She is sent to kill the dragon. Instead, she might become his only salvation. *** In a world swallowed by the Ever-Dark, Iva Vernigora is nothing more than a lowly servant in the house of the cruel Voivode Yakub Ivanov, Duke of Highroot. But when Voivode blackmails her with the lives of her parents, Iva is forced to pretend she's his daughter, as she infiltrates the royal academy of magic - Kolegium. Voivode Yakub's order is absolute: poison the Prince Konstantin Veliki. Prince Konstantin is the heir to the throne, the last of the line of Dragons - a Zmey warrior of light, who was blessed with a dragon-shifting gift. At a first glance, he is nothing but a smug, pompous royal, and everything Iva is supposed to hate. Yet every touch, and every shared lesson at Kolegium blurs the line between the enemy she must kill and the man she is beginning to crave. While Iva stalks her prey as a knife in the dark, waiting for the chance to extinguish Konstantin's light, she discovers that the dragon everyone fears is the only thing standing between humanity and the void. As the Ever-Dark Shades rise, Iva must make an impossible choice. Will she carry out her sinister orders and secure her parents' freedom, or will she stand by the Dragon in the battle for the world's last light? *** The Shades are coming. The Dragons are falling. And the Eternal Spark is waiting for its host. © 2026 EvelynHail Exclusively on Wattpad Based on prompts: 97. "When the world slips into endless darkness, something begins to move in the shadows and you must find a way to survive in a night that never ends." 4. "You discover that the dragon everyone fears is in danger, and you are the only one who can save it from the knight sworn to slay it ."

The woods surrounding Crenshaw are haunted by the secret between life and death---a monster known only as the Reaper. For centuries, Crenshaw's Institute for the Dark and Gifted has had one rule that its students are never meant to break: stay out of the woods, or face the Reaper's wrath. Faceless and formless, the Reaper feeds off the blood of those unfortunate enough to wander into the forest, but never touches those who obey the golden rule. That is, until a body is found in the library, drained entirely of blood. With the school halls no longer safe from the Reaper's bloodlust, four gifted students are forced to team up to uncover what the Reaper truly is---and more importantly, how to get rid of it. (Prompt 16: "And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.")

This space is created especially for writers participating in the Open Novella Contest 2026 Writing a novella is exciting... but also confusing, lonely, and full of self-doubt. ❤️ Is my story good enough? ❤️Is my opening strong? ❤️Will readers understand my characters? ❤️Am I even on the right track? You don't have to figure this out alone. This book club is a place where contestants can: ✔ Share their entries ✔ Get genuine reads ✔ Receive honest and helpful feedback ✔ Improve their chapters ✔ Support fellow writers Here, we don't compete. We grow together. If you are writing for the Open Novella Contest and want readers, reviews, and real feedback - this circle is for you. Let's help each other write better stories.

Elicia Thorne has spent her life chasing whispers. When her search leads her to the ruins of a civilization erased from history, she uncovers more than myth. Beneath shattered stone waits an artifact that hums with memory. The memory of an ancient being once worshipped, once feared...and now awake. The first vision it offers her is not prophecy. It is a warning. From that moment on, the world shifts. Fate coils tighter. Rage flickers beneath her restraint as something vast and cunning draws closer. A forgotten god of mischief has reached through centuries of silence and its touch has not gone unnoticed. Elicia does not know whether she was chosen, claimed, or merely convenient. But she knows this: The whisper that once called her name has grown louder and it wants something in return.

Tris McCoy is having an uneventful summer. It's the summer before eleventh grade, and it's the last summer she has before she has to start worrying about driving, and college, and a career. With her mom being in the hospital and her dad enjoying the title of father out in Australia, she's left to spend the next six weeks alone. Until she (literally) stumbles across a stack of old letters from her pen pal, July Souders. July lives in British Columbia---four provinces away---but Tris knows of a camp she used to attend. Unwilling to spend the summer alone and desperate for any change, no matter the size, Tris sets off for summer camp.

Nicole Brenner has been missing for three years. Sort of. Trapped between worlds and bound to a cabin deep in Pennsylvania's western mountains, Nic has spent every day since keeping an ancient evil locked behind the door at the end of the hall, and trying not to lose her mind. She's got a grimoire she's memorized cover to cover, a weepy cryptid named Pierogi, and exactly two weeks of corporeality per year to shore up defenses against the monsters called to kill her. Then Cal Muir walks through her front door - ex-Navy SEAL, ex-almost-something, and the last person she ever expected to see again. He's here to find out what happened to her; he doesn't know she's standing right behind him; and he's wasted no time dismantling her meager defenses (and she cannot stress enough how much of a problem that is). Now Nic has six days to figure out how to save a man who can't see her, from monsters he doesn't believe in, before Halloween night blows the door open for good - all while reckoning with the fact that the magic she once told him wasn't real might be the only thing that saves them. A second-chance paranormal romance steeped in Penn Dutch folklore, veteran mental health representation, and the kind of magic that challenges both fate and faith.

One year ago, Elliot disappeared. When a strange flower spirited her to the Fae filled d'Oré Isles, Serena is dedicated to finding her twin or uncovering answers. But will the price be higher than she can pay, and will she be able to convince the King to help her in her quest? Welcome to my Open Novella Contest 2026 entry! Over the next 12 weeks, I'll be participating in the Open Novella Contest and writing novella of no more than 40,000 words. From this year's prompts, I've chosen Prompt 2 as my main: The first flower to bloom in spring isn't just a sign of the seasons changing. It's a portal. When you touch it, you're transported into a magical world you never knew existed. I look forward to creating a story for you. I'd love if you would support me and my novella by sharing, commenting, voting, adding it to your lists, and, of course, reading along! Ongoing Word Count: 11,470(ish) Last edit for typos and comments: 18 February. Cover art created by myself on Canvas with Wattpad provided banners. Chapter art created on Pinterest - I own no part of that art. No part of this novella was created with AI. No part of this novella existed before 1 February 2026.

𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒅𝒐𝒘 𝒊𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔, 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓? In the misty town of Silverpine, Vermont, Isobel Luxford greets each sunrise with a mix of hope and dread. Her protector, Reuben Hamilton, moves like a whisper, shielding her from unseen dangers. Together, they share a silent vow: keep the chancellor's daughter safe. But when the town plunges into darkness, the familiar twist of time ensnares them. Conversations repeat, disasters echo, and a glowing mark on Isobel's neck hints at a deeper connection to the shadows. Each cycle reveals secrets, drawing them closer to an ancient artifact that might hold the key to escape. As they learn to manipulate light and shadow, a question looms: can love break the chains binding them to this endless night? Will they uncover the truth before the darkness claims them? ~ 𝑮𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒉𝒐𝒈 𝑫𝒂𝒚 meets 𝑯𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝑫𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝑫𝒂𝒚 in this romantic thriller where a supernatural time loop becomes a crucible for love and redemption. ~ ONC 2026 prompts: 97, 101, 118, 105, 99, 24, 29, and 103. ✧ 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 ✧ 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬 ✧ 𝐎𝐦𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐏𝐎𝐕 ✧ Copyright © 2026 Lily Mitchell Exclusive to W A T T P A D, under the profile of OnceUponALily. Cover edited by author via Canva Pro and Postermywall.com

The Eye has seen-the world will end, unless the apocalypse is properly thwarted. Unfortunately, this task has been handed to the two worst people for the job. Gadowyn Harker is a poison-peddling witch of the Gold City with a curse: if she loves, she will lose her powers-and herself. Beau "The Beautificent" Beguile (not his real name) is a smug necromancer who cons the rich and has a lifelong allergy to love, and all its messy bits. Now they must do the unthinkable: bring a dragon and a future knight-princess-sworn enemy of dragonkind-together, romantically. The world would do well to start praying; the chances of success are slim at best. Meanwhile, the Gold City teeters on the brink of collapse, undead roam the streets (entirely Beau's fault), and the end of the world draws ever closer. Somehow, Gadowyn and Beau must save it all with love-without falling prey to it themselves. First draft written for ONC 2026 | Main Prompts 11 & 98

After a year spent healing at St. Francis Mental Hospital, Neillah must piece together the life she was forced to leave behind without getting caught. ⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂⠁⠁⠂⠄⠄⠂ ⠂⠄⠄⠂☆ When Neillah Thomas is released back into society she expects her family and friends to have moved on--not believe she's dead. Convinced it was for the best, her mother assures her temporary grief was better than long drawn hardship that could only end in pain, keeping her wellbeing a secret from everyone, but also single-handedly cutting off Neillah's entire support system. Sworn to secrecy, she attends college at her dream school only to find her former friend group in shambles. Between the cold stares, scathing retorts, and literal evasion, Neillah is shocked to find her first crush is a loner and that hot-headed best friend of hers? He seems to be staring in her direction a little too long. Clinging to her promise to remain out of sight, Neillah stubbornly fights for the closure they all deserve and answers she never got, no matter the cost. | An Open Novella Contest Entry | | Cover by the Amazing @Caralogues |