Minutia (A 3-Day Novel)

As a shy child, Lawrence lives for his extensive and well-cared for toy collection. But then these toys begin to disappear. When he finds out why, it leads to the end of his joy and sense of security, and he retreats even further into himself.

Bonnie is surprised one day after school by the appearance in her home of an elderly (and previously unknown to her) relative, her Great-grandmother Judith. It turns out that Judith is a compulsive shoplifter, and soon the family apartment is filled to the ceiling with trinkets and baubles. It's a strange life, but Bonnie loves it. Then it all ends in one terrible week, and Bonnie loses everything.

Somehow Lawrence and Bonnie find each other, and some small bit of happiness, while struggling to overcome their traumatic pasts.

This novel was written for the 2010 International 3-Day Novel Contest. It appears here pretty much as written during those 72 hours and contains typos, dropped plot threads and many inconsistencies. Those things are part of its many charms!

A note: the cover and chapter art was AI generated by me and midjourney.