Dear ________,

 

Lieutenant Jane Sparks woke up expecting a routine morning. Since being promoted
to lieutenant of the San Francisco Police Department’s homicide unit, Jane’s days
have become less fast-paced, but not today. Before she can pour her second cup of
coffee, dispatch reports a shooting in the SFPD parking lot. There is little to go on
other than the shooter had a military-style tattoo on their wrist, and the victim has
already been identified as…her? In the time it takes for the victim—Special Agent
Francesca (Fran) Morris—to regain consciousness, DNA tests confirm that the
lieutenant and special agent are twins. Fran wakes up several days later, surprised
and angered by the DNA test results; however, there is little time to reckon with this
revelation. Someone is gunning for one or both of them, and Jane and Fran will have
to work together to get to the bottom of the shooting and the mysterious
circumstances that separated them at birth.

HOW COULD IT BE? is a 20,000-word, fast-paced mystery crime novel written in the
traditions of Carolyn Keene and Patricia Cornwell. Readers of all ages will enjoy this
crisp, fast-moving journey through the ways in which lies, intrigue, and deception
affect the budding relationship between two long-lost sisters. I have included a
synopsis, outline, and the first pages of the manuscript for your review.

The novel draws on my experience as a retired special agent with the United States
Coast Guard Investigative Service, where I was the first Hispanic woman in the unit.
After retirement, I cofounded Tu Casa Lataina, a non-profit that supports immigrant
men, women, and children who have been victims of domestic violence, violent
crimes, and human trafficking in northern Nevada as they build new lives in the US. I
have dreamed of being a writer since I was nine years old and have since had my
poems and short stories appear in publications such as Nuestro Magazine. Now, at
seventy years of age and after thirty-nine years as a dedicated mother, grandmother,
and great-grandmother, I am ready to share my debut novel with the world.
Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you.

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Sincerely,

 

XIOMARA RODRIGUEZ