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Pitch Wars Showcase

Please note: These are the entries for the Pitch Wars season beginning in 2021 and continuing through 2022. Please note that our Agent Showcase ends at 9:00 p.m. ET on Monday, February 14, 2022. Agents will not be able to leave comments requesting material after that time.
PW2020 YA #43: BEST OUT OF THREE (Contemporary #OwnVoices)
Mentee:
Olivia Liu
Mentored by:
Rona Wang
Book Title:
BEST OUT OF THREE
Category:
2020 Entries
Genre:
Contemporary #ownvoices
Word Count:
86,000

Pitch:

After seventeen-year-old Auden Lee has a close call with the cops, her mom is forced to reveal they’re undocumented immigrants. Which means Auden is ineligible for financial aid, her only way to afford college. 

When the parents of her longtime nemesis, Will, set up an unconventional scholarship competition for seniors at their school, Auden thinks she’s found her solution. The catch? They’ve put Will’s inheritance as the prize—and he’ll do anything to win, too.

They should be bitter enemies. But after facing sabotage from other students, they find themselves reluctant allies—and maybe something more.

NEVER HAVE I EVER meets FRANKLY IN LOVE.

 

Excerpt:

Mom doesn’t know what I’m up to tonight. 

Since no proper teenage daughter should be anywhere near boys, parties, or alcohol, she thinks I’m babysitting in the city right now. And I’m lucky my boss is willing to lie for me—at first she said that, as a fellow mom, she didn’t want to help me lie to mine. But while she won’t admit it, my boss is also a hippy-dippy, well-meaning white woman who has somewhat blown my situation out of proportion—she thinks I am pinned under the oppressive thumb of an authoritarian tiger mom, and reside in a regime where getting a B means certain death.

In short, she, like Rachel, thinks I could use some fun.

But I do have fun. My version of it is just different—for example, landing myself a mention in Harvard’s Notable Alumni list.

Meanwhile, Rachel is having fun filling in her toenails with a black Sharpie pen, which I think is gross, but which she thinks is of dire necessity. 

A lady should never be without a pedicure, she says.

 

25 responses to “PW2020 YA #43: BEST OUT OF THREE (Contemporary #OwnVoices)”

  1. Shannon Snow says:

    Hi Olivia!

    Your story definitely caught my eye. I would love to take a look. Please send the complete manuscript, synopsis and a short bio to shannon@cmalit.com. Please put “Requested Materials-Pitch Wars” in the subject line so it will be sure to stand out in my inbox.

    If more than one person requests materials from my agency (Creative Media Agency, Inc., or CMA) just pick one of us. If it doesn’t work for that person, we will share it around.

    Thank you and I look forward to seeing your story very much! Best of success with Pitch Wars!!

    Shannon

  2. Jordy Albert says:

    I would love to take a look. Please follow my submission guidelines here https://QueryManager.com/1426. Thank you!

  3. Jennifer Herrington says:

    Hi Olivia,

    Great pitch! I’m intrigued, and I would love to see more. Please submit your query, synopsis, and first three chapters to QueryManager.com/JenniferHerrington/PitchWars2021.

    I hope to see you material!

    Jenn

  4. Lauren Spieller says:

    Congratulations on completing Pitch Wars, Olivia! I’d love to read more. If you think we’d be a good fit, please send your query + full manuscript to Lauren@triadaus.com, and put “PW Request” in the subject line. I look forward to hearing from you! ~Lauren

  5. Kari Erickson says:

    Hi Olivia, I’d love to read more of this! Please upload your full manuscript, synopsis, and query letter here: QueryManager.com/KariErickson/PitchWars
    Thank you for considering me!

  6. Hi Olivia. I’m really intrigued by your pitch. Please send me a synopsis and the first 20 pages to Isabelle (at) Nordlysetagency.com. Also include “Pitch Wars” on the subject line of your email. Thanks!
    Isabelle

  7. Haley Casey says:

    Dear Olivia,

    This description of your work immediately had me hooked. I would love to read more!

    Would you please send your full manuscript, a synopsis of the project, and a short bio about what you do and any of your previous publications to Haley@CMALit.com? Each should be a separate attachment in Microsoft Word or PDF format. To ensure your email doesn’t get lost in the shuffle, please include “Pitch Wars” in your subject line.

    The two other agents at Creative Media Agency, Paige Wheeler and Shannon Snow, are participating in Pitch Wars with me. Should one of them also request your manuscript, we would appreciate it if you would choose the agent you’d most prefer to work with and only send them the requested materials. Should they pass on the project for any reason, and you find yourself still seeking an agent, then you are of course free to resubmit to another member of CMA.

    Thank you for taking the time to send me more of what you’ve written!

    Sincerely,
    Haley Casey

  8. Natascha Morris says:

    Hello Olivia,

    This sounds right up my alley and wheelhouse and I can’t wait to read the full! Please upload at QueryManager.com/natascha/PitchWars. And if another Tobias Literary Agent requests, please know you can submit to multiple parties for this event, and we will discuss in house if multiple agents are interested.

    Thank you and can’t wait to see this!

    Best,
    Natascha Morris

  9. Stephanie Winter says:

    Your excerpt has me hooked! I’d love to read the full manuscript. If you think we’d be a fit, feel free to email me at query@psliterary.com with the full and a synopsis attached. Please mention Pitch Wars in the subject line and direct it to my attention.

    I’m so looking forward to reading your story!
    Stephanie

  10. Katelyn Detweiler says:

    Olivia, I really love this concept and excerpt! It would be great to read more. Could you please send the query and full manuscript to me at katelyn@jillgrinbergliterary.com with “Pitch Wars” in the subject line? (Please note, if multiple agents from Jill Grinberg Literary Management request your ms, we ask that you only share with one.) Thank you! 

  11. Alexandra Weiss says:

    Hi Olivia! Ooh, I love a good enemies to lovers story! I’d like to take a look at the first 50 pages, which you can submit here: https://querymanager.com/query/AlexandraWeiss/PitchWars2021

    Looking forward to reading more!

    Alex Weiss
    Azantian Literary Agency

  12. Jennifer Unter says:

    Hi Olivia,
    We’d love to read! Please forward the opening 50 pages, as a Word attachment, to jen.nadol@theunteragency.com, including your query in the body of the email. Thanks!

  13. Hi, Olivia. I am here for high-stakes, unconventional competitions. I would love to read more. If you’re interested, please submit a query at QueryManager.com/SavannahBrooks and be sure to mention that this was a Pitch Wars request. I look forward to seeing more!

  14. Tara Gonzalez says:

    Hi Olivia! I would love to keep reading BEST OUT OF THREE. If you could send me a query with the full manuscript attached to tara@emliterary.com, with “Pitch Wars” in the subject line, that would be fantastic.

    Tara Gonzalez – Associate Agent at Erin Murphy Literary Agency

  15. Melissa Edwards says:

    Hi Olivia,

    This looks great! I’d love to take a look. Please email the ms as a double-spaced doc to medwards at stonesong dot com with PitchWars in the subject.

    Thanks!

    All best,
    Melissa

  16. Renae Moore says:

    Please send your query, synopsis, and first two chapters of your book using the following link: QueryManager.com/renae/PitchWars
    Please feel free to apply to more than one agent at Tobias simultaneously. We will handle multiple submissions on our end.

  17. Em Lysaght says:

    Hi Olivia, I would love to see more material for this project! If you would like to submit to me, please send me your query letter, synopsis, and first 3 chapters/50 pages (whichever is longer) at the following link: QueryManager.com/emlysaght/Pitchwars2020

  18. Alex Rice says:

    Olivia, would love to see more! Please send me your query and first 50 pages to alex.rice@caa.com. Please let me know if you are sending to more than one agent at CAA. All my best, Alex

  19. Penny Moore says:

    Hi Olivia,

    I love the sound of this, and it’s exactly the type of YA I’d love to read! When you’re ready, please submit your full manuscript here: QueryManager.com/LiteraryPenny/PitchWars2021. Thanks. Looking forward to reading!

    All the best,
    Penny Moore
    Aevitas Creative Management

  20. Anya Goncharova says:

    Dear Olivia, this is such a brilliant and important story! I would absolutely love to read more and consider it for representation. Could you please send through the first 50 pages of your MS to me for further reading? My email is anya@peonyliteraryagency.com Really can’t wait, and I hope you are doing okay at this very uncertain time! All best, Anya; Peony Literary Agency

  21. Rebecca Eskildsen says:

    Hi! I would love to see this story in my inbox. If you would like to submit your manuscript to me, please send a query letter and the first 50 pages to reskildsen@writershouse.com. Please include “Pitch Wars” and your title in the subject line, and please only submit to one agent at Writers House at a time. Thank you!

  22. Laura Bradford says:

    Sounds fabulous! Please email me the full manuscript + synopsis at laura@bradfordlit.com. Please put Pitch Wars in the subject line and paste the pitch into your email. Thank you!

    Laura Bradford

    *If more than one agent from the Bradford Literary Agency has requested this, go ahead and send it to those agents and just let us know

  23. Chloe Seager says:

    Dear Olivia,

    This sounds like an interesting premise and I’d love to read more. Please email the synopsis and first three chapters to childrens@madeleinemilburn.com, including ‘Pitch Wars submission’ somewhere in the subject line.

    All best,
    Chloe

  24. Paige Wheeler says:

    Thank you for participating in Pitch Wars. I appreciate your interest in having me represent your work. I found your project intriguing and would very much like to see the first three chapters of the manuscript. Please email me at paige@cmalit.com the following attachments in Microsoft Word format (not PDF):
     
    1. the first three chapters,
    2. a synopsis of your project,
    3. a short bio including any previous publications.
     
    To expedite the review process, please use “requested material-pitch wars” as the subject heading of your email.
     
    As a professional courtesy, please let me know if any other agents are considering your work. Also, if you do get an offer, please contact me so that I may be able to review and respond accordingly.

    I look forward to reading your work!
     
    Kind regards,
     Paige Wheeler 
    paige@cmalit.com

  25. Kari Sutherland says:

    Hi Olivia,
    This sounds like a lot of fun and I’d love to read more. Please send the full via this form: QueryManager.com/Kari_Sutherland_Query_Form/PitchWars. If more than one Bradford Literary agent requests it, you can send to multiple of us, just let us know so we can coordinate. Many thanks! Kari