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Writer's cat knocks coffee onto keyboard. Screen fills with gibberish. Writer stares at it. Reads it twice. Changes title of Chapter 7 to match. Editor reads the chapter: "Finally, something with real voice." Cat gets mentioned on the dedication page. Cat knocks another mug. Writer starts taking notes. By Thursday, the cat has a literary agent. Agent calls: "Your client's new piece — stunning. Raw. Visceral." Writer, from the hallway: "That was the vet bill on the scanner." Agent: "We're pitching it to Penguin."

Cat sat on keyboard. Gibberish paragraph. Left it in. Best reviews I've ever gotten. "Experimental prose!" "Bold stylistic choice!" "Innovative narrative structure!" Cat now has an agent. I don't.

Laptop crashed. Lost 40,000 words. Found cat sitting on the keyboard. Suspiciously satisfied. Coincidence? Went back through notes. Chapter 12 featured a heroic dog. Chapter 15: dogs save the kingdom. Chapter 23: statue erected for the Noble Dog. Not a single cat in 40,000 words. Looked at cat. Cat looked at me. Chapter 1, revision 2: "The magnificent cat ruled wisely..." File auto-saved immediately.