**SHORTLISTED - ONC2024** Prompt: "Fairytales are real" and there couldn't be anything worse." "Hi, my name is Rue, and my fairytale is worse than Cinderella's and Snow White's. In "The Worst Fairytale," I, Rue, dive headfirst into an adventure that twists the classic fairytale into something dark, thrilling, and utterly enchanting. Tasked with rescuing my grandmother, I find myself in a world filled with deceitful and magical creatures, including the tiny, troublesome fae and their captivating king. Navigating a realm where beauty masks danger, I discover unsettling truths about myself and the fae that blur the lines between heroes and villains. With each encounter, the distinctions between ally and adversary fade, challenging my every conviction. Join me on this journey of love, betrayal, and redemption, where my mission to save my grandmother might cost me more than I'm willing to sacrifice. Will I manage to outwit the villains and perhaps share a dance with the mysterious Fae King, or will this story spiral into my deepest fears? Delve into "The Worst Fairytale" to discover if I can forge my own happy ending in a world that defies all expectations." **** ONC 2024 Entry ****

WATTYS WINNER 2020 Two interconnected murders, 64 years apart. One woman's search for truth and identity. Readers' comments: 'a masterpiece', 'impeccably written', 'amazing', 'superbly crafted page-turner', 'hauntingly beautiful', 'tremendous plot and character development', 'one of a kind', 'fantastic story telling', 'loved this book', 'a wonderful read", 'absolutely beautiful', 'brought tears to my eyes' and many more Wattys judging panel: 'This is VERY good. We were HOOKED from the beginning, and the writing and plot hold up throughout. This is a very unique, polished, well-written and well-researched piece.' Plot Set partly in rural England, partly on the sun-kissed coast of southerm Italy, The Painted Altar is a murder mystery mixed with romantic and historical elements (World War Two). Given away at two days old, Mary Rice has spent her life in the shadows. When discovering the suspicious circumstances surrounding her biological mother's death, she embarks on a journey which will shine a light not only on the truth but also on her own identity. Brief extract Suddenly, the door had inched open, half a wrinkled face visible behind the tautened chain. "Hello. Who is it?" The words I was going to say had of course been well-rehearsed, repeated over and over in my mind like a mantra, but now that the moment had arrived I found myself struggling to remember them. "Mrs Harvey... I think that you might... well, that you might be..." The door closed, then slowly opened once more, the chain this time unlatched. And there she was before me - half a metre away, within arm's reach. Thin lips gradually crooking upwards at each corner like the slow beatific kindling of a summer's dawn. "Oh yes love, I know who you are." Length: 70,000 words About the author: Originally from England but for the last 16 years I've been living in Italy. I hope therefore that the Italian aspects of the novel will have a certain gloss of authenticity.

The story of Michael Thomas, a family man who worked for the U.S. army, and the experiments that were done on him. Shortly after after his return home from nearly six months as a captive of war, Michael is offered a top secret job that sounds too good to be true. When Michael refuses, he is dragged away from his family and tested on against his will, finding himself a prisoner once again, in a way he never imagined. __________ S.M.A.R.T The Subject of Mind Altering Research and Testing A psychological thriller. ________ Please vote & comment if you like. Thank you for taking the time to read my stuff. This is a work of fiction. All works © 2015 Richard Harley

🍌🍌🍌Think Netflix's SEX EDUCATION, but without the accents, and instead of pictures and sound, I put the words on the screen, and you paint the pictures with your mind.🥒🥒🥒 *** Some guys are showers. Some guys are growers. Then there's Peter. He's got a big secret about a little problem (in his pants). But one day, that secret gets out, and Peter's life is ruined. The guys at his high school mock Peter without mercy. The girls giggle at the idea of dating Peter. But the situation isn't entirely without hope. Peter's best friend Elroy is a wannabe teenage business prodigy who sees Peter's predicament as an opportunity to develop a product that will help him "tap into the bajillion dollar market for addressing male insecurity." Meanwhile, a mysterious art student named Audrey seems to like-like Peter, despite his, ahem, little problem. Which is weird, because the rumor around school is that Audrey is a size queen. Why else would she be collecting so many dick pics? Peter's Little Peter is a story about the truth behind the myths of male sexuality, the awkwardness of teenage romance, surviving high school, and the bumpy road to self-acceptance.

* 4 Sample Chapters * Inquisitive heir, Charlie Fine's obsession with the truth makes him an excellent fraud investigator, but there's one mystery he's never been able to solve: the identity of the girl who gave him the greatest kiss of his life during a high school game of 7 Minutes In Heaven. Twenty years of experiments attempting to recreate the chemistry of that kiss have gotten him nowhere but frustrated and he's about to resign himself to a life without relationship fireworks when an invitation to his high school reunion steels his resolve to get answers once and for all. Accompanied by his binge-drinking best buddy, Martin, he heads home to grill his lovely suspects only to find his skills better put to use in solving the disappearance of an old friend's father and the sabotaging of a maple farm. Thwarted by a shady detective, distracted by a former classmate's troubled sister, will Charlie be able to find out who done it and who done it best? Will the same suspect hold the answers to both mysteries and will her identity be that of the dream girl he let get away? Who kissed Charlie Fine? You could skip to the end, but you'd miss more bear attacks, booby traps, pickled cabbage, flying cardboard, dry lightning, ghost parrots, creepy crawlers, maple syrup and tea cozies than in any cozy mystery about smooching you've ever read! Please know this story contains mild cursing and three F bombs - one of which is totally necessary. *Cover art uses "On-De-Fence" by Gil Elvgren which is to the best of my knowledge in the public domain. *No part of this story may be reproduced or used in any manner without express written permission by the author. © All Rights Reserved

Mia Evian has to piece together the mystery of Zack Maddox, the bad boy whose life she saved, while simultaneously keeping her own crumbling life together before Zack ends up in trouble again - or worse yet, dead. ***** This is a love story. When Zack Maddox, a notorious bad boy, meets Mia Evian, a nobody with a disdain for arrogant pretty boys, the two teenagers' lives are thrown into chaos. Zack is a mystery Mia can't unravel, and as her family is torn apart by her father's infidelity, her newfound thrill-seeking attitude is the only thing keeping her head above water. As Mia's behaviour turns increasingly reckless, Zack becomes the lifeboat keeping her afloat. Mia thought she had a good grasp of the world, but she's beginning to realise the people around her are far more complex than she could have ever imagined. Worse still, she may not be the only one who needs a lifeboat. This is a love story - just not the kind you might expect. ***** Content warning: This story contains mild drug and alcohol use and themes of mental health, self-harm, and suicide. Cover designed by Lucas Fisher

[COMPLETED] When down on her luck, Abby Redding lands a position as the personal assistant for wealthy businessman Alex Carter, her first assignment is to fix up his new cabin in a remote town. Things don't go as planned when an unsolved murder and a haunted cabin leave Abby Redding fighting for her life. Is her handsome boss hiding secrets? Or is there something more sinister afoot?

Four bad boys, Ayden, Hayden, Brayden, and Okayden, try to form a school club to learn how to fight their bad boy instincts, or succumb to cliches trying. ******* When Ayden's six-pack appeared when he was nine, he realized that he was born to be a bad boy. Far for embracing it, he has dedicated his whole life to avoid every cliche in the book, from girls with mysterious pasts stumbling into him in the hallways, to always changing schools to be the "mysterious new kid," to ancient beings asking him to be a chosen one every other day. But a fated encounter with the captain of the football team makes him realized that he is not the only one cursed with being a bad boy. There are others like him. Alone, they are weak. Together, they are strong. Sort of. With the mission to finding others cursed with being bad boys, Ayden and his new friends will work together to make a school club where they can help each other avoid the trappings of cliche and finish the school year unscathed. That is, if they can convince the student council president to let them form the club in the first place. [SEASON 1 COMPLETED] [SEASON 2 COMPLETED] [SEASON 3 COMPLETED] Cover by @Feralshadow

Adeline St. Clair, after barely surviving her last adventure aboard Poseidon's Curse, is back with a vengeance and an even bigger craving for adventure. Not only is she and Flynn on their ultimate perilous voyage yet with their heroic thrill-seeking friends in tow, enemies from their past are returning to haunt them and have no qualms with wreaking havoc in the twosome's lives. Follow Adeline on her most daring voyage yet as she fights for her life, encounters new threats and menaces, and deals with her new sea life all the while fighting ruthless battles at every turn. (If you haven't read the first book, you should read it before moving to this one as this is a sequel to "Adeline") Amazing Cover by notalotgoingon :)