Liora never meant for her letters to be answered. She writes to hope, to escape the life she once dreamt of but didn't get. But when Winter answers - their bond becomes something dangerously close to love. He is a ruler shaped by shadows and she is a healer marked by quiet magic. What happens when seasons which are never meant to meet entwine in a fate impossible to break? Can they stand the gusts or will the seasons prove too fierce to endure? Read to find out!

All that once glittered was gold, until it turned to bitter ash and ruin. Juliette Laurant has always dreamed of a simple life, painting to her heart's content and unbothered by men and women alike. She gains her wish, to paint in a way that is envied by all who see it, but at the cost of her life's work, and the sudden arrival of a stranger whose only desire is to be seen once more. Now, trapped by the hands of fate, she must find a way to put an end to the stranger's cycle of despair or discover what awaits her at the end of life's final portrait ~*~*~*~*~*~*~

My entry for the ONC 2026.

Mr Shade just ruined the future. At Saul les Smith, the metrics are blank, the staff is unhinged, and a dream city under the sea is still due by morning. As authority turns feral and professionalism becomes a weapon, survival means breaking the future everyone else is working overtime to build. ONC 2026. Prompt 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.

Borrowed Sight ​I was blind until a monster bought me a miracle. Now, I see too much. ​Twenty-year-old Elodie Jackson is a "beautiful investment," sold by her father to the cold, powerful Bruce Williams to settle a debt. Through a surgery funded by her future husband, Elodie regains her sight-only to discover her new eyes are haunted. She is plagued by "Borrowed Sight," visceral flashes of a future she can't escape. ​The most terrifying vision of all? Her own death. ​At the center of her premonitions is Gabriel Wrightwood, the lethal, grey-eyed specialist Bruce hired to guard her. He is the man she is destined to love, and the man she sees pulling the trigger to end her life in a garden of white roses. ​With only days until a wedding that feels like a funeral, Elodie is trapped in a web of silent betrayals and high-stakes obsession. To survive, she must untangle the truth behind her borrowed eyes before the clock runs out on the prophecy. ​In a world of predatory secrets, the only thing more dangerous than being blind is finally seeing the truth. [This novella is being written for the Open Novella Contest 2026! Prompt: #101] Copyright © 2026 V.K. Thorn ​ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author. ​The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. This includes, but is not limited to, the uploading of this work to "mirror" sites or its use in the training of generative artificial intelligence models without the author's explicit permission. Criminal copyright infringement is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

You are eighteen. You have friends. School. Plans for the future. And it feels like your whole life is still ahead of you. You dream of love - quiet, real. The kind that changes everything. Of the one who will someday become your other half. But sometimes life doesn't ask who you want to be. When desires suddenly turn real, when feelings break free from dreams and begin to reshape the world around you - fear follows. When fire starts to spark nearby, when dreams feel too real to ignore, and a stranger looks at you as if he knows more about you than you know about yourself - you understand: this is no coincidence. The world is preparing for a battle. Good versus evil. Light versus darkness. But what if good isn't truly good? And evil doesn't seek to destroy - but to protect? A shadow looms over your home. Or is it light? She is only a spark. But every fire begins with one. Spark. Before the Flame is a story of first love that came too early. Of choice. Of power. Of fear. And of a feeling strong enough to save the world - or burn it to the ground.

What if you could see what your life looks like in other dimensions? And what if you could be part of it, even if only for an hour? What if you got the chance to visit a new dimension every year. Would you be grateful for the opportunity and take it with both hands or would you dismiss the offer entirely and be happy with what you have in this life? For Valerie, the choice was always obvious. Why would anyone want to fix what wasn't broken? What was the point of seeing if the grass was greener on the other side when you had the most beautiful garden of them all right at home?

Maya Nidhi always thinks after she acts. When she hears that Avinash, the love of her life, is getting married to someone who isn't her, she does the sensible thing: crashes his wedding to rescue her prince charming. Will she run away with her prince to her fairytale land and get her happily ever after? Or is it a bad idea she can't undo? A book written for ONC competition.

- A slow-burn romantasy with fae courts, false identities, and dangerous choices - "I was taken from my world to replace a girl who was already dead. They dressed me in white, gave me her name, and promised me safety if I stayed silent. I was meant to be a bride. A symbol. A lie. But the prince I was promised to doesn't see me the way he should. And the man who brought me here is watching, waiting for me to break. I am not the girl they think I am. And if the truth comes out, it will destroy us all." #fantasy #fae #fairies #romance #slowburn #enemiestolovers #royalty #forcedmarriage #fakeidentity #darkfantasy #forbiddenlove Note: This story is taking part in the Open Novella Contest 2026 #ONC #OpenNovellaContest

25-year old Lee still hasn't figured out why they could not form any long-lasting relationships, even friendships for that matter. Aside from family members, which they are obligated to talk to, there is no one else Lee had even come close to calling a friend. Well, maybe except for one. -------- Submitted for ONC 2026 @OpenNovellaContest Using the following prompts : 29. You will meet many people in your life. Many will come and go, but some will leave footprints in your heart. 104. While wandering in the woods, you dismiss the rustling behind you as nothing more than wind through the trees until you turn around and realize it isn't the wind at all. 106. After waking at 3AM to a freezing room and a door you're certain you closed, you find wet footprints and melting snow leading from your bedroom into the hall. Realizing someone or something is inside your home, you follow the trail to uncover the truth. All rights reserved by @J. Lee Kennedy, except for images contained in this book. Crayon drawing "Wander XIX" by @Clara Lieu. Copyright of images, including cover art, belong to their rightful owners, and are attributed accordingly, or used in accordance with the rules of Creative Commons licensing as "fair use." Altered, filtered, or edited images are copyrighted by the author in its final form.