Opennovellacontest2022 Stories

When a strange old woman comes to the village of Little Plimpton, her arrival sparks a conflict that could bring the entire population to the brink of war. And by 'war', read 'a series of petty grievances aired in public'. Humphrey, caught in the middle of the ensuing whirlwind of accusations, threats and mildly aggressive and/or violent actions, must try his utmost to bring Little Plimpton back to some semblance of serenity and, if he has his way, at least quiet. If only so he can read his newspaper in peace. A novella, written for #ONC2022. Based upon Prompt No. 6 and in the General Fiction category. Cover created in Canva, using a Pixabay stock picture.

Between 1813 and 1819, the great composer, Ludwig van Beethoven almost disappeared from public life. Many stories passed about the reason, but none could ever hope to know the truth. Until now. In 1818, Bernhard Gerber experiences something terrifying and heartbreaking, bringing him in contact with the great man, Beethoven, himself. Though Beethoven proves nothing like the person known all across Europe. Between them, the two men take on the task of ridding the world of the greatest horror ever to walk the Earth and, in the process, perhaps lay to rest both men's greatest tragedies and guilt. A deadly serious story with a character that doesn't know it. And doesn't care. A novella, written for #ONC2022. Based upon Prompt No. 70 and in the 'Creature Feature' category. Cover created in Canva, using an AI generated picture.

Adam Mitchell disappeared one rainy night in May, 1996. Twenty five years later, November Falls Police Detective Evelyn Hardy stumbles upon an article about his cold case. It's been long enough, it's time to get Adam Mitchell the justice he deserves. But, with the FBI on scene, the unorthodox involvement of Evelyn's family, and the unacknowledged feelings between Evelyn and her partner finally reaching breaking point, there is one thing that is for certain: Solving the case is going to be the easy part. Part 1 of the November Falls Series. Prompt 67

❖ ''ZF 16 Ariomma to unknown vessel. Please identify yourself. Over.'' ❖ Farah and Kazem are twins working aboard the Ariomma, a trading airship that sails the edges of a flat world. Out here is a frontier far from civilization: a place known as the Tideless, where water lifts from the surface of the sea, and great creatures rise with it. Only some of them are known. This is not a sailing path known for its safety, but the crew of the Ariomma have rarely feared their work. That is, until they find the carcass of another ship hanging in the Tideless, decimated by an unknown enemy. Soon, their flight to safety becomes a fight for their lives, as the monster turns its attention on the Ariomma... and them. ❖❖❖ Written for #NONC2022, a community-run novella festival operating in parallel with Wattpad's 2022 Open Novella Contest. Complete. Marked mature for violence and other dark themes. Comments and critiques are both welcome and appreciated. I write characters from many different backgrounds, with many different experiences. If you share those traits and find that I have misrepresented anything, please let me know! I am feedback-friendly and here to learn :)

Prompt #52: Legend says only he who was fit to rule England could pull the sword from the stone. But the only one who manages to do so is a she. AUTHOR'S NOTE: I tweaked the prompt a teeny bit. I changed England to a fictional island called Moneres Islands and adjusted the setting from historical to present day (without the COVID vibes). According to ancient legend on the Moneres Islands, "He who is fit to rule could pull the sword from the stone." Is a short cute Korean girl from America fit to rule when she accidentally and drunkenly freed the decrepit blade in the dead of night? The answer is a resounding, "Oh hell no!" Except the people of the islands, including the current king, take the outdated myth very seriously and are set on crowning me - Winter Copeland, a 26-year-old photographer from Wisconsin - the queen in thirty days. While I'm safe from wearing clothes inspired by the Easter Bunny, I need to take crash course on how to behave like royalty. Apparently, queens don't joke about reverse harems, kick sleazy lawyers in the gonads, or prefer to hang out with dogs than converse with real people. With my best friend, Philomena, by my side, I'm ready to slay the etiquette classes and boring history lessons while evading my super serious and super hot personal bodyguard and the soon-to-be ousted prince with a perpetual frown on his handsome face. Some welcome the sudden royal change while others are determined to see me fail. Even I expect myself to fail on more than one occasion, but one thing I know for sure. Queens don't quit. They conquer.

Noor has only one goal: to not be caught! As restraint against illegal books in the state grows,it causes even more illegal books to flourish and the Emir orders anyone suspicious to be arrested. As she publishes under her pen name, she also exchanges letters with another poet. Enamoured by each other, they think they hold all the love in the world for each other. Unfortunately for them, Fate loves to play. After one explosive encounter unravels a series of trusted betrayals, heart-wrenching games, and a pack full of hidden identities, can each of them find their Paradise?

After tragic circumstances, twin sisters Pat and Kat find themselves in front of a magical mirror. A decision to step through lands them in Uther Pendragon's court. Legend says only he who is fit to rule England could pull the sword from the stone. Yet Pat finds herself poised to do just that, and the outcome could change history... forever.

*entry for ONC 2022* prompt seventy: his [her] eyes were cold and lifeless as he [she] stared at me. "you have no idea who i am, do you?" - It's only been three weeks since Vera Watson and her father moved to Goldhurst Lighthouse. She's trying her best to settle in, but it's hard when they're the only non-white family living on the property. And to make matters worse, she's never worked at a lighthouse before. But when a storm rolls in--the first one Vera will experience since moving here--everything changes. In the middle of the raging tempest, Vera finds a strange girl by the rocky shore. Wearing a white dress, her skin pale white and her hair as dark as the night, she looks like a ghost. Thing is, she is. And she's asking Vera for help. © myrawritess 2022. all rights reserved.

Elizabeth Grayson was still caught on Christopher Milton. The one that got away. Her childhood friend; her first crush and the unrequited love of her life. When he suddenly gets back in touch, Elizabeth knows this is it: her chance. Only things don't go quite to plan when Chris turns up at a reunion dinner with a new fiance, and the announcement that he's getting married in a month. With her second chance gone, and a month's worth of activities planned for the wedding party, Elizabeth has to decide whether to keep pinning her hopes of happiness on Chris or to take a chance finding it somewhere she'd never thought to look before. One thing is for certain: this month is definitely going to be interesting. Prompt (89): You thought you still had a chance with your childhood friend, but it turns out they're getting married in a month.

a young Dragon-Shifter, a Vampire Rockstar and a once in a Blue Moon opportunity... EXTENDED SUMMARY INSIDE ~~~ ONC 2022 Entry Prompt 27 (every blue moon, the pack holds a festival to honour the dead. this year's festival ends up far more chaotic than usual)

Timballisto struggles with the scattered pieces of Martin's memory the best he can, telling Martin the past doesn't matter. Yet, in saying so he doesn't know how much the past does matter, particularly when illness befalls those helping to build Redwall, which will eventually become a safe haven for many. Polleekeen always knew, though, what lay in store for Martin. Disclaimer - I don't own Redwall. This is written for ONC 2022, but the prompt I picked for this was prompt was number seventy, "His eyes were cold and lifeless as he stared at me. 'You have no idea who I am, do you?'."

Bianca Daleman only has two rules. First, never lose control. And second, never marry anyone until she is certain it won't end in divorce. While in Vegas for her best friend's bachelorette party, Bianca discovers her ex-boyfriend is engaged to a supermodel. Thrown back into the heartbreak of his leaving her, she breaks her first rule and spends the night in a drunken stupor. The next morning, when she wakes up with a splitting headache and a giant diamond ring, she assumes her friends have set up an elaborate prank. But the diamond is real and so is the confused man standing half-naked in the corner. Somehow, she is married. To a handsome, enticing stranger named Enrique Calderón. Getting out of the marriage she has no memory of entering seems easy until her friend's bachelorette party turns into a surprise elopement. With Bianca's ex as the best man. She simply cannot let him know how much he hurt her, so when he spots the ring on her finger, Bianca has no choice but to make it look like her relationship is flourishing. Which means she needs to find Enrique. And fast. ~*~ This is Book One of the Love Travels Collection. Book Two, Roatán Plunge, is now available on my profile. New chapters every Wednesday. ~*~

When one of the most important inventions of the Inventors Showcase goes missing, Castus Neris has to take up the one thing he wanted to avoid: bounty hunting. Despite his qualms, Castus has no choice. Not if he wants to keep his sister alive.

After years of struggling to make it as an actor, Daniel Shephard is finally about to make it big. He's landed the lead in a superhero movie. He's about to be Captain Universe with the whole world. That is, if he can make it to his agent in time to sign the contract. Which is easier said than done, as Daniel wakes up, only a few days before the need to sign the contract, in a locked room with no escape. He doesn't know who's abducted him or why. The only clue he has is the manuscript pushed in under the door. A script so terribly bad, it physically pains him to read it. Now Daniel is forced to act out the script--while wearing increasingly ludicrous costumes--and deliver a performance of a lifetime, to appease the manic author who has him trapped, before he loses his spot in the limelight. *** This is an ONC story, using prompt #6: Walking down the street, a stranger approaches you. He/she stares intently into your eyes for a moment and then says, "I know what you need to do." *** "If you liked Misery but didn't like the maiming, drug abuse, peril, or murder then you'll love this!!!"

[Book 1 of the DUO, Webtoon coming soon] The Department of Unnatural Occurrences, better known as the DUO, is an organization dedicated to solving the strange happenings in the port city of Portia. Within it is the Investigation Squad, a small group that acts as detectives to solve most, if not all, of the major crimes in the city. After the death of a journalist close to the Squad, Greyson Saffirus, a young member of the Investigation Squad, realizes that the DUO is keeping a secret. The Underworld, a group responsible for the recent string of murders in Portia, is looking for something, and only gives the DUO three pieces of information: its codename is Demon, it's inside the DUO, and they must give it to the Underworld or suffer the consequences. The only problem is that nobody knows what Demon is. With the help of the journalist's notes, Greyson and the rest of the Investigation Squad find themselves faced with a choice: find Demon and give it to the Underworld, or face the group and stop them, even if it's just temporary.

When spring cleaning season hits the Richardson household, sixteen-year-old maid Jane Wexler is less than impressed to find out she's been tasked with cleaning the attic. Upon discovering Lady Catherine Richardson's journal hidden in the chimney breast, Jane's ordinary life is transformed into one filled with mystery and intrigue as she works to uncover why the journal had been hidden. With so many twists and turns in the tale, Jane realises that not everything in the Richardson's seemingly perfect life is as it seems. Based on prompt 48: 'While clearing out the chimney, you notice a loose brick. When you pull it out, you discover something unexpected.' (C)Spruce_Goose

Jane doesn't quite believe the magic bean is real when the tooth fairy accidentally drops it into her sister's bed. She plants it anyway and finds herself climbing to the sky on a giant beanstalk, just like her cousin, Jack. The Giant catches her and gives her an ultimatum: steal her weight in gold from the dragon or never go home again. Fortunately for her, there are good friends to be had, but will they be enough to overcome an ancient dragon? Jane is determined to try.

**A Snow White Dark Fairytale Retelling** - - - - - - - - - - - Marion Price wished something exciting would happen during the long, hot, sluggish summer vacation spent at her grandmother's house. Instead, she is tasked with cleaning out her grandmother's musty old attic full of junk. But when Marion stumbles upon the antique mirror with a liquid surface, she finds herself plunged into a cold, cruel world known as The Hushing. With ash-laden fields and shadowy forests of black apple trees, Marion quickly learns nothing living can survive this place for long. The wraiths who govern this realm hunt her for the warm soul harbored within her body. And the only way to stay alive is through the protection of Lady Ingrid. But Lady Ingrid is just like everything else in this kingdom - a dark and twisted thing. She wields her power with an unforgiving hand and destroys anyone who dares to defy her. It's only a matter of time before Lady Ingrid turns against Marion. And when Marion no longer has the Lady's favor to shield her, she faces a grim execution. Can she find her way back through the mirror to return home before it's too late? Or will she be stuck in The Hushing forever? *** 5.11.2022: #1 in Gothic Romance

Saya just wants to enjoy a lazy Sunday with her wife and ten year old son. But what happens when her one good deed of the day comes to bite her in the ass. Because in her short trip down the block, fifty years have passed. And everything she's known is gone. What does she do? What can she do? Open Novella Contest 2022