leave ashy chasms behind. But they also serve as portals, and sometimes buried in the ash are remnants of the Old World, a tech-savvy place that might have the medicine Shasta needs to save her father.

Hoping for answers, Shasta joins a trade caravan heading towards the outer islands. And in a miracle that seems planned by the spirits themselves, the caravan comes across survivors from a recent rift storm, including a sick little boy who claims he can get Shasta to the Old World safely.

But before they can put their plan into action, the Gyra city council kidnaps the boy, convinced the rifts have poisoned him. And not only might they be right, but it could be true of her father, too. Desperate to save them both, Shasta dashes towards the rifts, her tight-laced (and uninvited) older sister trailing at her heels. Together, they face their last hope – a world struggling not to crumble away into the encroaching rift storms.


A world known only as “Seattle.”


Works-in-Progress:

THE IMPROVEMENT OF KITTY BENNET
A YA Contemporary Jane Austen Retelling

The fourth of five daughters, seventeen-year-old Catherine “Kitty” Bennet is lost in the shuffle of her large family to all but one person – her party loving, wild-child younger sister, Lydia. But when Lydia’s antics land her in rehab, Kitty must face a new school year alone, counting down the days until Lydia comes back to guide her.

That would be bad enough, but then Kitty’s older, recently married, thinks-she’s-perfect sister, Elizabeth, swoops in with a plan. It’s too late for Lydia, but Kitty might be... improved. Now, thanks to Elizabeth’s fancy, rich husband, Kitty is trading Lydia-worthy pink jeans for definitely-not-school-girl-chic kilts and blazers. Stranded at St. Claire’s Boarding School for Young Ladies, Kitty faces cliques ruled by the tyrannical Emma Woodhouse, the pushiest art teacher imaginable, and a roommate who has to be the only girl less sure of herself than Kitty feels – the hopelessly nerdy, hopelessly sweet Georgiana Darcy. 

Kitty has to find her feet and fast. Her whole family is watching to see what kind of girl she becomes on her own. The problem is, she’s only got one adage to guide her: What would Lydia do?


TAILS FROM THE GLARING
A MG Animal Fantasy

Angelo the cat doesn’t have much time for humans. He’s on shaky terms at best with the Old Lady he lives with. She trims the hedges too short and frequently forgets to give him his morning scoop of canned tuna. He’d go feral if it wasn’t for the local Glaring. In an empty lot behind the suburbs, he can indulge his wild instincts, chasing mice and meeting the other house pets. Among the neighborhood cats that visit the Glaring is George. Angelo met the anxious tabby-cat stumbling around with a plastic cone on his head. Something about that bonded them. So long as he has George, Angelo can tolerate the world.

Then one day a giant van rolls into George’s driveway. Nothing about it looks or smells right. It can only mean one thing – George’s family are moving, and intend to take their pets somewhere far away. Pleas to the humans are useless. They don`t speak the same language, or, in Angelo`s mind, ever consider a cat`s real needs. If Angelo wants to keep his only friend, he must convince George to abandon the family that has cuddled him since kittenhood. The battle for George’s loyalty isn’t an easy one, as both cats grapple with one simple question:

Is a cat’s real family the humans who care for him or the felines who understand him?

1 comment: