Have questions about submitting to Pitch Wars or just want to know what it is? Start here!

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.
PW2019 YA #12: IF TOMORROW DOESN’T COME (#OwnVoices LGBT Speculative Fiction – content warning: suicidal ideation)
Mentee:
Jen Cox-Shah
Mentored by:
Adrienne Tooley and Kelly Quindlen
Book Title:
IF TOMORROW DOESN'T COME
Category:
2019 Entries
Genre:
#ownvoices LGBT Speculative Fiction (content warning: suicidal ideation)
Word Count:
87,000

Pitch:

On the morning Avery plans to end her life, she learns an asteroid will end the world in a matter of days. She fights her way home from college to help her family and the girl she loves, but while they chase their final tomorrows, can Avery embrace her own? WE ARE OKAY meets WILDER GIRLS.

 

Excerpt:

I wanted to hide my body somewhere no one would have to find it. Midway through my freshman year I settled on the Connecticut River—a hungry stretch of icebergs and fog that slipped by the edge of campus. I liked the river because when I stood on its edge it always felt like morning, even at sunset, even at midnight. I also liked it because it was practical and clean. It would take me away, wash the blood from my face, and bury the gun in its silt.

The gun sat heavy in my jacket pocket as I left my dorm room one last time. I carried it across Dartmouth’s starlit campus, through a wall of evergreen trees, to a dock winged by canoes of muted colors. The boats crashed around me as I knelt on the icy wood, sadness a sand in my blood.

My jeans soaked through. My heart raced until my ribs shivered. I brushed tears away so I could see one more sherbet sunrise, but the sun blinked open too quickly for color and I was capped by ethereal light. I pulled the pistol out and without looking at it lifted the barrel to my temple. I leaned over the rushing water and tried to steady my vibrating hand because I was ready. So tired, empty, over. I just had to do it already.

And then my cell phone buzzed and Dartmouth’s emergency alert system started screaming.

16 responses to “PW2019 YA #12: IF TOMORROW DOESN’T COME (#OwnVoices LGBT Speculative Fiction – content warning: suicidal ideation)”

  1. Melissa Danaczko says:

    Hi Jen,
    I would love the opportunity to read more. Can you please send the full manuscript to mdquery@skagency.com? Thank you!
    Melissa

  2. Megan Manzano says:

    I’m ready to cry after seeing this pitch! Please send your query, synopsis, and first 30 pages to https://querymanager.com/query/MeganManzano/PitchWars

  3. Peter Knapp says:

    Hi Jen,

    What an intense opening… I would love to keep reading. Can you please send the full manuscript to queries@parkfine.com attached as a Word document, along with a 1-3 (or so) page synopsis if available (in the same document as the MS or attached as a separate doc is fine)? Please include a query letter in the body of the email and put “PitchWars Submission – Pete Knapp” in the subject of the email. Thanks so much for the opportunity, and I look forward to reading!

    With warm regards,

    Pete Knapp
    Park & Fine Literary and Media

  4. Sarah Landis says:

    I’m so intrigued! Please do email the full manuscript to me at slandis@sll.com. Thanks!

  5. Jim McCarthy says:

    I’d be happy to take a fresh look!

    Best,
    Jim

  6. Erin Clyburn says:

    I’m so intrigued by your pitch and excerpt, and I’d love to see your full manuscript! If you’d like to submit to me, you can do so through this link: QueryMe.online/ErinClyburn/PitchWars.

  7. Sabrina Taitz says:

    Would love to read more – please send the full manuscript in PDF format to staitz@wmeagency.com – thank you! (PS my sister is a ’19) xx Sabrina Taitz @ WME

  8. Patricia Nelson says:

    Hi Jen,

    I would love to take a look at this! Could you please send me your query + the full manuscript as a Word doc attachment to patricia@marsallyonliteraryagency.com? Please make sure to put “PitchWars Request” in the subject line.

    I’m looking forward to reading!
    Patricia

  9. Jessica Errera says:

    Hello Jen, I would love to have a look at the first 75 pages (and a synopsis, if you have one) of TOMORROW. Please email them to me at jerrera@janerotrosen.com Thanks!

  10. Danielle Burby says:

    I’m intrigued! This concept is interesting to me and I’d love to take a look at the manuscript. Please submit through this link: QueryMe.online/1352/PW20192020

    Danielle Burby

  11. Penelope Burns says:

    Hi Jen,

    I would love to see this! Can you send your query and first fifty pages to penelope@gelfmanschneider.com with #PitchWars in the subject line? Thanks so much!

    All best,
    Penelope

  12. Kiana Nguyen says:

    Hi Jen,

    Love! Can you send me the full attached to knguyen@maassagency.com, with a query in the email and on the first page of the attachment. Please use subject: PW 2020: TITLE. Thank you!

  13. Laura Bradford says:

    The voice is just great! I was quite honestly intending to pass this entry over because of the CW but the voice pulled me in despite that. I am hoping this is a hopeful story (even with the world about to end, if that’s possible). I’d love to see how this one turns out because it is tremendously hooky.

    Please email me the full ms + synopsis and make a note in the subject line that this is a Pitch Wars entry. laura at bradfordlit dot com.

    Laura Bradford
    Bradford Literary Agency

  14. Alice Sutherland-Hawes says:

    Hi Jen

    I love the sound of this! A really cool concept, I’m always here for a ticking clock. I’d love to see three chapters and a synopsis if you’re happy to send – childrens@madeleinemilburn.com

    Alice

  15. Laurel Symonds says:

    Hi! I’d love to see this. Please send a query and 25 pages to symondsqueries@thebentagency.com with “Pitch Wars” in the subject line. I’m looking forward to reading more!

  16. Erin Harris says:

    Hi Jen,

    Thank you for participating in Pitch Wars! I LOVE the writing and the premise here. Please send the full manuscript to eharris@foliolit.com, along with your full query letter (description of project + author bio) with “Pitch Wars” in the subject of your email.

    I look forward to reading and talking further!

    All best,
    Erin

    ERIN HARRIS VP / LITERARY AGENT
    _________________________________________________
    Folio Literary Management |Harold Ober Associates |Folio Jr.
    630 9th Avenue, Suite 1101, New York, NY 10036
    212-400-1494 x350 | eharris@foliolit.com | FolioLit.com