Name: Daniel Alemán
Genre: YA Contemporary
Title: The Love You Take
Word Count: 81,000
Themes: LGBT (#ownvoices)
Your 35-Word Pitch:
When a hate crime ends in a tragic death, Chris must prove he and his boyfriend were not to blame for what happened.
First 500 words:
NOW
By the time I’m given a voice to tell my story, it’s already too late.
A red light blinks on the tape recorder, but the room is filled with nothing but silence. In the back of my mind, I can’t help but think of how ironic it is that now that someone is willing to listen, I can’t speak. Even though I’ve finally been given the voice I fought so badly to obtain, I can’t use it. Even though it’s all right there — all the fear, all the pain, so close to the surface that it’s clogging up my airway — I can’t let it out.
“Maybe we could do this another time,” the author says, shifting in her seat. She reaches for the tape recorder, but I gesture her to stop.
She lifts her eyebrows, staring at me through her glasses without blinking. I look up at her hair, which was the first thing I noticed when she arrived. It’s shoulder length, dry as straw. The half that is closer to her head is light gray. The bottom half is blond. I wonder when and why she made the decision to stop dyeing it. Maybe she woke up one morning and decided to stop pretending to be someone she’s not. Maybe she chose to welcome the gray hair like an old friend she hadn’t seen in a while. After all, I don’t think anyone could deny that gray hair is a privilege — a sign that you have lived.
I meet her eyes and find kindness in them, which reminds me of the reason why I agreed to this in the first place. It wasn’t because of her fancy journalism degree or because she’s a bestselling author. What helped me make up my mind in the end was that she had kind eyes, even in the pictures of her I found on the Internet.
“Why don’t we start with something a bit more simple?” she says. “Could you tell me a little about the town where you grew up?”
When I don’t answer, she leans forward in her chair. “Chris,” she says, “I can’t imagine how hard it must be for you to revisit the past. But I know you have a story that deserves to be told.” Even though her voice is soft, there’s a hint of desperation hidden somewhere. I can’t blame her for it — not when she traveled hundreds of miles only to come sit in front of a mute man. “If you tell me your story, I can help you share it with the rest of the world.”
I take a deep breath that makes me feel as though I’ve taken all the air from the room. “All right,” I say finally. I don’t really know where the words are coming from, but it doesn’t really matter. I just let them escape my mouth without thinking. “I’ll tell you my story.”
THEN
I was sixteen years old the fall that my parents finally decided to buy a microwave.
“My own mother never had a microwave in her kitchen, and she managed just fine,” Mom would say.
Hi Daniel! I’d love to read more. Could you please send your materials to kn@wmeentertainment.com? Thank you!
LikeLike
Hi Daniel, I’d be happy to take a look at the first 50 pages. Can you send them along as an attachment to jmccarthy@dystel.com? Thanks! Jim
LikeLike
Hi Daniel! I’d love to read the next 50 pages. Would you please send them along with a synopsis as an attachment to hannah@ktliterary.com? Thank you!
LikeLike
I would love to read more! Please send your query letter + attach the first three chapters to: query@psliterary.com. Include “Pitch América request for Maria” somewhere in the subject line.
LikeLike
Hi Daniel, I’d be happy to take a look! Please send your manuscript along to this addres: QueryMe.online/1067/PitchAmerica. Thank you!
LikeLike
I’m already invested in this–I would love to read more! Please send your query letter, synopsis, and first ten pages pasted into the email body to query.cmcdonald@maassagency.com, and include “Pitch America” and your title in the subject line. Thanks!
LikeLike
Daniel, this is fantastic. Would you please send me the full MS? You can send it in through our submissions portal here and type my name in the ATTN box: https://entangledpublishing.com/entangled-teen-submissions/ Thank you!
LikeLike
This is lovely. I am eager to see more. Please query me at queryquressa@nelsonagency.com. In the subject line, write REQUESTED QUERY (Pitch America) and the title of your project. This will help ensure that your query isn’t accidentally deleted or caught in our spam filter. In the body of your email, include a one-page query letter and the first ten pages of your manuscript.
LikeLike
Hi Daniel! I’d love to see this. You can send the full manuscript as a Word doc, and your query, to rstark@skyhorsepublishing.com (no need to wait for an agent to submit this to me).
LikeLike
Hi Daniel! I’d love to read the full manuscript. Please send as a word document to hjacobson@icmpartners.com. Thank you!
LikeLike
This is a stunning opener! I would love to see more! Could you send the full ms, please, along with your query, to lana@chalbergsussman.com? I can’t wait to read.
LikeLike
This is a stunning opener! I would love to see more! Could you send the full ms, please, along with your query, to lana@chalbergsussman.com? I can’t wait to read.
LikeLike
I would love to see more of this! Could you please send the full manuscript as a Word doc attachment, along with your query (pasted in the body of the email), to patricia@marsallyonliteraryagency.com? Please put “Pitch America Request: The Love You Take” in the subject line. Thank you!
LikeLike
What a powerful opening! I’d love to read more. Could you please send a query letter, bio, synopsis and first 25 pages (copy and pasted into the body of the email) to thao@dijkstraagency.com? Please use “Pitch América -THE LOVE YOU TAKE, YA CONTEMPORARY” in your subject line!
LikeLike
I’m already drawn in by the narrative voice in these opening lines! Please send your query letter and your full manuscript (Word doc) to me at bsherman@janklow.com, with the subject line “Pitch América Request: THE LOVE YOU TAKE.” Thank you!
LikeLike
Oooh, this sounds great! I’d love to read more. Please send your query + first 50 pages to phelanqueries@thebentagency.com with “PitchAmerica: THE LOVE YOU TAKE” in the subject line. Can’t wait to read his story.
LikeLike
I’d be happy to take a look! Please send the query + first 40 pages to query@dunhamlit.com with “Pitch America” in the subject line.
LikeLike
I’d love to see more!
Please send the query letter and first 50 pages as a Word attachment to query(at)newleafliterary(dot)com. Please include “SUZIE – Pitch América” in the subject line.
LikeLike
Hi Daniel,
I’d love to keep reading! Can you please send the full query + 1st 3 Ch. to sarah @ bradfordlit.com? Please put “PitchAmerica: [title]” as the subject. Thank you!
Sarah
LikeLike
Hi Daniel,
I’d love to see this. Please send the query and 30 pages using the guidelines on jdlit.com and put PITCH AMERICA in the subject line. I can’t wait to read!
Best,
Roseanne Wells
The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency
LikeLike
I’d love to see this as well – will you send the query + first 3 chapters to me at joan at emliterary dot com? Thanks!
LikeLike
I’d love to read more! Please send your query, 1-2 page synopsis, and the first 25 pages in the body of an e-mail with “Requested” and “Pitch América” somewhere in the subject line (along with your name and the title of the work). You can reach me at queries@azantianlitagency.com. Thank you! I look forward to reading!
LikeLike
I’d love to see more of this! Please send the first fifty pages, along with the query and synopsis, to kirsten[at]prospectagency[dot]com with “Pitch America” in the subject line. Can’t wait!
LikeLike
Hi! I’d love to see some more. Please email the first 50 pp and a query to medwards@stonesong.com. Thank you!
LikeLike
Hi Daniel, I’m intrigued and would love to read more! Please email your bio, synopsis, and the full manuscript as a Word document attachment to sandy@lperkinsagency.com and put “Pitch America Requested Material” in the subject headline. I look forward to diving in!
LikeLike
Hi Daniel, I’d love to see more. Can you please send your query and first 50 pages as a word document to querylindsay@emeraldcityliterary.com. Please put Pitch América in the subject line of your query.
Thanks!
Lindsay
LikeLike