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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.
PW2021 YA #40: LAMPLIGHT AND LIARS (Fantasy: LGBTQ+)
Mentee:
Emma Clancey
Mentored by:
Natalie Crown and Angelica Monai
Book Title:
LAMPLIGHT AND LIARS
Category:
Young Adult
Genre:
Fantasy: LGBTQ+
Word Count:
92,000
Manuscript Content Warning(s):
alcohol use, knife use, gun use, blood, panic attacks, emotional manipulation, eye-gouging, murder

Pitch:

VICIOUS meets DANGEROUS REMEDY

Ilari can see the ‘invisible’ monsters that emerge from fresh corpses—though admitting it would earn him a trip to the gallows. To escape the law (and the deadly creatures), he’s hunting for a cure. But when an unexplainable disappearance devastates his close-knit crew, Ilari’s boyfriend is accused of murder. Wading through lies, Ilari must make his choice—help his crew kill the boy he loves or fight beside him, feeding their world to the monsters.

 

Excerpt:

“You,” Ilari told the dead man, “have ruined my evening.”

Perhaps that was heartless. After all, it wasn’t the man’s fault he’d been shot in the head and left to rot, face down in the desert sand. But Ilari was running low on both sympathy and time. The sun was falling fast, dripping shadows into the deep troughs between the mountainous red dunes. Ten minutes till nightfall, he estimated. Ten minutes to deal with the corpse and get to Aleksi’s camp, where he should’ve been an hour ago, safe. 

He crouched, slinging his pack off his good shoulder. It held everything he needed to survive five days alone in Aurantia’s sweltering wastes: brass canteens, camping biscuits hard enough to break teeth, his lovingly polished revolver, and a stash of lighters and oil-filled jars for evening-ruining inconveniences like this. He had everything he needed—except someone to talk to. And after five days of silence, he was happy to accept a one-sided chat with a dead man. 

He fished out a jar, popping the lid. “It’s time for you to burn, my friend,” he said, drizzling oil over the corpse’s back. “Poetic, naj? I’d bet my ship you were out here looking for the arsonist.” His gaze drifted to the blood matted in the corpse’s hair. “Looks like you found him.”

13 responses to “PW2021 YA #40: LAMPLIGHT AND LIARS (Fantasy: LGBTQ+)”

  1. Masha Gunic says:

    I would love to see this! Please send me your query and full manuscript to masha@azantianlitagency.com with “Pitch Wars” in the subject line. If any other agents from ALA request this as well, please send to one of us at a time at your choice.

  2. Amanda Rutter says:

    I would love you to submit your Pitch Wars entry to me, using my Query Manager form: QueryManager.com/Amanda_Rutter/PitchWars Please send through the query letter and the full manuscript. If more than one Azantian agent requests materials, please pick the one you feel would fit you best.

  3. Jordy Albert says:

    I would love to read more! Please follow submission guidelines here https://QueryManager.com/JordyAlbert

  4. Penelope Burns says:

    I’d love to see this! If you’d like, can you send your query and full manuscript to penelope@gelfmanschneider.com with #PitchWars in the subject line? Thanks so much!

    All best,
    Penelope

  5. Mollie Glick says:

    Hi Emma,
    This sounds great! I’d love to take a look. Please upload your material to booksubmissions.caa.com with “Pitch Wars Request” in the subject line.
    Best wishes,
    Mollie

  6. Bridget Smith says:

    This sounds great, and I’d love to take a look! Please send me your query and first 50 pages at QueryManager.com/BridgetSmith/PitchWars2022. Can’t wait to read!

  7. Marcy Posner says:

    Hi Emma— That dialogue paired with the voice! This scene sparks. Please send your full manuscript as an attachment with your query letter in the email body to marcy@foliolit.com. Make sure to put Pitch Wars in the subject line so I can find it easily! If you happen to receive requests from my other colleagues, please select the agent you are most interested in working with and send materials only to them.

  8. Kaitlyn Sanchez says:

    I’d be delighted to consider this. Please see submission guidelines here: https://www.contextlit.com/submissions under Kaitlyn Sanchez, and please put PITCH WARS REQUEST and your genre and title in the subject line of the email. Thanks for sharing your work!

  9. Kari Sutherland says:

    I love the voice in this opening sample! I definitely want to spend more time with Ilari and learn more about his world. If you think we’d be a good match, please send the full to me using the submission form: QueryManager.com/Kari_Sutherland_Query_Form/PitchWars.

    Warm wishes,
    Kari

  10. Laura Bradford says:

    The voice is just fabulous and I’d love to see more! Please send me the full manuscript and synopsis (as attachments) at laura@bradfordlit.com and put Pitch Wars in your subject line.

    Thank you!
    Laura Bradford

    ***If you receive a request from more than one agent at Bradford Literary Agency, you are welcome to send to all agents who made the request, but just let us know when you send the material***

  11. Allison Hellegers says:

    I would love to read more of this one! You can send me your query, full synopsis, and and first 50 pages to alli(at)stimolaliterarystudio(dot)com. Thanks, and good luck!

  12. Christa Heschke says:

    Hi Emma!

    WOW–what an incredibly unique premise! My assistant Daniele and I would love to read this.

    Please send us your query, synopsis, and full manuscript via Query Manager at this link: QueryManager.com/christa_heschke/PitchWars2122

    Thank you!
    -Christa Heschke, McIntosh & Otis

  13. Roseanne Wells says:

    Hi Emma,

    Great voice! I’d love to take a look. Please submit the full manuscript and a synopsis to querymanager.com/roseannewells/pitchrequest, and I’m excited to keep reading!