When a demon is tasked with finding the key to unlock the Gates of Hell and bring about the Apocalypse, no-one would have guessed what a HELL of job it would be! For a start, he doesn't have a cool demonic name like his friends. And things keep going wrong, like the police, the hospital and the priest. All he wants is to show what he can do and have a nice latte! And cause Hell on Earth, of course...

It's the day I've feared for most of my young life. It's my fourteenth birthday. Why have I feared today? You ask. Today, I am being drafted into the International Army Coalition. My name is Sage Turner, and today, I am going to war. In 2080, the Earth is at war with an alien race known as the Galanala. Most able adults had either died in the war or were too disabled to fight. Millions of teenagers are now fighting in this war. It is now on us to win this war for the sake of humanity.

|ONC 2026| SHORT LIST - ROUND 3 AMBASSADOR'S PICK - ROUND 2 ------------------------------------------------------ When Terra is doomed, humanity's final hope is sent into the unknown aboard a vessel meant to carry life beyond extinction. But humanity's future falls to those who were never meant to hold it. Unintentionally trapped aboard the ship, Derrin Muely becomes a silent witness to the unraveling of humanity's last survivors, forced to watch as fear, ambition, and control drive them to destroy one another. Left alone in the vast quiet of space, Derrin turns inward. Through fragments of memory and reflection, he confronts a life spent searching for purpose, measuring his worth, and fearing failure, only to find that meaning may never have been something to discover at all. At the edge of existence, with no one left to see him, Derrin must face a final question: If life has no audience, no legacy, and no greater purpose, what does it mean to keep living?

Thirties, horrid love life, debt, and an obsession with 2005 Pride and Prejudice. Emma really doesn't have much excitement in her life... Well, outside of sitting on her back porch and heckling a handsome superhero as he defeats villains in her empty neighborhood, that is. Having signed a lease in the otherwise deserted "Villain District", Emma finds the only upside to the danger and constant damage to her apartment is getting to see the face of the handsome "Arsenal" as he fights villains up close and personal... that is, until one crashes and breaks both her arms. Now the Arsenal has finally taken notice of Emma, but will catching the eye of a superhero keep her protected...Or will Emma find herself in more danger than ever before? (Rated M: mature language) ******************************************************************************************* Based on Prompt 135. "She really fell from the sky and landed right into my arms, I'm not even lying!" ~Book One in the SUPER Series~

Robin Prakash, a magic doctor from the land of Kingsbury, is invited by his older brother to visit him in the land of the Great Plains. Landing him on the steps of an old farmhouse on the outskirts of a small rural town, known only by the overly cheerful locals as "Sunshine Acres". Quickly running low on funds from his search, Robin agrees to become a cook and cleaner for the recluse sorceress, her sassy apprentice, and their shapeshifting pet, who call "Sunshine Acres" their home. However, when his brother finally arrives in town, he comes with a hidden motive: to steal the sorceress's broken heart stone, a large piece of which she has already gifted to Robin. After being betrayed by his brother for power, Robin must team up with new friends to free the sorceress he has fallen in love with and fight for the new life he has found true joy in. ------------------------------- "I'm looking for a sorceress." "HA!" The old woman laughed, eyes gleaming with amusement. "Might as well admit you're lookin' for trouble, boy." . Cover Character Illustrations by @minoruru on Insta/Tumblr ❤️

"Nothing is what it seems in dreams." In the depths of a dark and twisted forest, Aris, crown prince of Lancaster, is tormented by recurring nightmares of the Tainted--monstrous creations of the black fae, a corrupting force that seeps into all who live within its woods. Relentlessly hunted in the dreams, he finds unexpected aid from a mysterious girl named Elara, and with her help he is able to elude the creatures each time, breaking free from the nightmare's clutches. But when Aris is wounded by one of the Tainted, the line between dream and reality begins to blur. When a weapon deadly to the black fae appears in his grasp from the dream, Aris and his sisters--Tamryn, Maeve, Maeril, and Aine--must race against time and Aris' failing health to uncover the ancient truth behind the forest's curse--or face the imminent threat of the black fae and its vengeful master, the guardian of the dark forest, Erebus Nocturne. ✧☽ ✧ ☼ ✧ ☽ ✧ Submitted for the Open Novella Contest 2026. Main Prompt: 75. A cursed forest hides an ancient creature longing for freedom. When it senses someone carrying the bloodline of the witch who once bound it, the creature summons monsters to a mansion where the forest and human worlds collide. The doors are open to anyone brave enough to enter. Side Prompts: 18. At eighteen, you begin dreaming of a stranger who feels like your other half. When they finally appear in real life, everything you thought you knew about love and reality begins to shift. 78. You begin to realize that nothing is quite what it seems.

When the big, bad dragon meets his match, he's forced to do something no dragon has ever done before--find help. And with enigmatic knight Sir Crispin de Harriff-Scarnley hot on his scaled heels, it's science--in the unlikely form of humble and slightly sozzled apothecary student Alyx--he turns to as his saviour. Naturally, Alyx is appalled--knights are good and dragons are bad, right? Everyone knows that. But as he fights to save first his skin and then the dragon's hide, he'll discover that when it comes to concepts such as good vs bad, magic vs science, and nature vs 'progress', the choices aren't always as obvious as he might think. And he'll do it while dodging spells, grappling with gryphons, negotiating hangovers and, perhaps scariest of all, confronting his classmate crush. Meanwhile, in the background, a sinister figure looms...

Months after retiring from the Riverton Precinct, a detective spends his days in a bar in order to amuse himself. Yet a call from an old boss enlightened him; however, the job that was offered was more than what he bargained for. After retiring from the police force, Detective Oswald Morris missed the company he had at work. As a widow, the retiree would spend his days with his canine companion, Enzo, in a quaint cottage. After getting a call from his former boss, Oswald's desires were answered, but not in the way he had hoped. A new investigator in town needed Morris' help in capturing elusive drug dealers in a crime spree, but in a shocking development, Oswald learned that an old flame and an energetic rookie were involved. The options for Oswald were quite baffling, but his boss was counting on him to come out of retirement. Written for TEGSA2025 (The Ever-Generating Story Awards 2025)

**WATTY 2021 SHORLIST!** What's your superpower? Everyone has one right? That's why the world is falling apart. After a cure for a terrible pandemic goes awry, everyone in the world gains superpowers. Everyone, that is, except Thomas. He's the old kind of normal. A Nomad, and Nomads are dangerous. They're hunted and killed for sport on the world's biggest game show before they go insane - all while they're eight years old. But you don't need to be able to fly to be a HERO. ***Wattys 2021 Shortlist!*** #1 Superstrength #8 Pandemic #12 Self-Esteem

A dragon, a dwarf and an elf walk into a bar... But only because that bar is on their way to tracking down the lost heir in a last-ditch quest to save the kingdom from a very long list of very bad things. And also, quite possibly, because the more of the kingdom they see, the more they find themselves in need of a drink. So, grab your halberd and your mead and buckle up - it's time for a road trip, fantasy-style.