Prose in Precisely 100 Words

If time is a waterfall that carves its memory into a map on our skin, will you wade through the cascading flow with me? Let it wash away the pain even as it etches wrinkles on our faces. Let them see we have lived. Lived hard and long, without fear as deep as love dare go. Dare with me through the falls. What’s on the other side is meant for us to see and to claim. Isn’t it equally likely the dystopian writers are mistaken? Let us prove a new dawn is nothing to fear as water keeps us alive.

Random Thought - Not so random. I'm talking about COVID-19

I've been stuck at home without work since the middle of March 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. That's four months.

Friends tell me their personal stories of how the virus has infected their loved ones. I stay home.

I've heard how a friend fretted over her brother because he caught Covid-19, spent fourteen days in an ICU ($240,000 bill), had to be quarantined at home for thirty days after that, and hasn't been the same since. He can't stand or walk for more than fifteen minutes at a time.

It's a hoax, some say.

I've heard how another friend fretted over her cousin who caught Covid-19 and spent time in the ICU, recovered, and caught the virus again.

It's a hoax, some say. I don't think so.

I saw a timeline on Facebook about a man whose friend said Covid-19 was a hoax. He went to a beach party, caught the virus and kicked the bucket the very next day. There is the mistaken idea that covid-19 doesn't affect the young. This is false. A friend who works in infectious disease control has seen youths/kids come into the hospital with the virus, and while they survive, they are not the same afterward.

It's a hoax, some say. I don't think so. I stay home.

I was talking to a cousin a few nights ago and her sister-in-law's brother died from Covid-19. I put on my mask the next day and went grocery shopping to get Milo's treats. I don't go anywhere outside without my mask on. After I touch door handles, I sanitize my hands. Over and over, every single time.

Tonight I saw a headline that my county just got a surge of 10,000 new cases in the past week, so the county mayor enacted a curfew effective until August 1st. I don't do any grocery shopping after 11:00pm anyway, so I'm fine with a curfew.

Some say it's a hoax. I don't think so. I stay home.

I do, however, feel trapped. Not because of the curfew, but because of the unsubstantiated argument that this is a federal power grab, a conspiracy, an infringement on individual liberties.

That's not the point in the slightest. This pandemic is a global threat to public health. The government has powers vested in it to address situations like this, and they are exercising them. These anti-government protesters wave their rifles, and threaten the health of everyone in close proximity, because they're "FREE". Wear a mask or suck on a ventilator for two weeks and bankrupt yourself into the next lifetime. Hard head make for a soft behind, that's all I know.

Put on your 😡mask in public. 

And wear it properly - over your nose and mouth. Ffs

On Writing - Dream Fulfillment in progress

June 3rd, I was debating myself over whether or not to pitch in PitMad the following day. Luckily, I have exceptional friends. Two called me to ask whether or not I'd pitch and when I waffled, they (screamed) cajoled me to go for it.

There was no denying their enthusiasm and they pushed into the PITCH camp. I fine tuned yet another Twitter pitch, and the following morning, I was revved up. Come to find out that Pitchwars/Pitch Madness added a new hashtag for Black authors #BVM for Black Voices Matter.

Bear in mind, I've pitched in PitMad before for the same manuscript. My pitches weren't that great, but I didn't know it at the time. I pitched my heart out to crickets. I'd pitched in DVPit (diverse voices pitch) 2019. One agent indicated interest by liking my pitch, but he passed away before signing me to his agency. I survived the rough and tumble of Pitchwars and the mentorship program and #ThisDarknessIsMine got fine tuned, structured and edited. When I pitched in January, I got interest from four agents, all of whom declined representation in the end. Rather three of whom declined representation and one of whom simply ghosted me (along with 95% of the mentees, so she's on our collective shit list).

That's the baggage I had to let go of for June 4th, and enter the contest with beginner's mind and a new well of endless hope.

I can't tell you how exciting the day was, but I'll try. With pitching contests on Twitter, the rules want retweets and comments from supporters, but LIKES are reserved for publishing professionals like literary agents, publishers and editors. They're sticklers for this, but I was advised not to be upset when non-industry-professionals like my pitches. There's an algorithmic metric for why, and I'll let it go at that.

I got dozens of likes from non-industry-professionals. I didn't sweat it.

I got hundreds of retweets.

The main takeaway is I got interest from 14 (FOURTEEN) agents and editors. I was simply over the moon, maybe even over Mars! The day's efforts were a solid golden opportunity, and I'd nearly talked myself out of putting my hat in the ring.

When it came down to the wire, two agencies offered representation. It's a writer's dream to get ONE offer. But I had two solid offers from heavy hitters to choose from and after a couple rounds of conversations, the choice was clear: Serendipity Literary. They're the largest African-American literary agency in the States and the president is a whirlwind, nonstop champion (who happens to have a pilot's license and flies planes in her leisure time).



A word about Kelly Thomas, who's representing me. She and I have a ton in common and every time she kept me in the loop about where she was in the manuscript, she always said, "I love this story and your writing is beautiful." Her passion got my attention, but when she mentioned #PublishingPaidMe, she won me over.

We're not going into negotiations willing to get lowballed. We know the score.

That's the key ingredient for a successful professional relationship. I'd always wanted a fighter to love my story and Michelle Delphinia's struggle because I knew the publishing game is a hard one, not for the faint of heart. Kelly is my champion and I believe we're going to kick some ass together!

Follow me on Twitter: @mackenzielitt13
Follow Serendipity on Twitter: @SerendipityLit


Have a magical day!
Mackenzie