Monday 21 September 2020

#WEPff #WINNER of the AUGUST Challenge LONG SHADOW! Toi Thomas Guest Post: Reading and Writing to Cope-Still Waiting for Hope

 Hi! L.G. here!

The winner of the August Challenge, LONG SHADOW, joins us today. This is the second challenge in a row Toi Thomas has won, and it's no wonder. Her words are powerful and poignant.

Take it away, Toi!

Reading and Writing to Cope- Still Waiting for Hope

12 years ago, I had no idea I wanted to be a writer.

It's true that throughout my life I've always written in some way or another, but it was never something I thought I needed or wanted to pursue. Then one day, I began to find myself writing- being fueled by emotions. Going through a tough time, those words begin to help me. I was fortunate at the time that the things I wrote ended up being the first novel I ever published. While that novel isn't available to the public right now, pending a rewrite, at the time it was the most important thing in my life. Now don't get me wrong, my family and my faith have and always will always come first, but writing is what helps me keep the life- the clarity of mind- I've always had.

It's not just writing either. I've always been a fan of reading, though there was a time that I stopped reading due to the pressures of mandatory reading. Once I got over and past that, reading became part of my life again and just like writing it helped to soothe me- to help keep the balance and clarity I needed. Sometimes that means reading my Bible or reading devotionals but for me, mostly, it's fiction that really impacts and embraces me.

I become overwhelmed by the things people are able to imagine in their minds- things that are many times clearly inspired by reality, whether that reality is good or bad, fair or terrifying, fiction has always been that thing that has helped me cope.

I have been struggling lately. I'm not even sure if “struggle” is the right word but it's the one that I have for right now. I am living through a time that history has continued to repeat, and it breaks my heart daily. I live in a world where someone who looks like me can die at any moment if they piss-off the wrong person with skin lighter than ours. It breaks my heart that other people don't, or refuse to, see the Injustice of the world that we live in. It breaks my heart that people don’t, or refuse to, acknowledge their privilege and acknowledge the brutality that others have to face every day.

People of color, especially black people in the U.S., live in fear. Because of the color of our skin, the police will shoot us instead of talking to us or offering us due process. We don't get to walk out of our houses and tell someone to leave us alone if they're bothering us. No, instead, we get to keep our mouths shut, we get to hold our heads down, and we get to pray that we make it home every day.

So, these are the things that I have been reading about. These are the things that I have been writing about. These are the things that I have been trying to cope with. So many people right now are focused on the horrifying pandemic that we're all dealing with, but for me, the pandemic is the least of my worries. Dying from covid-19 doesn’t scare me- it’s preventable. Having a headlight go out scares me because I could get pulled over by a cop and be killed for being the wrong color.

So, these are my words. I write them to help me cope- still waiting for hope.

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My latest release: Why Are You Afraid?


There’s no easy way to explain racism, especially to young kids, but the sooner kids learn the truth, the better they can combat it and work to help make changes.

This is a light, yet serious, story about perceptions. This book was written to help parents start the race conversation with their children, whatever their race or skin color may be.

Amazon link

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Toi Thomas is a geek-girl, vinyl collector, chocoholic, movie buff, animal lover, avid reader and reviewer, blogger, vlogger, and an indie author of children's books, fiction, and nonfiction. Find Toi online at the following links.

Website- The ToiBox of Words

YouTube- Toi Thomas

Facebook- Toi Thomas Author

Twitter- @ToiThomas

Website- Lit Carnivale

YouTube- Carnie the Bookworm

Instagram- @CarnieTheBookworm


Thank you so much for the guest post Toi, and congratulations once again for your win for LONG SHADOW!



Our next challenge is almost here! Please get your thinking caps on for GRAVE MISTAKE. The first post will go up on October 1st. Have your entries ready by October 21st-23rd. Once again, we will be practicing WEP-Lite.


L.G. for the team:



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@ToiThomas #WEPLONGSHADOW  #WEPwinner #guestpost https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2020/09/wepff-winner-of-august-challenge-long.html @DeniseCCovey, @YolandaRenee, @LGKeltner, @OlgaGodim #amwriting #writingchallenge

@ToiThomas #WEPLONGSHADOW  #WEPwinner Reading and Writing to Cope #guestpost https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2020/09/wepff-winner-of-august-challenge-long.html @DeniseCCovey, @YolandaRenee, @LGKeltner, @OlgaGodim #amwriting #writingchallenge

@ToiThomas #WEPLONGSHADOW  #WEPwinner  Reading and Writing to Cope-Still Waiting for Hope #guestpost https://writeeditpublishnow.blogspot.com/2020/09/wepff-winner-of-august-challenge-long.html @DeniseCCovey, @YolandaRenee, @LGKeltner, @OlgaGodim #amwriting #writingchallenge