The Fifteen Minute Novel is an attempt to take a single prompt and use the last sentence written each day as a start for the next day. This year I had several prompts circling around a similar story, so I have combined them. However, the story starts the same way each day, with the last line from the day before and a timer set for fifteen minutes. The hope is to end up with a complete, if very rough draft by the end of the year. Some stories are better than others, but I always learn a whole lot about my own writing when I do this so for me it is not only a nice way to work out a story, but it is a tool for helping my writing get better. And so, we continue this story for 2024 with…
Day 79: “Ah, the source of the madness?” Kevin asked with a smile.
“Ah, the source of the madness?” Kevin asked with a smile.
“One of them,” Sophie replied. “Apparently she doesn’t like me because she is the only one allowed to dress nicely in the office. At least that is what I am told.”
“That does sound like Kristen,” Kevin said with a laugh. “Thou shalt not draw attention away was always her motto.”
“You know her?” Sophie asked.
“We were at school together,” Kevin replied. “But don’t worry, we were never friends either.”
“Good,” Sophie said. “I’d hate ate to think I angered your friend. But in the interest of keeping the pace I need to get back to the office as well,” she said. She held up her paper plate. “Now that subsistence has been secured.”
“Of course. I must do the same actually. New case just came in. Good luck to you,” Kevin told her
They parted and Sophie made it back to her cubicle while the others were still in line. She ate her lunch and then wiped down her hands. She checked out the few words she jotted down that morning to find their meaning and add them to her vocab list and then chose a new podcast, this one in English and on the upcoming trends for the coming season. She ignored the sounds of the office and reached the end of her day with no angst.
As she had the day before, Sophie waited a moment to make sure she would have a separate elevator and then gathered her things. She passed by Kristen’s desk and saw she was gone, but she could still see that Evers was in his office and it looked like Ryan and Carrie were both staying late. She left them to it and took the elevator back down, dismissing the office from her thoughts for the rest of the night.
The week flowed in more or less the same way. She ate at her desk for the rest of the week as she liked to keep the food truck dining to a minimum. The others went daily but she noticed that the length of their lunches was gradually shortening. While Kristen never stayed late, Carrie stayed late every night for the rest of the week. Ryan and Evers seemed to have caught up on whatever they were lagging behind.
Over the weekend Sophie went to the fabric emporium and stocked up for a mass sewing spree. As she was no longer really worried about getting fired and whatever upset recent changes caused seemed to be minimum, she added a few more purchases for herself. She managed to find a lovely wool she thought would be perfect for a new winter coat along with buttons for it that she absolutely couldn’t resist. She splurged on a few more items and felt absolutely decadent as she made her way back to her apartment.
Ten til Midnight 