NANOWRIMO 2015 – Chance encounters. Prologue

So it’s indeed that time of year again. Some of us (in the middle of Christmas knitting, new jobs and decorating a house) also have ridiculous aspirations of finishing a 50000 word novel in November….

Yes…. I know that I am totally and utterly insane. But there you go 🙂

Last time I did one of these about 4 years ago I wrote a draft that no-one has actually read. It’s not been fully edited by me yet and it’s getting a little bit ridiculous. So I thought that with this one I would be brave and post each written (currently unedited) chapter up on here and see what you lovely people thought of it.

Would be great to get your honest opinions. I am really trying to work on improving my writing.

Chance Encounters

By K Holloway

Prologue

A diary extract from the journal of Amelia on the 15^th June 2015.

I was not at all impressed with how today started out. That bloody tooth had been threatening something for about a week. Paracetamol had been my go-to drug for the past week and now (even though the pain was about a million times worse this morning) my bloody husband would not get me anything stronger.

One would think being married to a pharmacist would get you an occasional perk. To be clear, it does do no such thing. Mark decided – in his infinite wisdom – that I really should go and see a dentist if I was in that much pain. He then headed out to work while I waited on the sofa for a call back from the emergency dentist.

Having left a voicemail, all I could cope with doing was curling up on the sofa with a blanket. Knitting was just not going to happen this morning. That shawl project I tried to start last week – it is currently in a state of being barely cast on as I had to unravel it. If I try that one again today it will be going straight through the lounge windows.

I swear, when then phone rang (about 5 minutes after I had made myself comfortable), I nearly cried with relief. The very lovely receptionist on the phone was able to inform me that there was an appointment available in 35 minutes (because I had nowhere better I could be at 8:30am in the morning).

I am so glad I went for the dentist just around the corner. After changing out of my nightwear, I grabbed the car keys and headed out of the house.

It was at this point in the day that it became official. The world actually hates me. Not only was my tooth now making me feel like someone was poking a hot nail into my mouth, but the car would not start. The last thing I wanted to do was walk. But apparently, today, there was no choice in the matter.

To greatly improve the day (*insert sarcasm sign here*), my watch was telling me I only had 15 minutes left for the 20 minute walk. So I had to run to the dentist with an extremely painful tooth.

A diary extract from the journal of Kristina on the 15^th June 2015.

Today actually started pretty well. Unlike yesterday, there was actually enough milk in my fridge to make a coffee. So that was a definite improvement.

That sense of self ability and inner calm was then completely shattered by – guess who- that bloody women. She is literally on the phone or email every 15 minutes complaining about something. If she was such a blinking expert in online marketing why does she feel the need to employ ‘another’ expert?

Between you and me, if it wasn’t for the fact she pays on time and pretty well, I would be seriously considering telling her where to shove her ‘advice’. There is only so many times that you can explain how much thinks actually cost to do. Youtube content does not materialise out of nowhere! Blog content cannot be just ‘whipped up’ in an hour. Creating totally useless and irrelevant content is completely useless and a waste of her time and mine.

Anyway, she phoned this morning in such a strop. Just rude and ridiculous.

“Are we on Instagram?” she asks (note the lack of usual pleasantries you would expect if you decide to call at 7:30am).

“No Sarah,” I had to respond with my calmest and politest sounding voice here, “we decided not use that platform as you target market don’t usually use it. It wouldn’t be useful in the short term business strategy you wanted me to create.”

“Well my son thinks we should be on Instagram. I want a plan with me by 8:30am. If you could bring it in and we can discuss a budget if required.” She then hung up the phone and I throw a nearby cushion into the door.

The laptop, previously sat innocently on my kitchen table, now had to be fired up. God had called and today would be a working breakfast. No God, there were no other clients or things I had to do this morning. Everything could be dropped so that I could do your immediate bidding.

Within 35 minutes I’d managed to cobble together some sort of plan. Thankfully I’d put something similar together for another client last week. Otherwise I would have turned up with some printer paper covered in crayon scribbles.

I would have done it…. And she could have shoved it right up her derriere.

On a more positive note, it was a lot sunnier today than earlier in the week. So I walked to clear my head and try and regain some sense of calm before I had to meet with the old witch. My travel mug was safely tucked in my hand and the printed plan packed in a hell red file in by handbag.

I reached the path that would take me out onto the high-street with a measurement of calm and serenity. The lid of my coffee cup was currently off as I finished the last few mouthfuls (gulping was a good method as I had about 7 minutes before I was due in the meeting).