Submission Kyle

Name: S. Kyle Davis

Email: kyle(at)skyledavis(dot)com

Title/Genre: BLACKBIRD (YA Fantasy Thriller)

Pitch: Spy chick bypasses a top-of-the line security system to steal an object before the sorcerers do in this "Mission:Impossible w/ magic" tale

1st 250 words:

I couldn’t imagine a more appropriately-named metal club than The Hell Hole. I mean, the place smelled like rock and roll. Of course, the stench of sweat, cigarettes, and stale beer was a sort of welcome home to me. I grew up in the ass crack of the foster care system, so about half the places I stayed in smelled like that.

I sat with my back to the crowd, my chair leaning against a metal support pole. My too-short legs stretched to their limit, my red Chuck Taylors barely able to prop up on the rickety table at the back of the room. Behind me, a horrible industrial band covered old pop songs. Seriously, who wants to hear a growling industrial version of “The Time of My Life” from Dirty Dancing?

Answer: no one.

Thankfully, the pole blocked the worst of the noise, because otherwise, I’d hear every missed note and garbled word. You see, the club, being a reformed warehouse, really was a hellhole. Other than having enough floor space to cram in over a thousand people, there was only one reason anyone came here. The Hell Hole boasted 80 decibels at the back wall. The volume in the “sweet spot,” the center of the pit about four rows back from the stage, was loud enough to cause permanent hearing loss.

Of course, if you were stupid enough to brave the pit at The Hell Hole, then damage to your hearing was the least of your worries.