2020 WATTYS WINNER in NEW ADULT! Oliver Ausman has been given a second chance at life, but it's hard to feel grateful when he was the one trying to end it in the first place. Returning to his normal life after being released from the hospital is hard, especially since his parent's idea of normal is made up of dinner parties, prep school, fancy suits, and fake manners-- all paired with a complete disregard for the mental health of their firstborn. He's long been fed up with it, but the final straw is when he finds out that his "father" isn't actually his father at all. Oliver decides he's had enough of the perfect facade, so he packs a suitcase and grabs his younger brother, "borrowing" his mother's car to sneak off on a trip to find his biological father. But he never expected to pick up a girl with her own similar set of problems, to be followed across the country by a money-hungry pair of criminals, or most of all, to find out that maybe this life thing isn't as bad as he thought. 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐃 (𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝) - 𝟏/𝟐𝟐/𝟐𝟎

Small town girl Song Hyejin grew up with a pair of scissors in her hand, spending her high school days in her father's barber shop cutting crew cuts for young men who were about to enlist in the army; this was how she was intending to spend the rest of her life. When top star Ares Hwang walks into the shop one rainy day demanding that she give him a haircut even though it's past opening hours, her life gets thrown straight into a raging hurricane known as the world of showbiz. ======== Enter Kang Hyunwon, hairstylist to the celebrities, touted by all the country's fashion magazines as the golden hands that could catapult anyone, literally anyone, from obscurity to stardom. When his limelight gets stolen unceremoniously by the head of hair atop one Ares Hwang (whom he had callously rejected to style just days before), his ego takes a beating that he will never forget. When he finds out who it is who was responsible for his humiliation, he vows to show this clueless suburban girl what it truly means to be hair-raisingly good with a pair of scissors... ======== Cover adapted from the artwork by @ClarissaNorth

When your girlfriend gives you a gym membership for your birthday, your relationship is probably doomed. Too bad Jenny didn't realize this before proposing. Rejection stings, but it's the catalyst Jenny needs to move her stagnant life forward. For Juliana, well-padded women frequenting the gym she works at are potential clients. But she can't help noticing how cute this one is. And determined. And a number of other things she shouldn't notice. She doesn't, however, want to be attracted to gym clients, so she does her best to keep it professional. If only her attraction to the woman would do the same. Open Novella Contest (ONC) entry - Prompt #61: After being jilted, you move to the city to hide your embarrassment, lick your wounds, and start afresh.

When social services threatens to take away her younger sister, budding singer Kamree Philips must accept help from her young, attractive boss in order to keep her small family together. ***** In a kingdom filled with music and Destiny, Kamree Philips is perhaps the only individual who doesn't believe in love. She can't afford to. With a demanding job and a little sister to take care of, love is the last thing on her mind. However, when social services come to take away her younger sister, Kamree must accept help from her music producer boss, Daxton Cavenaugh, to keep her family together. Despite her notions on relationships, the more time she spends with Daxton, the more Kamree begins to question herself. Love doesn't exist...right? (Book Two of the Anonymous Series) (Can be read standalone)

Jingle Hell, Jingle Hell, Jingle all the way. Oh what fun, It is to hide; To slaughter and to slay... (Winner of @Fright's Holiday Horror Contest!) Highest ranking: #10 in horror, 27th December 2016 Featured in @IncarnateMovie 'Best of Horror' reading list Featured on @Fright @Wattfest @SpeculativeFiction @ForbiddenWorlds reading lists Featured Story December 2018 (Home For the Holidays) Featured Story November 2020 (Editors' Choice) Featured Story October 2021 (Homepage, Spooky SZN) Also available on Amazon and at Barnes and Noble Includes audio Cover by @RachelS8766 Disclaimer: This story is rated PG13, and any comments on this story should also be suitable for 13 year olds to come across. Any comments which are not PG13 may be removed without notice. Thank you ☺♥