In Beijing's gilded elite, Emma Walker, heiress to the formidable Walker Group (global investments, covert intelligence), and Lily Zhu, brilliant scion of the allied Zhu Corporation (AI, cybernetics), are destined for power. But their world shatters under Professor Meng. Veiled in mystery, and scarred by the devastating personal tragedy of the "Dragonfly Breach," Meng is no ordinary academic. He's a master strategist, a puppet master, and his law seminar isn't just a class; it's a brutal proving ground, a recruitment drive for a shadow war where legal boundaries bleed into covert operations. For the select few, his private tuition offers a glimpse into a world far beyond textbooks-a world where the lines between professor and operative blur. As Emma and Lily's families-and Michael, Emma's sharp-witted brother-uncover a coordinated economic counter-offensive, the duo forms a strategic alliance. Their partnership is immediately tested by the arrival of Valeria Shaw, heiress to the critical resource empire, Shaw Industries, whose elusive sister, Anya, whispers of a top operative. With a shared apartment needing a third, and strategic alliances blurring into personal rivalries, they navigate a world where loyalty is fluid and ambition knows no bounds. Whose war are they fighting? Can they outmaneuver a mentor driven by personal vengeance, outwit their rivals, and carve their own future in a game where algorithms, assets, and audacious ambition are the deadliest weapons? ---

Mallory has a mission, a purpose, an end in sight. She doesn't need fun or distractions. She's driven and focused to the point of inattention to any and all things going on around her. And that's how it happens. One moment she's checking her mail before heading to her last class of the day, and the next she's staring at the remains of her emotional support coffee all over her shirt, the floor, and the handsome neighbor she's never even noticed until today. His presence in her life is a nuisance and the absolute last thing she would have wanted, but maybe, just maybe, he might be something she needed. __________ Open Novella Contest (ONC2026), prompt 19: when you accidentally spill coffee on someone, the moment that should've ruined your day becomes the beginning of a surprising and life changing friendship. I told myself I wasn't going to do it, I wasn't going to attempt two novellas at once when I have so many other things started. But clearly the muse is strong and the will is weak.

Lena Harris doesn't do messy. She deals in information and observations, small gaps and mistakes that can be leveraged to make problems go away. She gets her jobs done quickly, cleanly, and efficiently, and then she moves on, never dwelling on the past or worrying about anything beyond the next operation. And that's the way she likes it. Until her boss assigns her to the messiest operation she's ever faced. Now her carefully built up professional distance is collapsing around her, and she doesn't know how to hold it up- or if she even wants to anymore. __________ Open Novella Contest (ONC2026), prompt 33: It doesn't take long before everything in your life spins out of control. One moment you're a secret assassin, and the next you've somehow been hired as a nanny and you're not entirely sure how it happened.

When Brie lands a spot on Cheese Whiz, a cheese-themed cooking competition, the last thing she expects is to run into Colby Jackson, the man who left her heart with more holes than Swiss cheese. ~~~ It was supposed to be simple. Enter the contest, win the prize money, open her own restaurant. Easy peasy, extra cheesy. So of course Colby freaking Jackson and his smug, entirely too sexy face just had to come back into Brie's life like an extra stinky wheel of limburger cheese. Surrounded by fierce competitors and legendary amounts of dairy, Brie and Colby exchange barbs sharper than any cheddar. Yet, as the competition heats up, Brie quickly discovers the mozzarella isn't the only thing melting. Against her better judgment, Colby is once again worming his way into her heart. Will Brie find a whey to make things work between them, or will he leave her feeling bleu? 🧀 Rivals to lovers 🧀 Second chance romance 🧀 All puns are fully intended Using prompts 29 and 89 for ONC 2026! Cover by @-DeeIsDead-

A covert government operative sent to surveil a famous footballer accidentally becomes the nanny to his six-year-old son, forcing her to choose between completing the mission that could destroy him or protecting the unexpected family she has begun to love. ◈ ◈ ◈ Grace Anna Sumer has always craved freedom. That hunger is what led her into the shadows, working as a covert field operative for a little-known government agency. Officially, she gathers intelligence. Unofficially, she removes problems. Pulled from a coveted assignment in the Congo, Grace is reassigned to Paris to surveil the family of Hermes Mansi, an international football (soccer) star whose career is tightly controlled by a powerful and corrupt league that profits from obedience. Grace is told to watch him. To observe. To wait. What she does not expect is a twist of fate that places her inside his home, hired accidentally as the nanny to his six-year-old son, Drax. Under the safest cover imaginable, Grace enters Hermes' life with one objective, gather evidence and prepare for a quiet takedown. But the longer she stays, the harder it becomes to remember where the mission ends and her feelings begin. As secrets unravel and loyalties fracture, Grace must choose between completing her assignment or protecting the fragile and unexpected family she has found. ◈ ◈ ◈ This novella was written for the Open Novella Contest 2026, based on Prompt #33: "It doesn't take long before everything in your life spins out of control. One moment you're a secret assassin, and the next you've somehow been hired as a nanny and you're not entirely sure how it happened."

Joe Means was the prototypical "average-Joe," until the day he met a Time Keeper named Pixie. Ever since, he's gone from flipping burgers to twirling scythes and ensuring the balance of time. This is "Dating Father Time's Daughter" Cover made by: royalhues https://www.wattpad.com/story/190167718-the-north-star KB2 Productions SpiderWriters Studios 8/9/19

An entry for Novella story for 2026 Prompt 79. A letter arrives addressed to you, written by someone who shouldn't exist. A letter arrived this morning. It was from Nancy Drew. I was unwittingly plunged into a real-life Nancy Drew mystery-like it or not.

ONC 2026 Entry Felicity Hart has a cat, her baby, Atticus Reginald Agamemnon... the third. What she doesn't know is that Atti is actually a man who was charmed (cursed?) into being a cat each night. One day, Felicity decides to follow her cat to find out where he goes each day. To her shock, her cat turns into Hudson, one of the most handsome men she's ever seen. Join these two as they try to break the spell, so life can get back to normal. https://www.wattpad.com/story/406004197-open-novella-contest-2026

You don't expect much excitement in your quiet garden until the day a dragon suddenly appears among the flowers. When Eliza Whitaker inherits her great-aunt's cottage, she expects a fresh start, a little quiet, and maybe a lot of weeds. What she doesn't expect is a garden locals whisper about, flowers that never seem to fade... or the warm pulse beneath the soil that changes everything. As Eliza settles into her new life, she discovers that the garden responds not to ownership or attention-but to care. And when its long-sleeping magic wakes, it leaves her with an impossible responsibility: a baby dragon who should not exist, and a secret that does not want to be seen. With a charmingly infuriating journalist circling for a story and a garden that seems determined to test her boundaries, Eliza must decide what's worth protecting-and what it means to stay. A cozy fantasy romance about quiet magic, chosen care, and how I accidentally became a dragon keeper. ONC 2026 Entry

Aunt Mabel is dead, found lying amongst her daisies in her garden. Two eyes anxiously watch over her. The police arrive, but questions soon crop up. Is it actually Aunt Mabel? And who or what did it? A wild animal? A person? A baby dragon? Something strange is afoot in the Auntie's garden and it's up to Officer Holt Martinez, Estelle, and her cousin Julia, to figure it all out before it's too late. Little does she know that an unplanned trip to the Dragon's Lair Bookshop will upend everything she thought she knew about life, this world, and those beyond. * Respectfully submitted to Wattpad's Open Novella Contest 2026, under prompt #3, with subtle influences from prompt #41.