Adult Fiction
Author of THE UNBROKEN C.L. Clark’s WARMONGERS, in an epic fantasy set in a kingdom in a cycle of eternal war, two women—once lovers and warriors at arms—are set on a collision course when years after their separation, one is crowned king and the other vows to kill her, to Brit Hvide at Orbit, by Mary C. Moore at Kimberley Cameron & Associates (world).
Author of UNEXPECTED GOALS Kelly Farmer’s IT’S A FABULOUS LIFE, pitched as a sapphic retelling of the classic holiday movie as a second chance romance, in which a realtor puts her plans on hold again to help with her small town’s winter festival and, with the aid of angelic drag queens, reconnects with her high school crush, to Stacey Donovan at Hallmark, in a nice deal, for publication in fall 2023 (world English).
Arden Joy’s KEEP THIS OFF THE RECORD, pitched as a romantic comedy remix of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing that transforms ye olde damsels in distress into queer women, women of color, and women overcoming trauma, to Alexandria Brown at Rising Action, in an exclusive submission, for publication in January 2024 (world English).
Andie Burke’s COME FLY WITH ME, an opposites-attract romantic comedy about a female pilot and a woman who’s afraid of flying, who start fake dating after the woman saves a passenger’s life mid-flight and then goes viral, to Lisa Bonvissuto at St. Martin’s, in a very nice deal, in a two-book deal, for publication in fall 2023, by Mariah Nichols at D4EO Literary Agency (world).
Nicola Dinan‘s BELLIES, a queer coming-of-age story about two students who fall in love during their final year at university, only to find their relationship dramatically upended when one of them decides to transition, spanning London, Malaysia, and New York in the years after they graduate, pitched as Torrey Peters meets NORMAL PEOPLE, to Grace Towery at Hanover Square Press, in a pre-empt, by Monica MacSwan at Aitken Alexander (NA).
Author of A STAR IS BORED Byron Lane‘s BIG GAY WEDDING, a comedy of (mis)manners in which a young man returns home from Los Angeles to to his widowed mother’s farm in Louisiana with news of his upcoming nuptials—to a man—and the bigger surprise that the wedding will take place on the farm, pitched as The Birdcage meets Father of the Bride, to James Melia at Holt, for publication in summer 2023, by Deborah Schneider at Gelfman Schneider/ICM (NA).
Author, folklorist, and photographer Piper CJ’s THE NIGHT AND ITS MOON, originally self-published, about orphans who are sold to the highest bidder—in this case, the madame of a notorious brothel; along with THE SUN AND ITS SHADE, THE GLOOM BETWEEN STARS and THE DAWN AND ITS LIGHT, in a sapphic/bi romantic epic fantasy series, to Christa Desir at Bloom Books, in a very nice deal, in a four-book deal, for publication starting in September 2022 (world English).
Alexandrine Ogundimu’s THE LONGEST SUMMER, in which a half-Nigerian party boy navigates a bisexual love triangle and is the primary suspect of a $10,000 cash theft in a decaying Indiana city, to Christoph Paul at Clash, in a nice deal, for publication in June 2023 (world English).
BURN IT ALL DOWN author Nicolas DiDomizio’s THE GAY BEST FRIEND, a summer comedy set on a beach following a gay millennial as he code-switches between the hyper-masculine and ultra-feminine worlds of his two soon-to-be-wed best friends, to Mary Altman at Sourcebooks, in a two-book deal, for publication in spring 2023 (world).
Audiobook narrator and self-published author Travis Baldree’s LEGENDS & LATTES, in which an orc barbarian decides to hang up her sword and open a fantasy coffee shop, to Georgia Summers at Tor, in a good deal, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, by Stevie Finegan at Zeno Agency (world).
Deputy director of the gender equality division of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Iris Mwanza’s THE GOOD BOY, about the disappearance of a queer boy in Lusaka, Zambia, possibly at the hands of the police, and the young, inexperienced lawyer who fights a corrupt system to get justice for him, set against the backdrop of the Zambia’s political upheaval in the 1990s, to Graydon House, at auction.
Isa Arsen‘s SHOOT THE MOON, pitched as THE ATOMIC CITY GIRLS meets THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE, about a queer female engineer at NASA working on the 1969 space race and her unusual discovery linked to her childhood in the 1940s, which explores the high human cost of scientific progress and the driving need for both intellectual fullfilment and romantic love, no matter the time and place, to Kate Dresser at Putnam, for publication in fall 2023, by Chris Bucci at Aevitas Creative Management (world).
Children’s Fiction
Author of the Norman the Goldfish series and the upcoming THE HOUSE THAT BABE RUTH BUILT Kelly Bennett’s RAINBOW KITE, stories of love, community, and family, about a nonbinary child following a kite on adventures to find community and acceptance; MONSTROUS MOE, in which a grumpy monster decides if a hug can help him be less grumpy; and MIA TAKES MANHATTAN, in which a cobra escapes the Bronx Zoo and travels the city before realizing she misses home, to Chrissy Willis at Young Dragons Press, in a nice deal, in a three-book deal, by Amy Brewer at Metamorphosis Literary Agency (US).
Michelle Mohrweis‘s YOUNG ENGINEERS, in which an autistic seventh grader, with a love of all things space, finds herself paired on an engineering project with her biggest crush, and both girls confront their messy family dynamics, feelings for one another, and high expectations, to Jonah Heller at Peachtree, in an exclusive submission, for publication in spring 2024, by Emily Forney at BookEnds (world).
Young Adult Fiction
Author of COOL FOR THE SUMMER and the forthcoming HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE Dahlia Adler‘s GOING BICOASTAL, pitched as a bi Sliding Doors, following a Jewish teen through two versions of the summer before senior year, one in NYC (with a cute girl) and one in L.A. (with a cute boy); and MY NAME IS EVERETT, a sunshine-meets-grump boarding school romance pitched as BEACH READ meets FOOLISH HEARTS, to Vicki Lame at Wednesday Books, in a very nice deal, in an exclusive submission, in a two-book deal, for publication in summer 2023 and summer 2024, by Patricia Nelson at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency (NA).
Benjamin Dean’s THE KING IS DEAD, a gay romantic thriller set against the backdrop of a reimagined royal family, about a newly crowned young Black king facing media scrutiny and blackmail, pitched as ACE OF SPADES meets RED, WHITE & ROYAL BLUE, to Erika Turner at Little, Brown Children’s, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, for publication in summer 2023, by Chloe Seager at Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency (NA).
Author of the forthcoming YOU, ME, AND OUR HEARTSTRINGS Melissa See’s LOVE LETTERS TO JOY CORVI, pitched as a contemporary retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac, in which a panromantic asexual girl with cerebral palsy who is determined to be valedictorian seeks love advice from an anonymous student at her academy; but she’s unknowingly writing to—and falling for—the last person she ever expected, to Tiffany Colon at Scholastic, for publication in summer 2023, by Emily Forney at BookEnds (world English).
Keezy Young’s graphic novel HELLO SUNSHINE, in which a boy returns from church camp to discover that his (secret) boyfriend has gone missing and now he must enlist an unlikely team of worried friends and family to find him; a teen drama that uses the atmosphere of a demon haunting to tell a story of mental health, healing, and romance, to Andrea Colvin at Little, Brown Children’s, for publication in 2025, by Kurestin Armada at Root Literary (world).
Rex Ogle writing as Rey Terciero’s DAN OF GREEN GABLES, pitched as a twist on ANNE OF GREEN GABLES, the story of a queer, half-Mexican teenager who is forced to live with his grandparents in rural Tennessee when his mother abandons him; with the help of his mawmaw and his new friends, he makes an unlikely home for himself at 1600 Green Gables, illustrated by Claudia Aguirre, to Elizabeth Lee at Penguin Workshop, for publication in summer 2025, by Brent Taylor at TriadaUS Literary Agency for the author, and by Kate McKean at Howard Morhaim Literary Agency for the illustrator (world).
Eugene Lee Yang‘s THE UNDERS, a queer epic fantasy in which a group of teens band together to stop a war between the human and the magical world, to Emily Settle at Feiwel and Friends, in a major deal, at auction, in a two-book deal, for publication in spring 2024, by Jessica Felleman at Jennifer Lyons Literary Agency (NA).
Author of the forthcoming THE MANY HALF-LIVED LIVES OF SAM SYLVESTER Maya MacGregor’s THE EVOLVING TRUTH OF EVER-STRONGER WILL, about a nonbinary teen who, after watching their abusive mother die in front of them, seeks out a former foster mother who once was ready to adopt them, in a mystery about family, grief, and surviving an abusive parent even as their mother’s ghost seems to dog their every step, to Suzy Krogulski at Astra House, for publication in 2024, by Sara Megibow at kt literary (world English).
Edgar Award winner and Stonewall Honor author James Klise’s I’LL TAKE EVERYTHING YOU HAVE, a noir set in Chicago in the summer of 1934, in which a queer teen’s naive get-rich-quick scheme leads to deadly criminal consequences, to Elise Howard at Algonquin Young Readers, for publication in 2023, by Jennifer Laughran at Andrea Brown Literary Agency (world).
Victoria Wlosok’s debut HOW TO FIND A MISSING GIRL, about a 17-year-old amateur sleuth and her sapphic detective agency that investigates when her ex-girlfriend—notorious for creating a polarizing true-crime podcast about the sleuth’s missing sister—disappears too, to Alexandra Hightower at Little, Brown Children’s, for publication in fall 2023, by Jessica Errera at Jane Rotrosen Agency (world). Film: Becca Rodriguez at Gotham.
Non-Fiction
Inclusion advocate, educator, and the first openly transgender D1 men’s athlete Schuyler Bailar‘s HE/SHE/THEY: HOW WE TALK ABOUT GENDER AND WHY IT MATTERS, an inquiry into today’s gender landscape, laying the groundwork for productive conversations about gender on an individual and national level, pitched as in the vein of SO YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT RACE, to Renee Sedliar at Hachette Go, at auction, by Susan Canavan at Waxman Literary Agency (NA).
Founder of the Ali Forney Center Carl Siciliano’s STRONG AS DEATH, SWEET AS LOVE, about the author’s work with homeless LGBTQ+ youths in New York City and his friendship with Ali Forney, a nonbinary youth whose compassionate life and tragic death on New York City’s streets inspired him to establish the Center and live a life of service and resistance, to Derek Reed at Convergent, at auction, for publication in summer 2023, by Jesseca Salky at Salky Literary Management, in association with Charlotte Sheedy Literary Agency (NA).
Shilletha Curtis’s MOUNTAIN OF THE MOON, pitched as a Black lesbian WILD crossed with GIRL INTERRUPTED, tracing the author’s 2,193-mile thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail and intersectional quest to change the narrative of “hiking while Black” while confronting the roots of her lifelong depression, anxiety, PTSD and ADHD, to Jennifer Levesque at Andscape, in a good deal, in a pre-empt, by Lynn Johnston at Lynn Johnston Literary (world English).
Thirteen-year-old Shai is an expert problem-solver. There’s never been something they couldn’t research and figure out on their own. But there’s one thing Shai hasn’t been able to logic their way through: picking at the hair on their arms.
Nothing about Kess Pedrock’s life is normal. Not her home (she lives in her family’s Unnatural History Museum), not her interests (hunting for megafauna fossils and skeletons), and not her best friend (a talking demon’s head in a jar named Shrunken Jim).
Gwen has a brilliant beyond brilliant idea.
Malachi and his friends are just your regular average kids from hell. The suburbs that is, not the fiery pit part. But when Hell’s Bells ring out—signaling that a soul has escaped from one of the eternal circles, Mal and his friends can’t help but take the opportunity for a little adventure.
