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.

Los Angeles has been known to carry an air of luxury so dark and mysterious, that it can only be the product of one thing-the Illuminati. At least, that's what all the theories say. What the public does not realize; however, is that the conspiracies they mock are truer than they ever imagined. What the conspiracy theorists don't understand is that they are more wrong than they could have dreamed. Because secret societies are joined voluntarily. The centuries-old curse straight from the bayou of antebellum New Orleans to which Los Angeles has fallen prey is obligatory in a way that swallows souls and spits them out like the vagrants lining the streets. Divinity Parker knows this all too well as she toes the line between grad student paying for school as a sex worker and lamia-an ancient type of demon that feeds off sexual satisfaction. Or in her case, refuses to feed, leaving her with a constant ache in her stomach and a very pissed off demon in her head. Then, one night while waitressing at Senator Donald's campaign gala, she meets him: Kaison Bell, a young accounting executive at the advertisement firm throwing Senator Donald's party. The two are instantly drawn to one another, but Divinity knows better than to trust it, especially given that they met while she was Lamia. Only Kaison can't seem to get her haunted green eyes out of his mind or forget the way her lips trailed his cheek as she whispered for him to stay away, and Divinity can't ignore how his hands burned paths of desire down the small of her back. With renewed vigor, Lamia tries to lure Divinity into a burning bed, even as Kaison begs for entry into her heart. If she gives in to Kaison, she may lose him forever. But if she gives in to Lamia, she may very well lose herself.

When a mermaid wakes up on land with amnesia and a drying tail, she is granted a second chance at life with a human. All Ginessa knows is that the sea doesn't want her. And she doesn't want it back. She'd rather become foam than deal with whatever past she's had. But her attempt at beaching herself catches the attention of a human. Merfolk are pets and treasured items for show, but what happens if a human just wants a friend? Inness watches the waves daily. He finds it serene to be with the sea, only he can't get himself to go any further than the cliff side. Until one day when he walked onto the shoreline and saw a glimmering mermaid on the brink of death. *Warning: Story contains mentions of suicide and mental illness topics.*

This story contains death and a bit of blood!