Back To Bolton

Julie was shocked when her elderly mother (Shirley) revealed she had a fling with a local Asian lad before she met Julie’s dad (Bill), and somewhere out there is a half-brother. Determined to uncover the truth, Julie engages a tracing agency and the quest to find the forgotten sibling begins. Her sister believes that Julie's obsession is a proxy for a deeply-felt pain over a lost baby and marriage breakup, but Julie is in denial. Only in the aftermath of Bill’s fatal heart attack does the truth become clear: in her dementia, Shirley confused the plot of a novel with real life and her fling was a fiction - or so it seems. Over the years Bill had secretly maintained contact with Julie’s ex-husband (Alex), in the hope of a reconciliation, which may now be on the cards when Alex pays a surprise visit.

I was thrilled to sell the option of this story, but, as happens so often, the option expired without resolution, so I took the opportunity to rewrite some elements, and I feel the story now has a more satisfying arc - but you be judge...