|| ONC 2021 HONORABLE MENTION || ONC 2021 ROUND TWO FIRST PLACE WINNER || Three friends. One secret. Thoughts of a summery vacation in the middle of winter sounded fantastic until all plans to enjoy the Caribbean sights were thwarted by an unexpected tropical storm, keeping everyone inside. Normally spare time without current-day distractions would be beneficial to a group of long-time friends always too busy to spend time together otherwise, but this is one trip down memory lane they're going to wish they never took... ---------- Entered into the Open Novella Contest 2021 Mystery & Thriller - Prompt #55 ONC Round One Qualifier - 03.23.2021 ONC Round Two Qualifier - 04.20.2021 ONC Round Two First Place Winner - 04.24.2021 ONC Round Three Qualifier (Longlist) - 05.21.2021 ONC Shortlist - 05.30.2021 ONC Honorable Mention - 06.29.2021 ©2021 M.Dalto Published to Wattpad 02.01.2021 Draft Completed 05.02.2021

A reluctant psychic medium must confront the world of supernatural he's long ignored. *** In a quiet valley town, eighteen-year-old Ian lives with a secret-sometimes he can't tell his imagination from reality. Fearing the psych ward, he denies what he sees and hopes that if he ignores it, the problem will go away. When a tragic accident upends his life, Ian becomes too busy taking care of his family to notice a new anomaly in his house. As conflicting clues come to light, questions arise about the incident, but Ian wants to move on. Being set up with a cute girl seems to be the perfect opportunity to rebuild his life and forget about his dark past. All he needs to do is to be normal for her just as he's pretended his whole life, but letting her get close endangers the limbo of his blissful ignorance. Will she help him uncover the truth behind why he's seen things no one else can? Or will Ian succeed and deny his gift away? *** Soul Survivor weaves the paranormal with a heartfelt psychological drama in a haunting tale about love, death, self-discovery, and the resilience that emerges in our darkest moments. - - - *** ONC 2021 ROUND 2 AMBASSADOR PICK & LONGLISTED *** Cover illustration and design: Isobel Lynx.

ONC longlister! Yay Featured on @YA @newlywrittenbooks @Storiesundiscovered (December) @Teenfiction (wicked little creatures) @Ambassadors (Speculative fiction) When a drastic soul-wrenching incident takes place in Aini's life, she decides to take a leap into her life and move on. All goes well until one night, she dreams of a horrifying dream within a dream. ____________________ You can see the future of someone through their eyes. However, if you tell them about it, it won't come to fruition. One day, you lock eyes with yourself in the mirror. "Everything you see or seem is a dream within a dream" Edgar Allan Poe **************** DISCLAIMERS I'm rating this story mature due to self-harm, death, pain, suicide and other violence. This story doesn't portray any kind of sexual content. Unedited first drafts

(HONORABLE MENTION) Rik Sandro is a dimension traveller. Jumping from one version of the world to another was intriguing at first, until he discovered he can never go home. Now all these new beginnings are just a pain. Maybe it's time to stay in one place. Maybe it's time to settle down. Maybe it's time to fall in love. However, when his latest lover is murdered, Rik fears that he's being stalked and now, he might not have any control over how, where, or when, his life will end. (HONORABLE MENTION and ROUND TWO WINNER ONC2021 ) A clockpunk adventure, my entry for the ONC 2021. (Clockpunk / LGBTQ / Romance / Horror)