Santa Claus is an old man in a tattered red coat, limping through a world whose failure to believe in him has caused him to vanish limb by limb. But before he disappears entirely, he has one last round to make - not with gifts, but with letters of apology, delivered to the people whose lives were derailed by a single, cold lump of coal. The greatest burden he ever carried was never the toys. It was his memories of the coal. This is one of my entries in the 2026 Wattpad Open Novella Contest. It is in response to Prompt 79: "A letter arrives addressed to you, written by someone who shouldn't exist."

EVERYONE THEY TOUCH DIES - EXCEPT EACH OTHER. For 423 years, Libby has been a walking biohazard: one accidental brush of skin and it's game over. Now she's the world's oldest virgin, a shut-in, and a not-so secret romantic who spends her nights writing about the experiences she can never have firsthand. But she isn't alone. For centuries, a robed figure has watched her from the edges of history. Libby assumed he was a hallucination, a coping mechanism for a mind fractured by four centuries of solitude. Then one night he slid into her DMs. And after four centuries of living without a single IRL connection, Libby is ready to be touched by a Reaper - whatever the cost. NOTE: This story is one of my Wattpad ONC 2026 entries. I wrote it in response to Prompt 114: "An immortal being, worn down by centuries and cursed so that anyone they touch dies, starts searching for a way to finally end their endless life. But Death, who has grown possessive and infatuated with them, refuses to let them go." ⚠️ TW: death, dirty language, sexual content, suicidal ideation.

In 1897, Charlotte Moreau has been in an abusive marriage for years and the only solace she has is in the quiet moments when her husband and children are asleep. She often spends time by the lake and usually finds it a place of solace until one day when she receives a message in a bottle from her former best friend Marie who passed away. She encounters a friend of her acquaintance, Julien Deroche, a man she despises. She begins to argue with him, telling him to leave her alone. She begins to argue with him, telling him vicious things and to turn the other way when they cross paths. When she goes to the woods to find a new place to escape from her daily hell, she encounters Julien and must come to terms with what happened to Marie because Julien knows the truth. And because of their connection to Marie, she begins to soften toward him until she begins seeing him every day in this isolated place. But then Charlotte realizes that she has fallen desperately in love with him. And her husband begins to suspect something when she has dirt on her dress nearly every day. She must choose between her heart and her duty to her husband and children.

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 |

An entry-level cartographer, Liadan is the least interesting, least important member of the Nautical Guild. Well, that's what she needs everyone to believe. When a warning at sea forces Liadan to flee the Island of Tirisea, she must choose if she returns to safety or trusts a stranger who promises her the impossible: a life where she is free from a duty that was inflicted on her at birth. No matter what, she must not let the mist find her, nor allow the key to fall into malevolent hands. One wrong move, and the world will crumble. Cover by @raizelrose3 ONC 2026 Prompts: 7. One morning, the ocean washes up a message. One you've been waiting your entire life to hear. 62. They say every door has its own key. Except for one, a key said to open them all. 79. A letter arrives addressed to you, written by someone who shouldn't exist.

Melinda starts her first day as shift manager of Cozy Retreat with a personal disaster. After spilling coffee into the lap of the most influential food blogger online, she is sure her brief carreer as shift manager was over. An unexpected connection forms and all she needs to do is believe she deserves a second chance. But can Melinda trust her heart as she struggles to keep the secrets of her past and the footprints of her memories beat a path to her door?

When her office burns down a successful editor must share a workspace with the most infuriating man alive or risk the promotion she's been working her entire career for. **** Chielozonam 'Elo' Williams is thriving. Not only does she have the job of her dreams she's about to make Acquiring Editor of PerfectRomance, the publishing imprint she's been working at for the past five years which would definitely prove to her judgmental father once and for all that he was wrong about her wasting her life away at a dead end job but she's also determined to enjoy the prime years of her youth. Endless fun and casual romps in the sheets are the name of the game. That is until the unthinkable happens. After Elo's building catches fire and burns down she has no choice but to share an office with the one person that makes her blood boil: Connor Price. Archenemies since their days at college Connor makes getting under her skin an art form with his well-timed scathing remarks and contemptible behavior. It's not long before they're locked in a battle of wits, neither willing to back down or give up. When they have to work together to acquire a potentially lucrative manuscript, they are forced to put aside their long-standing animosity for an adventure that will change everything they thought they knew about each other. PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION meets ANYONE BUT YOU meets THE HATING GAME in this contemporary rom-com about resilience, self-discovery and two sworn enemies who can't decide whether to kiss or kill each other. An ONC 2026 story inspired by prompt 40. You and your greatest enemy are struck by a curse that binds your lives together. The only way to survive is to share a kiss, but you would both rather face death than each other.

A counterfeit claim against a legendary wine ignites a high-stakes investigation in which a neurodivergent restaurateur and a forensic wine analyst must navigate forgery, deception, and their own unexpected connection to save a century-old legacy. Luc, owner of London's prestigious Le Rêve restaurant, faces a devastating crisis when a valued patron declares a prized vintage a fake. To protect his family's century-old reputation, he enlists Izzy, a brilliant but socially unconventional forensic wine analyst, eager to prove her mettle. Their shared autism initially creates an unexpected but undeniable spark of attraction, challenging their focus. But as they delve deeper into the complex world of wine fraud, they suspect a widespread conspiracy that threatens to destroy Le Rêve. Together, they must harness their unique abilities to expose the truth, safeguard the restaurant's legacy, and navigate their intensifying relationship, even as they battle their own internal worlds.

Every lifetime, they find each other. Every lifetime, they die before their happy ending. When Claire starts waking up in strange places with memories that aren't hers, she writes it off as stress and coincidence. But when a mysterious stranger named James appears in her small town, everything changes. Neither of them understands what's happening. Neither of them can walk away. As their connection deepens, so do the dreams: ancient rituals, stolen moments, and love stories cut short. They begin to search for answers together, chasing fragments of history that feel too real to ignore. The more they uncover, the harder it is to deny the truth: this isn't the first time they've met. And if they want a future, they'll have to understand their past. ONC 2026 Submission