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Inspired by a word – ticket

Photo by Lance Grandahl on Unsplash

The scrap of paper twisted and danced on the wind, across the park, until it was deposited on the grass, where it skittered and skipped along until it fetched up against Wendy’s leg. Not looking up from her book, she brushed at the patch of skin it had touched. Another breath of wind, and it jittered against her again. Her sigh was exasperated as she caught it and picked it up, turning it to see what had disturbed her precious lunch hour.

It was a ticket. An invitation and free entry to the exclusive opening night of a secret club, tonight. She shrugged, and used the scrap as a bookmark as she packed up and headed back to the office.

At work Mindy, the new PA, was bemoaning her lack of Friday night plans, as her boyfriend had just stood her up. Her 23-year-old, excruciatingly fashionably made-up face pouted as she expounded on her woes.

Wendy, recalling her impromptu bookmark, pulled it out and handed it over. She wasn’t likely to use it: she had a date with the rest of her book tonight.

Mindy took the ticket with effusive thanks and the slightest hint of pity, which she was clearly trying to hide. Wendy snorted quietly as she walked away. Each to their own.

The police were at the office on Monday. Mindy had never returned from the party.

A piece of paper impaled on a hedge at eye level caught Stella’s attention as she lugged her shopping home. Seeing the word FREE on one side, she pulled it loose. It was a ticket. An invitation to the opening night of a secret club. Tonight. How thrilling, and her with no plans for her Saturday night! She stashed it in her bag and hurried home quick, in case anyone asked her if they’d seen a missing ticket. She had just enough time to get ready.

Two uniformed police offers canvassed the busy residential road, following up on a missing person report. A young woman had posted a picture on Facebook of a ticket she had found before going missing, but address shown turned out to be a derelict garden centre, empty for months.

Michelle spotted something glinting at her from under a rock as she was finishing up her morning run. Ever the magpie, she stopped and stooped to see what sparkled. At first she was disappointed to see it was just a ticket with a gold edge, but free entry to a new secret club had her intrigued…

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Published by cat socks on

I used to love to write. Growing up, if I wasn't reading other people's stories, I was writing my own. I even studied Creative Writing at Bath Spa University, in the hopes of one day becoming a novelist. But life - and work - took over. I got a job as a Copy Editor in a corporate company, and my creative endeavors got pushed to one side. Writing became a job, not a pleasure. Then, in 2019, I turned 40. This milestone made me decide to write a list - 40 things to do when turning 40. Two of these tasks were to write a novel and create a blog. So not at all ambitious then! A few months later, there was still no novel and no blog, until I came across an advert for a Writer's Retreat run by the amazing Bex Band and Emma Rosen. The retreat was a revelation! I started my novel, wrote a short story, and here is my blog! I plan to share pieces of writing as I re-learn my craft, articles and quotes that inspire me, and interesting research I uncover as I plan my novel. And anything else that tickles my fancy! So welcome to my blog - I hope you'll join me on my journey back to being a Writer.

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