Synopsis: Cannot Reproduce

Software devloper Charlie Anderson is the only woman in her team, and in three jobs, has only ever been the only woman. This suits her just fine; all she wants is to be respected for the work she does, and that's something she's never found hard to achieve.

But things start to change when the company hires Sophie. Petite, attractive, and feminine, she is everything Charlie is not, and before long, Sophie's aloofness towards her and constant flirting with the rest of the team are making even Charlie's patience wear thin. To make things worse, the outsourcing of their QA department leads to the departure of Charlie's one close female friend at work, and the man at the new outside agency seems to want to start a personal vendetta with her (when he's not dreaming of being a rock star).

Throw in a string of underwhelming relationships, nights out with the girls, an office indiscretion and maybe even a kitchen sink, and I ought to have no trouble coming up with 50,000 words. But will November come to an end before Charlie manages to find a relationship that survives its second week? Is it possible to write software for a living and nonetheless find love? And does anyone care?

Cannot Reproduce is the author's first attempt at writing chic lit, and hopefully also his last.