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 179: She closed down the laptop and turned on the television.
She closed down the laptop and turned on the television. She let the Italian drama suck her in ass they quested for the killer and were involved in many scandalous love affairs. Sophie was pleased she didn’t have to look anything up or turn on the subtitles. She followed along with relative ease. ‘Of course it isn’t a terribly complicated plot,’ she told herself.
Eventually the over dramatized fiction soothed her and let her release all of the regular drama of her day. She went to bed and set her alarm for early in the morning to make up for her night of relaxation. When the alarm went off the following morning, Sophie stretched and slid out of bed. She felt calm and restd and as she went through her morning routine she realized she also felt settled. If she went in and Sean fired her, she would accept the other job. If she went in and things went back to normal she would decide if it was worth giving normal a chance o if it was time to leave Havers.
“Either way I don’t have to think about it until Monday,” Sophie said. “Although I should probably text a refusal of the other job. She set her coffee on to brew and tied her hair, which was still wet from her shower up on top of her head. With her hair out of the way and the scent of coffee snaking through the air, Sophie pulled out her cell phone and sent a brief message refusing the job with the company Kristen’s family owned. She kept it short and sweet and didn’t mention Kristen or her family. She then set the phone down and checked her schedule.
It would be a long day, but she was certain she could make up for her lost time and still have Sunday to relax and get ready for her work week. ‘Whatever the work week brings.’
With a fresh cup of coffee in her hand, she want into her work room and got started. She let a pod cast detailing the history of silk and the silk trade play as she worked finding the information fascinating. She checked items off of her list throughout the day, pausing only or a quick lunch and by dinner time she was not only caught up but done with everything on her list.
Sophie made dinner and then took out her sketch pad. With everything done, she felt better about focusing more on future designs.
Sunday was slower and more relaxed. She picked up her groceries for the week, cleaned her apartment and dropped off the ordered garments with Janine for shipping. She then sketched out some ideas for winter clothing and tried not to think about what Monday morning would bring.
Monday morning, Sophie found herself rising just a little earlier than usual. She turned off he alarm before it could ring and got out of bed. No matter how settled she was with the options, she had to admit to a degree of excitement. Things in her life might change today. ‘Or they might stay the same.’
She thought about it as she got dressed for the gym and headed downstairs. If she remained in her job at Havers would it calm down? Would it be a steady work environment or would there be more drama? And if she took another job would it provide her with a steady paycheck accompanied by a drama free workplace or would she just be training one set of dramatics for another?
“I’ll find out soon enough,” she told herself as she opened the door to the gym.
Ten til Midnight 