Five days sailing in a storm that didn't exist six days ago. Chasing an impossible light in a sea of endless sky. Vincent Locklear and Mercy Larkin have been set adrift. Their lives upturned, Vincent stripped of his captaincy, and newly purposeless, the pair now sail through a storm. Their course takes them five days into a storm that is less than six days old, birthed by a flash of light that, for just a moment, drowned out the sun. Mercy Larkin has lived a lifetime in someone else's world. Taken from her people, raised in indentured servitude, and finding her footing in Volante's navy, having the opportunity to change the course of her life is strange and terrifying. But she has chosen to return to the people who forswore her, and reconcile with the reason she chose her surname Larkin. Vincent Locklear has never managed to belong to the people he lives alongside. A child of the Monastery; a coven of secretive custodians of old science, he was cast out years ago to make his own way. Despite being an outsider and forced to keep his childhood a secret, he rose to become a ship captain, only to be cast out again. But what these two will find in the darkness of the storm, will set their lives on a course both demanding and unalterable. To find their way as children of unkindness.

[WATTYS SHORTLIST - 2021] Penny Lane, a young florist with a dislike of weddings and a dream of opening her own flower shop, has to overcome her insecurities to find love with Haze Delacroix, the charismatic owner of Underworld Delicacies, who charms his way into her heart by means of culinary delights, namely delicious pomegranates. ---------- Contemporary Romance inspired by the myth of Hades & Persephone. ******** THIS IS ONLY A SAMPLE - READ THE FULL STORY ON GALATEA

What would you give up to dive into your favourite story? Romantic, sharp-tongued, with a tendency to fall in love with tall, dark-haired, brooding men--Leah is the archetype of the "Pride and Prejudice" fan. TV series, movies, comics, musicals: she has seen and read them all. For her birthday, Leah's friends and family pool together to get her the ultimate Janeite gift: the Bridge, a virtual-reality gaming device. By granting access to her five senses, she can live her favourite novel as the iconic Elizabeth Bennet! As she explores Regency England and quarrels with the infamous Darcy, Leah cannot help but digress from the original plot to suit her modern-woman convictions. The longer she plays, the weirder her beloved characters act, until the lines between fiction and reality blur. ⚠️ Content and/or trigger warning ⚠️ This story contains one scene of (unsuccessful) sexual coercion, and mentions domestic violence and death by domestic violence, which may be triggering for some readers. 📖 Featured 19 times! Seen on: 📖 @beauty @SpeculativeFiction @Humor @ContemporaryLit @retold @WattRevenge @ScienceFiction @mystery @StoriesUndiscovered @WattpadGaming @ChickLit @Fanfic @NA @generalfiction @classicauthors @WattpadHistoricalRomance @HistoricalFiction

With a craving for havoc and an unhealthy disrespect for rules, Michaela is not your average guardian angel. She has, however, exceptional skills... like connecting with human children and pissing off demons, one demon in particular. Cain, Class A Demon Elite is his underworldly father's pride and joy. His flawless track record for malevolence is sure to take him places. Unfortunately, right now it is taking him on a mission with an angel not worthy of the title. Michaela and Cain have six days to retrieve a demon child. Six days to bug the shit out of each other. Six days to make their daddies proud... What the Halo? Open Novella Contest 2020. Prompt 47.

* An intense psychological thriller * All Andi Masterson wanted was to have a fun day out with her friends to celebrate her 19th Birthday. The Escape Room she booked admittedly looks a bit odd, and doesn't feel right. That's because they've just gone into the wrong place. What they think is an Escape Room will turn out to be a very deadly game with serious consequences. There are no hints and no extra lives in this game. Are you ready to play? Open Novella Contest III prompt #60: "The next words out of your mouth better be 'I'm sorry' and 'Here's the antidote.'"

| 𝟭𝟲𝘅 𝗙𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘𝗗 · [EDITORS' CHOICE -- NOVEMBER 2020] [ONC 2020 Winner] Two strangers on separate trains, divided by uncaring glass. A bond forms between them. But will it hold when their trains are bound for different destinations? Evan's heart has been bleeding since his little family was torn apart by divorce, and his nose runs with a cold. Trying to pick up the pieces of his life, he has changed cities, and he's about to change jobs. And he has run out of tissues. A woman's blue hair catches his eye at a train station. And her smile, fortified by braces, catches his heart. Sitting in her train, Iris revels in her future perfect. Her work is finally getting published and she has found Mr. Right. Nothing could go wrong now. Gazing out of the window, she sees the stranger. He looks miserable and sneezes, but her hands want to tousle his bed hair. A random encounter at a subway station. But both of them are caught in their tracks and when their trains pull apart, they don't expect to meet again. ⭐⭐⭐ This is a slow-burn, peculiar romance; an expanded Open Novella Contest Entry based on Prompt #61 in the Romance section: "After being jilted, you move to the city to hide your embarrassment, lick your wounds, and start afresh." Cover illustrations by @EvelynHail. "Mind the Gap" is ONLY available on Wattpad. If you are reading this anywhere else, it is a plagiarized version that may contain malware. ⭐⭐⭐ 16x featured! 🏆 ONC 2020 Winner! 📘 Featured on: "Editors' Choice" ➡ @WattpadExplorer "Satisfy Your Cravings" ➡ @WattpadExplorer "Purity-Realistic Fiction" ➡ @AvantPop "Love Yourself"➡ @WattpadSpiritual "Head over Heels" ➡ @Romance "Accept Yourself" ➡ @LY "A Little Bit of Everything" ➡ @NARomance "Finding Love" ➡ @generalfiction "Melting Hearts" ➡ @adultfiction "Consequences" ➡ @ChickLit ...

In urgent need of a profitable job, freighter captain Kalina ap'Theron accepts a mysterious crate meant for delivery to an obscure rim planet. But under a space-gipsy curse and with the space patrol and a band of infamous pirates on her heels, Kali has no choice but to steer her precious "Topsy-Turvy" into an ion storm. The risky manoeuvre has the potential for some dangerous consequences. Lost in uncharted space, Kali faces the challenges of accepting a cute but slimy stowaway into her happy crew of outcasts, fighting off the attraction of both a black hole and a former crush, and getting back on course in order to deliver her load in time. Otherwise, once it reaches its sell-by date, she risks losing her ship to an alien hive mind. My entry for the Open Novella Contest 2020 - I picked prompts 39, 37, and 58 Chapter 1 - 1708 words Chapter 2 - 1883 words Chapter 3 - 1910 words Chapter 4 - 2011 words Chapter 5 - 1861 words Chapter 6 - 1780 words Chapter 7 - 1926 words Chapter 8 - 1963 words Chapter 9 - 1883 words Chapter 10 - 1894 words Chapter 11 - 1975 words Chapter 12 - 2057words Total - 22 851 words