Twelve years ago, Greywick Village fell in a single night. Emma Hale survived - but she doesn't remember how. Now she's back inside the quarantined ruins, searching for answers buried under ash and silence. But the village hasn't forgotten her. Every road feels familiar. Every shadow feels close. And the truth she's chasing might be the very thing she once ran from. Some memories stay lost. Others wait to be found. ---

HE JUST DOESN'T KNOW WHEN TO STOP After falling asleep to a video of the "nihilist penguin", Lian Min wakes at 3 a.m. to wet footprints and melting snow in his studio apartment in a country of perennial summer. On tracing the footprints to the corridor, he discovers a world in stasis where he is the only one who can still move. That's the least of his worries, however. Various flowers begin sprouting in his living room and the footprints change trails without warning, leading him to discover things about his neighbourhood that he never knew and perhaps should not know. Then the trail goes cold.

A slipstream in time. A cloak of eternal night. Something stirs in the dark. [ ✶ ] Upon returning from a weekend getaway to celebrate their last time together before college, a group of friends discover the residents of their hometown have vanished without a trace, leaving behind a shroud of mystery, sunless skies, and an unshakable horror. [ extended summary inside] original novel / all rights reserved olivia siobhan © 2026 onc prompts #97, #44 and #24 [ ✶ ] open novella contest 2026 round 1 winner

Nineteen-year-old Lenora Cullen is following a strict plan. Attend classes during the day and work part-time to save enough for moving out of her uncle's house. Lately, she has begun night shifts at Ocean Brew, a secluded coastal coffee shop, for better pay. Customers come and go except for one. Brian Dormer, the quiet boy who sits near the ocean view window with his laptop and papers. It's hard not to notice a regular who orders the same thing and leaves at closing hours. These two interacted as a normal barista and customer until one fateful night. Lenora did not expect her life to take a drastic turn when she accidentally spilled coffee on him. That one unpredictable moment is about to change the lives of these two strangers, forming a life-changing friendship. - #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.

The mansion watches. The shadows whisper. Willow Heather thought she was a guest-but in the Atticus Estate, survival comes at a deadly price

When you think of vampires, you probably think of Dracula or--shudder--Edward Cullens. You know what I mean: the romanticized, sexy version of a vampire. The one with sparkly skin and a charismatic compulsion. Hot. Sexy. Let's be real here, Gary Oldman really set the bar, right? But what fiction doesn't tell you is that being a vampire is messy and, quite frankly, HARD. It's ugly and lonely, and don't even get me started about tracking down blood. I'm wanted in every province (ever hear of the Bloody Killer? Yeah, that's me. Totally lame serial killer moniker, by the way, RCMP). I didn't have the choice to turn into a vampire, but, boy, did my creator pick the wrong person. Out of control, clumsy, drunk, messy, blah, blah, blah. You get the idea. I know, I should probably see a therapist, huh? Well, my trail of bloodless bodies soon catches up to me when a chance encounter with a hottie in a cafe leaves me with his phone by mistake, and I realize just how f***ed I am. And as I do my best to keep him away (while trying to survive as a vampire), I can't help but fall for the cafe hottie, putting a stake on my life. *** ONC '26 prompts: #56 and #81

She wakes with missing hours, a burning imprint carved into her shoulder, and no memory of who put it there. Nyxara Blackvein is an assassin who survives by control. Control over her body. Her blades. Her choices. But the mark beneath her skin has a will of its own, pulling her toward Stillreach-a city protected by an impossible shield and a power no one dares to name. Torin Cross was never part of the plan. A half-elf bard with a charming smile and secrets of his own, he's headed in the same direction for reasons that don't quite add up. When violence forces them to fight side by side, trust forms before either of them is ready for it. Whatever waits in Stillreach is already watching. ONC 2026 Prompts used. 32. Two assassins from rival organizations are sent on the same secret mission, only to realize the assignment holds a much bigger truth. 86. A wasteland hides pockets of thriving communities protected by mysterious shields. 99. You wake up with a strange mark on your skin after a late-night encounter you can barely remember, and its meaning grows more unsettling by the hour. If this is posted on any other site, please let me know. I have not given anyone the right to use it.

LONGLISTED IN THE OPEN NOVELLA CONTEST 2026 A loyal hound will drink saltwater. In the Kingdom of Bevran, vagabonds are offered shelter within the walls of the castle. Orthrus, tired of running for his life, scavenging off of the dead, and never escaping the cold, couldn't think of anything better. But it seems the Queen of Bevran has secrets, plans for invading the Kingdom of Khis. Orthrus and his fellow vagabonds seek to understand how they fit into all of this, what purpose they serve in their Queen's grand schemes. What Orthrus can't figure out is why the Queen would keep her desires secret when Khis is their enemy, the reason Bevran has fallen into ruin. Any Bevrani would devout themselves to defeating their oppressor, no? When the truth comes out, Orthrus must decide on what he's willing to sacrifice in order to survive. ♙♙♙ For the Open Novella Contest 2026 | Cover designed by me with image from Pinterest {artist unknown} | Prompt 80 Current Word Count - 39,264

She wakes up with a lot on her mind, but also nothing. She wakes up in the middle of a lab, inside a giant tube filled to the brim with greenish liquid. There are countless wires attached to her. How did she get there? Where even is she? Who is she? There is one thing in her mind, the one thing that is also attached to nothing: Persephone. Note: Chapters with "Persephone" written next to their number are chapters from Persephone's perspective, and chapters without "Persephone" written in their title are chapters from the original character's perspective. Submission of ONC 2026. Based off of Prompt #110, Winter. Cover Art by @JadeRabbitYuTu

Rue Domínguez, a twenty-seven-year-old unemployed woman struggling to cure her boredom and at the same time earn some good amount of cash, learns about an app 'ZombieRush' which on winning, promises to reward with $10.5 million. That seemed too good to be true, but with a competitive streak to beat this almost impossible game, Rue decides to test her fate. After conquering the game, she realises it's only the 1st half of the game, and 2nd half is still waiting out there. Rue won $10,000 on completing the 1st half, winning the rest of $10.5 million after completing the 2nd half---now that seemed not too far. But willing to participate in this game that appeared too easy before would have such a horrific result, that Rue never expected. Being forced into a zombie apocalypse while attending a high school reunion and learning that the apocalypse might just be the next half of ZombieRush, Rue realises she very much is 'cooked.' And now she is officially a player, with no way out. * * * Total Word Count: 21,045