This is the third year for the fifteen minute novel. Personally i really like the concept. For these posts I essentially take one of the writing prompts from the year prior, spend a few minutes doing some minimal clean up and then make it the first prompt of the new year. Then at the end of each day I take the last sentence written and start another fifteen minutes the next day. I find it is a great way to look at interesting story ideas I have that don’t really fit with whatever else I am working on. It is a nice break and a great way to get a completed story draft put together. when I am done I can’t say that I am left with a full manuscript, but it is a complete story. Because I only write fifteen minutes at a time, details tend to flitter away as I focus on getting the entire story down. At the end of this process I generally end up with a a full skeleton of a story that needs a lot of fleshing out.
The two biggest downfalls in years’ past has been that I will work without an outline and so meander off into pathways, or realize that I might finish the story before the year is out and so seek to pad it more by adding sub plots and additional story lines. This year, I have a basic six point out line. It is minimal and includes one sentence for each point. The points are: Setup, Complication, Rising Action, Meanwhile, Climax, and Denouement. I have also chosen a story that is complete in itself and won’t (hopefully) spin out into a series. It is a one and done story idea. I also have a second one and done story idea waiting in the wings. If it seems like this will finish early I will finish it early and then start in on the second one for the remainder of the year.
Hopefully this will address my personal weak points. For those of you who think this sounds familiar, the original prompt was posted, Tuesday, May 31st, 2022. There was some minor tweaking but it is still the same basic idea. The link will take you to the original in case you want to compare the two.
And now without further ado, Let the 2023 Fifteen Minute Novel Writing Experiment begin!
Monday, January 2nd, Day 1: The dance was scheduled for the third.
The dance was scheduled for the third. Gwen had her dress all picked out. She took her time selecting the perfect one. She then spent months tracking down the perfect shoes, purse, jewelry and even hairstyle. It was to be the event of the year and Gwen wanted to look her best. Nothing could be left to chance.
Toby, she knew would look amazing. He was built to carry off a tuxedo well. She just needed to make sure he remembered to pick it up on time instead of waiting for the last second. She knew the rental place was closing early because of the upcoming holiday and didn’t want him to be racing to the last second before they closed. She knew things were forgotten when they were rushed and details mattered. Still, Gwen also knew Toby didn’t like to be pressured. She waited until she thought was the opportune time.
“When are you picking up your tux?” She asked. It was a week before the dance. Gwen figured she could ask now and then ask again a few days before the dance without making him feel hassled, but still reminding him to get it done. She had her schedule out in front of her. She and the others were getting their hair done for the event and she had a full slate of beautification efforts that needed to be done in preparation before heading to the salon with the others.
“I picked it up yesterday,” he told her.
She looked up from her papers, surprised. “You picked it up early?” she asked.
That seemed strange. Toby never remembered such things and when he did, it was usually a last second flicker of memory and a race to accomplish what should have already been done. It was an approach he took to every aspect of his life. It often caused him more problems than anything else in his world and was the one thing they tended to fight about.
“Yeah,” he said.
There was a tone in his voice she hadn’t heard before. She narrowed her eyes. All thoughts of the dance slipped out of her mind as she studied him, suddenly becoming inconsequential. There were lines of concern on his face and a downward pull to his mouth.
“It’s not your father is it?” she asked. She knew Toby’s father had been having some health issues as of late. She thought they were minor, and already seen to, but there was always the possibility they turned, became something major.
“No he’s fine,” Toby said. He ran a hand through his hair and leaned back. “Look, you’re going to hear soon anyway so I might as well tell you. I’ve been seeing Lisa.”
“Seeing Lisa,” Gwen repeated, her thoughts were still half focused on potential medical issues and it took her a second to switch gears. She felt slow and stupid as realization dawned.
“Yeah, for a while now and I think it is time we end it, between us, I mean,” Toby said. He sighed. “I’ll be going to the dance with her instead.”
Gwen blinked as his words settled into her brain. For a second she just stared at him. The shock of his words left her numb. “Oh,” she said. No other words seemed to want to form.
Toby relaxed at her response, his concern fading, the lines disappearing. “I knew you’d understand,” he said. “You know, we can still be friends, right.”
“Friends, right,” she repeated woodenly. He smiled and slipped out of the booth. “Thanks for taking this so well,” he said. He patted her awkwardly on the shoulder as he turned and walked away.
Gwen stared at the place he had been. Toby had just broken up with her.
‘No,’ she thought. ‘He told me he’d been seeing someone else while dating me and then broke up with me for her.’
She felt the sting of humiliation, but the sting was mixed with anger. Her cheeks turned, red but she wasn’t quite sure which emotion caused the heat to rise to her cheeks. She felt a strange prickling sensation all over her skin.
Knowing that she ought to get out of public before her emotions fully rose, Gwen gathered her papers, paid the check, including covering Toby’s cheeseburger. Gwen stood and gathered her things.
Ten til Midnight 