The fifteen minute novel writing experiment is a attempt to write a complete (and very rough) draft of a novel by writing for fifteen minutes each day. I have taken a timed writing from one of the daily prompts done in 2021, cleaned it up a little and used it as my jumping off point into a story. Each day I will take the last line of the story written the day before and use it as my sentence starter and write for fifteen minutes, growing the story as the year progresses.
Day 97: She lifted her arms in front of her and took a slow step forwards, hands feeling for the open panel.
She lifted her arms in front of her and took a slow step forwards, hands feeling for the open panel. When she reached the wall she stopped. To Anya her hands were waving in midair but it was clear that Marta thought she was touching something.
“I only see and feel a wall,” Marta told her. She lowered her hands. “You say they are studies?”
“The other ones were,” Anya said. She realized she hadn’t taken a good look inside this one. She peered inside. It was set up as the others were. There was a low work bench, this one covered with tools as the one in the library had been. There were two chairs pulled up in front of the fire place, a shelf full of books and papers pinned to the walls. “It is a study,” Anya confirmed.
Marta nodded slowly. “Do you think you could pick up and bring one of the small items out?” she asked.
“I don’t see why not,” Anya shrugged. She stepped into the small study. Like the previous ones she entered, there was dust and cobwebs everywhere. She glanced back and saw Marta frowning at the entryway as she studied what she believed to be a blank wall. It was somewhat disconcerting and Anya quickly reached up to the shelf and picked up the first book that came to hand. She slipped it off of the shelf. It moved easily, in fact it felt as though the book fairly leapt off of the shelf into her hand as though eager to be read.
Anya wondered if it would be so interested when she tried to take it out of the dusty study. She took a deep breath and walked back to the door. Anya passed through the opening and the book came with her causing no difficulties. Anya relaxed somehow thinking the book might not want to leave with her.
Marta looked relieved when she returned. She looked at the book in Anya’s hand. “Now that I see,” she said. Marta reached out a hand to touch the book. Anya lifted it closer. Marta’s fingers touched the spine, confirming that it was real.
“Well,” she said, pulling her fingers back. She seemed to have nothing else to add. “Well,” she repeated.
Anya looked at the book. Her fingers made dark marks on the dusty spine. She could see that there were golden letters printed on the spine of the book under the dust. She gently wiped off the dust, careful not to flake away the gold letters.
“What is Conjuration?” Anya asked.
”What?” Marta said.
“Conjuration,” Anya repeated. “The Book is called Conjuration and the lunar phases.”
Marta frowned and looked at the spine. “How do you know?” she asked.
Anya frowned and pointed to the title clearly printed on the spine. “Only a little of the gold flaked off with the dust. It is still legible. I suppose part of the t is gone in conjuration, but I think that is the word.”
She looked from the book to Marta and found the other woman staring at the spine of the book. “Anya I don’t see any words.”
Ten til Midnight 