u/Cal_Tin

Hi,

First attempt? I would greatly appreciate feedback on a query letter for my debut fantasy novel. Thank you in advance for any and all advice.

Dear [Agent],

RUBE (133,000 words) is an adult high fantasy novel that takes witty humor and elements of the strange similar to those found in Dreadful and blends it with progression-based fantasy tropes the likes of Dungeon Crawler Carl.

When Ronan signed up to be a Soldier to join the search for the long-lost king of Avanteum, he didn’t expect to find himself deep underground in an illegal Teleportation Guild, interrogating a goblin with the help of a father-son psychic detective duo. No, all he had initially been thinking about was claiming the reward for finding the king: ten-million Krill and an immediate appointment as a Warden—a member of the kingdom’s elite military.

Against his better judgement, or maybe even against his will, he’s transported back through time and space with the use of ancient teleportation magic found in the Guild, and sent to Rubel-Travatia, a magical Training Grounds used to develop kings and queens before their appointment to the throne.

Awaking in the strange new land, he meets a Warden who was with the King when he disappeared long ago—not a day older from when she disappeared—as well as a shit-talking, ethereal floating head that lives within a paper map. He soon discovers that the Training Grounds meant to develop the king has malfunctioned and inadvertently taken the king hostage. It is up to Ronan and his unlikely crew of heroes to complete the Training Modules found in Rubel-Travatia and save the king before he is gone for good.

[Bio]

Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Bill Nye

Title: Rube

Genre/Subgenre: High fantasy / Comedic Fantasy

10-Million Krill and a position as a Warden awaits the Soldier who claims the bounty to find the missing King. But after twenty-years of searching, the Soldiers of Avanteum, more aptly known as “Hunters”, have yet to turn up a morsel of a lead.

Ronan is one of those Soldiers of the Kingless City. Young, energetic, and with dreams yet-to-be crushed, Ronan works tirelessly as a member of the cities military in hopes to find the King and become an esteemed Warden himself.

But as hope fades with the passing years, the Wise Men of the Kings Counsel finally live up to their names and decide that, perhaps, the King *isn’t* coming back, and that, maybe, they *should* appoint someone new. And so they elect to do just that.

Festivities ensue. Parties fill the streets. The city will be whole once again. And on the last day before the new appointment, a day plagued by bad luck for Ronan, he just so happens to stumble upon what the Hunters have been searching for for the past two-decades. A lead.

Ronan, with the help of his two new friends—a father-son psychic detective duo—stumble onto a secret land hidden from time. Rubel-Travatia. Or, more commonly called, Rube. A hidden Royal Training Grounds meant to mold Kings and Queens into who they are meant to be. After a series of mishaps and hijinks, Ronan finds himself with the impossible task: Complete the Training Grounds and find the King in a single day before a new King is appointed.

*Rube* follows Ronan as he stumbles through Avanteum, illegal goblin Teleportation Guilds, and the hidden land of Rubel-Travatia to find the King before the appointment of a new one occurs. Through ridiculous situations, unexplained feats of magic, and high fantasy humor, *Rube* offers readers both the lighter and darker sides of fantasy in this time-bending adventure.

Notes: I am looking for a one or two beta readers for my manuscript, *Rube*. Please DM me if you’re interested or would like to know more. I’m up for swapping as well.