1969. It was the year of Manson's helter-skelter, the year we put a man on the moon, and the year two strangers watched the world end in a mushroom cloud of nuclear war. 1966. This was a much better year. Well, for everyone except twenty-two-year-old Annie Edwards. Because it was the year she first saw the blonde-haired boy in her dreams. And although she believed in science, her gut told her these visions might somehow be connected to bizarre experiments happening on campus. As Annie and the mystery man known as Dimitri watch the world erupt in their dreams, they realize that the only way to save their countries, and the world, from nuclear destruction is to work together. They'll uncover the powers of dreams and nightmares, delve into hallucinogenics and insanity, and blur the line between the waking world and their subconscious. A race to space, a delusion of mind control, and the end of the world. Welcome to an experiment in dreams, drugs and war. -.. .-. . .- -- ... / -.. .-. ..- --. ... / .-- .- .-. inspired by prompts: "𝚆𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚖𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚌 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚜 𝚊 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚞𝚗𝚒𝚌𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚗𝚘 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚎." - #𝟼𝟿 "𝙰𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚎 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚘𝚛 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖 𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚊 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖." - 𝙴𝚍𝚐𝚊𝚛 𝙰𝚕𝚕𝚊𝚗 𝙿𝚘𝚎 - #𝟹𝟸 -.. .-. . .- -- ... / -.. .-. ..- --. ... / .-- .- .-. published: 24/02/2021 highest ranking: ---

Prince Leif could not have imagined that the Princess of Aradanas would be kidnapped at her own ball, but that's exactly what happened. Without question of his own safety, Leif and three other prospective suitors, dive blindly into a rescue mission. The way is not easy by any means, and wrought with battles- fought with brawn against soldiers, and with brain against the magical creatures of the wilds between the kingdoms. Their fears are tested, and bonds are formed; something Leif did not expect when he dove into the tunnels under the palace in a race to save the princess and hopefully prevent a war. But what happens when the princess does not need saving after all, and the enemy they chase is not the right one? When secrets are revealed, can Leif trust that the men he's bonded with are who they say they are? -.-.-.- ONC 2021 Prompts #87 and #67 -.-.-.- Highest rank #23 in Masquerade

Four years after her mother moved away, Diwa's father is finally getting remarried. Diwa's life as she knew it is getting invaded by monsters. Again. *** Eight-year-old Diwa has never met her mother: she left long before Diwa could even remember. All Diwa's life has been just her and Papa. But that life is threatened when Papa falls in love with a woman from America. Soon, Diwa and her father move in from their house to her stepmother's cramped apartment. With a past filled with monsters, Diwa is determined to get rid of her new stepmom and stepsister-and to finally get life back to how it used to be, with just her and Papa. With her Papa blindly in love, it's up to Diwa to get rid of the monsters. But when her plan backfires, Diwa starts to question what a true monster really looks like. Through a series of twisting events, backfired plans, phone calls, and lies, Diwa begins to wonder how she can get rid of all the monsters without turning into one herself. // ROUND ONE QUALIFIER // // ROUND TWO QUALIFIER //

When an attempted vigilante infiltration operation goes sideways, Jaime Collyn starts to question the government they've been serving their whole life. ( ((o)) ) Jaime Collyn is everything their government needs them to be-ruthless, cunning, calculated, and merciless. One of the most highly esteemed operatives in the world, they've been trained since birth to be a weapon. Jaime is ecstatic when they're authorized to go after the elusive Ivory Spiers. But once the mission begins and they meet Ivory, they find themself starting to doubt their loyalties. As Jaime grows closer to Ivory, they slowly begin to realize just what she's fighting for. When the political tension starts to rise and old loyalties are tested, Jaime isn't quite sure if they'll be able to pick the right side when the time comes. All they can do is hope. ONC Prompt #6 Cover by @outlandish-

Complete! Raizia has already died twice and she's not planning on dying again anytime soon. The 20-year-old necromancer makes ends meet by offering her resurrection services to a select few for an exorbitant fee. There's just one condition: she will only resurrect souls who have died within the past three days, and only for five minutes so they can share final goodbyes with their loved ones. But then she meets Aris, an attractive soldier reeling from the recent death of his mother. Raizia agrees to resurrect her, but when Aris ignores her cardinal rule, all hell breaks loose. As punishment for his deed, Raizia binds the soldier into her service. But Aris isn't going to come quietly... Fantasy ~ Romance ~ Adventure ~ Novella - - - Written for the 2021 Open Novella Contest, based on prompt #66: When you die, you come back. But you never come back the same. There's always a price to pay for resurrection... Open Novella Contest 2021 Round One Ambassador Pick and Short Lister Completed! Image by Rav89 on Deviantart.

Fitness-trainer Winston settled in Corbeau Woods for a quiet life with his husband, free of the superstition and madness of his childhood. When a mysterious statue of an eye circulates the town, people go missing and he and his husband make a shocking discovery about their neighbour's inexplicable fate. After the statue lands on his doorstep, Winston must wrestle with his denial of the paranormal to avoid losing his husband and his life. 2nd place and Best Cover Horror Category The Berry Pancake Awards (2023) ONC Shortlister and Round 3 Ambassador's Pick (2021) 1st Place Winner Mystery/Thriller 'The Level Up Awards' 2021 WattpadDarkFantasy's 'Dark Arts' reading list (May 2022) PsychologicalNovel's 'Terrible Speculation' reading list (Sept 2021) Paranormal 'Chills and Thrills' reading list (Sept 2021) StoriesUndiscovered 'Can You See Me Now' reading list (Sept 2021) Ghost's 'Featured Ghostly Tales reading list (August 2021) Cover image credit: Perchek Industrie on Unsplash Story copyright 2021 Sarah Paradis

❝ MAYBE THERE ARE NO GOOD GUYS ANYMORE. ❞ Mere weeks after the start of sophomore year, Angelina Jung awakens in the middle of the wilderness, stranded with no explanation. When she finds three other college students in the same predicament as her, she isn't sure what to believe. With all their recent memories erased, the four must set aside their uncertainty in order to survive. From enduring the harsh conditions to facing their inner demons, it'll take all their resilience to overcome this true test of their strength. However, the forest will soon become the least of their worries as a ghost from their past surfaces, enmeshing them in a ploy more sinister than they could imagine. Some secrets are meant to be buried. → Open Novella Contest Prompt #1 → cover by @demonologies → banners by @wintermoxie

*ONC 2021 Shortlist and Ambassador's Pick* For 200 years, Victor Cunningham has lived as a soul trapped within a common kitchen knife after a fortune-teller cursed him. The curse keeps his blade unbreakable and sharp but makes his life unimaginably dull. Sure, there's been brief moments of excitement, but he's spent more time lodged in a block of wood than anything. But, Victor's current owner is a rather unsavory fellow with a dungeon basement. Victor spends his days lying on a wooden bench in the company of bloodied pliers, shears, and scalpels. He never knows the next time he'll have to stab another innocent person. When the killer brings Guinevere Thomas, a young psychic, and chains her into the basement, Victor finally finds someone he can communicate with after all of his miserable years. And all he hopes for is to cheer her up before the killer forces him through her heart. PROMPT #4 You're a weapon, and weapons don't weep. WARNINGS: Violence, gore, depictions of murder, people kept in captivity, torture and maybe a few other things later on. Cover made by me using Canva!

A reluctant psychic medium must confront the world of supernatural he's long ignored. *** In a quiet valley town, eighteen-year-old Ian lives with a secret-sometimes he can't tell his imagination from reality. Fearing the psych ward, he denies what he sees and hopes that if he ignores it, the problem will go away. When a tragic accident upends his life, Ian becomes too busy taking care of his family to notice a new anomaly in his house. As conflicting clues come to light, questions arise about the incident, but Ian wants to move on. Being set up with a cute girl seems to be the perfect opportunity to rebuild his life and forget about his dark past. All he needs to do is to be normal for her just as he's pretended his whole life, but letting her get close endangers the limbo of his blissful ignorance. Will she help him uncover the truth behind why he's seen things no one else can? Or will Ian succeed and deny his gift away? *** Soul Survivor weaves the paranormal with a heartfelt psychological drama in a haunting tale about love, death, self-discovery, and the resilience that emerges in our darkest moments. - - - *** ONC 2021 ROUND 2 AMBASSADOR PICK & LONGLISTED *** Cover illustration and design: Isobel Lynx.

As Adam Baker grows closer to his crush, he starts to realize that he may actually be falling for someone else. ( ((o)) ) "This prom's not really my cup of tea," she says. "I'd much rather be up on my roof, watching the stars." Adam Baker has been in love with Brooke Rojas for as long as he can remember. When they're paired together for a school project, Adam thinks it's just the opportunity he needs to win her over. But everything changes when Adam meets Brooke's best friend Jason. Jason is funny, handsome, and confident. Adam finds himself inexplicably drawn to him, even as he and Brooke become closer and closer. And when a simple game goes one step too far, Adam realizes that he doesn't quite know who he is anymore. ONC Prompt #85 Cover by Manya707