She was open, but at the time she wasn’t interested in anything I submitted to her.įast-forward to February 2015.

I responded, letting her know that it had already been acquired (how often does that happen?), but that I’d love to submit more work to her in the future if she was open to it. “Please send a full manuscript of THIS DAY IN JUNE to me,” it said. Shortly after I signed my contract with Magination Press, I received an e-mail from Deborah. In 2013 the manuscript for THIS DAY IN JUNE was picked up by Magination Press. Several months went by, and I hadn’t heard back, so I continued to submit to other agents and publishers. She had attended that year’s Spring Spirit conference, and she was on the coveted “submission list.” The manuscript I queried about was titled THIS DAY IN JUNE, and it was a rhyming story about an LGBT Pride celebration. Long version: In summer 2012, I queried an agent named Gayle Pitman and Deborah Warrenĭeborah Warren from East/West Literary Agency. Ages 4–8.Short version: I submitted to an agent who was at Spring Spirit! Children are in the mix throughout, as well, driving home the underlying message: “All invited/ All excited.” Substantial endnotes discuss each scene and provide context for the people and groups represented, along with parental tips for discussing gender and sexuality. Organizations like the Human Rights Campaign and San Francisco’s elaborately costumed Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence appear, along with smiling politicians, women on motorcycles, shirtless dancers, and genderqueer drag queens with flowing gowns, feathered headpieces, and facial hair.

Wisely, Litten only outlines the happy crowds and buildings in the background (placards reading “Born This Way” and “= Rights” are everywhere), saving color and detail for the marchers themselves. Her couplets keep things marching steadily forward, but it’s Litten’s artwork that creates a sense of joyous excitement and showcases the diversity on display. Pitman, in her first book for children, salutes the LGBT parades that take place across the U.S. Punchy rhymes like “Motors roaring/ Spirits soaring/ Voices chanting/ Doggies panting,” could describe any number of jubilant summer parades add in “Clad in leather/ Perfect weather,” and the field narrows.

This day in june gayle pitman