The world has been overrun by monsters. Governments have toppled, nations have fallen. Desperation has ushered in a new world order. Welcome to The Bright Waste where violence is cheap and salvation is in short supply. Where survivors are brutal and compassion is a rare commodity. Akiva is a scavenger for The Mothers. Her job is to scour the bones of the old world for any vestige of value, and to stay alive. That's the hardest part when the monsters have other plans. Her only hope is to stay in the light, glorious and burning bright. Editor's Pick List: June 2020

brooks and hale should be perfect. the sparks are there, the lingering looks and secretive smiles, the chemistry essential to any perfect romance. the only problem? neither of them are willing to drop the pretence of heterosexuality anytime soon.

Adam is a Neet. He never leaves his apartment unless he absolutely has to. He holes himself up, only giving attention to his comics and cartoons. However, things change when a noisy party animal moves in next door and becomes a pest. Adam is given no other choice but to confront his neighbor. A series of events pushes Adam outside his bubble and forces him to interact with others. And maybe, just maybe, he thought his neighbor, Assad, was a bit good looking. * * * * * TW/CW: The MC of this novel has social anxiety and depression, and although there are no thoughts relating to violence or self-harm, the MC is consistently in a state of mind /internal monologue that can be mentally tasking for people with similar conditions.

Wern Muller is always hungry. Unfortunately, eating for Wern is not as easy as grabbing takeout. Wern can only feed on the traumatic memories of people and animals. It's an exhausting and thought-eroding experience, but Wern has to eat, or terrible things happen. To make it easier, Wern works in places where he is in close contact with traumatized individuals. Haruto Sato makes Wern hungry. Sato, a user of the food bank where Wern works, is dripping in trauma. Wern can see the memories slither and hiss on his neck and shoulders. The memories whisper to Wern, enticing him like sauce on dumplings. Haruto could quench Wern's hunger for a full year... So why won't Wern feed on him? --- [A Wattpad Editor's Pick.] [An Open Novella Contest short-listed book.]

✨2018 Watty Winner✨ Two men in love torn apart by war. Yuri Karamov's existence is like Schrödinger's cat, simultaneously both dead and alive. In Ru Konstantin's mind, Yuri's still the same vibrant young man he was when their lives diverged. But the question, the one Ru is too afraid to acknowledge, is whether his best friend turned first love is still alive. In the span of eighteen years, their hometown of Dronesk goes from a quiet, humdrum town to a besieged territory of the BKA; a radical militia group who wants to eradicate the Arash--people like Ru--from Rujga Province. Yuri Karamov is one of the recruits fighting for a Brommian liberation. After years of lost contact, Ru returns to Dronesk in search of his best friend, confronting not only the ruins of his ancestral home and the new realities of a post-liberation movement, but questions about love, freedom, and the price of self-governance. If We Exist, is a coming-of-age story that examines friendship, sexuality, class struggles and ethnic tensions through the lens of Ru Konstantin; desperate, anxiety-ridden, and awfully nostalgic.

🍌🍌🍌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.

A campus thriller: suspense, murder & one handsome roommate. ***** When Haley Bell is offered a scholarship to study at the exclusive Woodcreek College, famous for moulding the world's brightest thinkers, politicians and entrepreneurs, she jumps at the opportunity. Except when she arrives, the murders start. In a campus hidden from civilisation in the mountains of Colorado, Haley's classmates are slowly turning up dead. As the bodies pile up and eyes of suspicion turn on her, Haley finds that there's a reason why she was brought to Woodcreek. And it wasn't to study. "That opening line will hook you (I still think about it) & it DOESN'T STOP! I binged this like crazy" - Leah, Sr. Editorial Manager @ HQ [[word count: 90,000-100,000 words]] Cover designed by Ellie Sita

EDITOR'S CHOICE ~ When heartbroken March Marino books a road trip across the western US, he has no idea what he's getting himself into.

Cigarettes, lilac skies and poetry at 3am: sixteen-year-old Pietro ''Pit'' Rossi knows the adrenaline of feeling empty and infinite at the same time. With the reputation of a goofy idiot who doesn't care about anything at all, getting held back at school doesn't seem like a problem. But it is. Because Pit cares about everything, and he always cares too much. [[word count: 70,000-80,000 words]]

Alex and Liam have been best friends their whole lives until a drunken kiss leads them down separate paths. As time passes, they must face truths they never expected. ***** Alex Camejo and Liam Santos have been thick as thieves since they met at age seven. As the years passed, Liam protected Alex from bullies while Alex denied what those bullies were saying. He's not gay no matter how "girly" he seems... or how much he longs to hold Liam's hand. But a drunken kiss tears everything down. The inseparable Liam Santos and Alex Camejo can no longer be friends. Without each other's support, they must overcome the struggles of adolescence, coming out, new lovers, self-doubt and lingering emotions. One hopes he will forget his best friend and find happiness. The other hopes they will reunite and be happy. In the end, whose dreams will come true? [[Watty's Award Winner]]