If other worlds exist beyond the looking glass, how do we cross over to those foreign shores? What will we find there in the lands of whimsy and fantasy? What will find us? *** Malachi is a miserable man who's had one too many bad turns. On his last ropes, he's ready to give up the ghost when he finds the green door. Pulled into another world, one of monsters and demons, he is given new gifts and a new purpose. A crumbling queendom needs a hero and Malachi needs a new reason to live. The Sleeper must awaken and save the people of a world that isn't even his own. ONC 2025 Prompt #1: You stumble upon a mysterious door made entirely of briars and thorns. As you step through, you're granted extraordinary powers. But with great power comes great responsibility -- it's now your duty to save the crumbling kingdom.

#ONC2025 Third Place Winner (Finalist) #ONC2025 Short List #ONC2025 Round 3 Ambassador's Pick #ONC2025 Long List #ONC2025 Round 2 Winner *** After spending 30 years in another world, Ariana wakes up in the life she left behind, only to find echoes of the love she lost in a stranger. Was this fate, or just a cruel trick of her grieving heart? ============= When Ariana opened her eyes in a hospital bed, the world she had known for the past thirty years had vanished. There was no elegant hanfu, bustling marketplace, or warm smiles from her children and grandchildren. Instead, she found herself back in her original life-the life she had lost in a car crash, the life where her fiancé, Paul, had betrayed her with her stepsister, Julie. Her best friend, Tina, is the only anchor in this cold, unfamiliar reality, helping her navigate a world that has moved on without her. But Ariana cannot forget the lifetime she lived in another world, the love she had discovered, the husband she had mourned for a decade before she was ripped away. And then she sees him. A stranger with familiar eyes. A man whose presence tugs at something deep within her, inscribed into her soul. Is he the reincarnation of the man she loved beyond the boundaries of time, or is her grief distorting reality, causing her to chase the shadows of a dream? As Ariana struggles to regain her place in a life she no longer wants, the lines between fiction and fate blur. The past is written, but love might find a way to reshape destiny. ============= A novella inspired by the ONC prompt 129: "The ink of our souls binds us beyond the pages of time," The Ink of Our Souls tells a story of love, loss, and the unbreakable ties that transcend worlds.

Twenty years ago, magic vanished from the world, presumed forever gone. Yet it still existed, tangled within its own domain, along with Naamah, its dark personification. Naamah schemes return to complete her desire for humanity's subjugation and to avenge her earlier defeat. But with a soul barren, Naamah needed another to complete herself. Psalm, a blind young woman pure of soul, enjoyed a simple life with a loving family. She had no idea of her heritage, nor her magical potential as a powerful Oracle, nor that Naamah would target her. When the magic burst back into the world, Psalm and Naamah found their souls bound by a destiny written ages ago. This story was written for the 2025 Open Novella Contest, using prompt #129: The ink of our souls binds us beyond the pages of time. ***** Amby's Awards 2025 Grand Favorite *****

ONC 2025 SHORTLIST!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Here is my ONC 2025 entry. I've made it to the long list a handful of times and the short list once! Maybe this year will be the year? I chose # 69 - Corporations dominate the world, stifling creativity with the force of the sterile police to eliminate any threat of unauthorized competition. It gives plenty of room for creativity - here we go!