College student Chris Marley agrees to help an enigmatic professor test a cutting-edge AI tool, but discovers he's entered into a Faustian bargain, and must fight to resist the temptation of power and save his soul. ~~~ In this modern reimagining of the Faust myth, Chris Marley, a student at Southern California University, joins an enigmatic professor's research team testing Project Narcissus, a new AI content-generation tool. Limited only by his imagination, Chris invents new talents and accomplishments to erase his shortcomings. His only proof is what he can conjure with Project Narcissus, but the evidence doesn't lie--or so people believe. Though his fabrications earn him fame, fortune, and a girlfriend, the more Chris embraces his new persona, the more he sacrifices to maintain it. When his unconditional access to Project Narcissus expires, Chris must choose between the temptations of his unfettered creativity and preserving his authentic self. Readers have said: "I find this novel most intriguing as a chronicle of our modern age. Much may be gleaned by studying past stumbles and missteps, that we may avoid repeating history's mistakes." - George Washington "What's the deal with this novel? I gotta tell ya, it was quite a story. Really made me think, you know?" - Jerry Seinfeld "The ending leaves unclear whether he has gained wisdom. I suppose we cannot expect profound personal growth in the span of a novel!" - Lizzie Bennet "Perchance this tale can serve as a caution for us [all]... For as quickly as dreams are conjured, they can turn to nightmares when born of thoughtless fancy." - Puck

Desdemona ''Des'' Winchester wants nothing to do with Melliford Academy. In fact, she's pretty sure her parents shipped her off to boarding school just to get her out of their hair. It's a move they'll come to regret if she has any say in the matter. Nothing humiliates posh folk like having a daughter sent home from the country's most esteemed educational institution. Just flunking class isn't dramatic enough, though. Des plans to get booted in the most spectacular manner possible, just to make sure her parents' social circle will never let them live it down. Her scheming, unfortunately, encounters three roadblocks within the first week of class. The first: Exie Quinnell, teacher's pet, whip-smart, and unreasonably attractive. Neither girl intended to end up on a project together, but their teacher deemed Des in need of a little... remediation. The second: There are things about Melliford Academy that none of the teachers will talk about, even when pressed. Things that should be easy answers. The third: The first student found dead with a folded paper dove perched on their chest. ❖❖❖ Complete and fully edited. Comments and critiques are both welcome and appreciated. I write characters from many different backgrounds, with many different experiences. If you share those traits and find that I have misrepresented anything, please let me know! I am feedback-friendly and here to learn :)

||WATTY WINNER 2023🌟|| Two strangers pretend to be a couple to win a dumb bet. The wager: they must enrol in couples therapy and fool their counselor. _________ Updates every Friday at 2pm (BST) _________ Six non-refundable couples counseling sessions. That's how many Clementine booked for him and his girlfriend to sort out their relationship problems. What he didn't see coming was getting dumped as soon as he informed her of it. Enter Everett, a chaotic, curly-haired boy who barges into Clementine's life. He offers to fake date and attend the counseling sessions with Clementine. Unfortunately, they are both idiots. Did they really believe they could safely fake-date in a Wattpad book and NOT fall in love? ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜 Might bring to mind: "Heartstopper" but with a ton more baking and fake dating 🌈 🎼🎶 This book has a Spotify playlist with a song for each chapter. To download it you can search me on Spotify @itsmeimthevampire - the playlist name is "Idiots To Lovers." 🏅🏅🏅 Watty Winner 2023. Shortlisted in the Open Novella Contest 2023. Featured on Wattpad profiles: @FreeTheLgbt @Romance 🏆🏆🏆 #2 lgbt #2 lgbtq 📆 10/5/23 #4 gay 21/5/23 #4 bxb 14/5/23 #5 boyxboy 13/5/23 #1 gayromance 5/5/23 #1 gayshipsareyayships 14/5/23 Written for ONC2023 using prompt 39: On a blind date with a complete mismatch, you're increasingly uncomfortable but too polite to leave. Then an attractive stranger comes over and gives you an out.

Always willing to put herself last, Catalina Juárez has never rocked the boat. But that all changes when her father insists she marry a man she cannot stand to be near. Hopping into a carriage for hire, she spends the last of her money on a ride to nowhere. Because this mysterious carriage has one rule: you go where it takes you. Well, that was a waste of money, because she isn't even to the edge of town before she's unceremoniously dumped off at a train station. With no money to buy a ticket and no time to think of another plan, Catalina pushes through the crowd and onto the train. Marcos Caballero has never met a problem he didn't want to solve. Traveling alone on a ticket meant for him and a woman who didn't want to be with him, he's taken in by the scared, doe-eyed look of the woman in the dining carriage. She's ticketless and alone; he's lonely and has an excess ticket. Stepping in to save her, he claims her as his wife, not really expecting her to play along past the point of danger. But she quickly steps into the role with ease, acting as if they've known each other their whole lives. Somehow, it seems like they might have. But being on the run from troublesome and powerful fathers isn't without its struggles, and Catalina and Marcos are going to have to decide how much they are willing to risk to put love ahead of duty. ~ * ~ * ~ This is one of the five novellas I'll be writing for this year's ONC! You can find the rest (Hang it Up, Christmas at the Cabin, Love Lies & Red Eyes, and I Don't Want to be Queen) on my profile! For this story, I selected prompt 9. "There's an urban legend that's been circulating for years about a taxicab that doesn't take you where you want to go, but where you need to go. One night, you stepped into this cab." Except make it pre-car-era.

Submerged kingdoms, haunted temples, booby-trapped caves. Lara Croft has seen it all in her quest for ancient artefacts, which she sells to the highest bidder. But nothing prepares Lara for her latest, greatest discovery: a golden apple capable of bringing its bearer anything they desire. The only problem? The golden apple has also transported Diana, the beautiful warrior queen of the Amazons, straight from Ancient Greece's Olympian Realm and into Lara's world. Lara is determined to use the golden apple to get her gorgeous--and literally divine--guest safely home, but the apple is ripe with discord, tempting Lara with the chance to bury her demons and bring back all that she has lost. Darker forces in Lara's world also desire the golden apple: she and Diana are hunted by a corrupt tech company bent on using the apple as a weapon for world domination, and Lara's discovery awakens a vengeful supernatural entity determined to control the apple's power. Unable to fight her growing feelings for her demi-goddess companion, Lara finds herself torn between getting Diana home and wishing that she could stay forever. As a net closes around her, Lara must risk losing everything to realise that love is the greatest treasure of all. ~~°~~°~~° Welcome to my ONC entry! I'm not sure if I can stick to the deadlines for long, but I'll try! I used the following two prompts: 71. After discovering a precious but dangerous artefact you become an instant celebrity. But things begin to happen that make you wish you had never discovered it. 75. You inherit a family heirloom passed down for longer than anyone can remember. You discover its secret. This secret will twist your life and change it forever. ---- Cover art adapted from artwork by the amazing Stjepan Sejic. If you like sapphic comics, check out his series "Sunstone" and the incredible comic artwork as Nebezial on Deviantart and ArtStation, @stjepansejic on Twitter, and #nebezial on Insta and Tumblr