SCBWI Andrea Pinkney Award
I love first pages. Some people judge a book by its cover and I’ve done that too. But for me, the first page is king.
If the first page is wonderful, I’m hooked and I’ll persevere for a long time even if the book lets me down.
So I was chuffed to receive a Highly Commended in the 2016 SCBWI Conference Andrea Pinkney Award for the Best First Page.
Here’s my beginning. Maybe you will want to read on… (in that case, tell an editor *smile* It’s still a WIP…)
It waited and it slept, until the moon rounded, and the harbour wind brought the scent that woke its hunger. Alert. Aware. Night deepened and yawned, malevolent with anticipation as soft footsteps hurried along the walkway. Its hunger coiled, tensing ready to strike.
The woman looked back as if expecting to see someone behind her. She clutched her jacket tight across her chest and walked even faster towards the safe glow of the street light. Darkness had a way of swallowing everything, except fear.
With cold, black fingers, the wraith reached out to gather her into the shadows, to cover her mouth with its own and suck the scream from her lungs.
