My Dirty Little Secret

It’s not a secret exactly but I haven’t done much talking about my newest project other than mention it’s a YA romantic comedy- something I’ve never written before and also something I haven’t had a lot of experience reading. There are dramatic YA romances, contemporary romance or paranormal/supernatural/fantasy with romance.  And yes, some of them might have funny elements or situations, but I wouldn’t call them a comedy.

My current WIP, ‘Kissing for Coffee’ is a story about a girl who’s trying desperately to hold on to her status as the most popular girl in school and ends up starting a trend that spirals completely out of control. I haven’t perfected the query letter but this is a rough draft of the blurb:

After a freak dodge ball accident, seventeen-year-old Sadie Brook’s reputation has gone from ‘Princess of Popularity’ to the ‘Projectile Puss Wonder’.  She is desperate to keep up appearances.  So when her coffee geek,  Jake Sterling, decides he’s had enough of serving ‘her highness’, Sadie resorts to using her not-so-used womanly wiles in order to keep him in line.

But one secret kiss for coffee turns into something much bigger when word travels through Geekland that Sadie locks lips for her morning java.  She arrives at school to find her locker surrounded by a dozen candidates from the Land of Misfit Dudes- all of them holding coffee and hoping for the same payment.  In order to save face, Sadie kisses Jake Sterling in front of half the student body.  She never expected her friends to follow suit and take the geeks up on their offers.  

In a matter of days,‘Kissing for Coffee’ becomes the newest sign of popularity and a clear indication of desirability.  The more boys vying to hand you a cup, the more pretty and popular you must be.  Sadie has unknowingly lit the match on a full-out trend and it’s spreading through surrounding high school districts like wildfire. The owner of Coffee Lovers is contacting her, thanking her for the publicity.  News cameras are showing up at her school.  ‘Kissing for Coffee’ commercials are even running on TV!

 

But Sadie soon discovers that 'Kissing for Coffee' doesn’t only have its perks. 

She becomes the focus of controversy when Rebecca Marshall, President of the ‘Purity Waits’ club begins protesting against the act of ‘prostituting your lips out for a three dollar beverage’.  And then there’s Jake Sterling, whose deceptively talented mega mouth has Sadie craving his kisses at odd non-coffee hours.  Sadie needs to find a way to put a stop to the trend she set in motion before she ends up losing her popularity, her geek, and her coffee for good.

KISSING FOR COFFEE is (will be) a 70,000 word YA contemporary romantic comedy.

There you have it.  I’ve still got about 14k to go before it’s finished and I honestly have no idea how this kind of book will be received with agents.  There isn’t a huge call for YA romantic comedy out there.  What do you guys think?