Opennovellacontest2023 Stories

A contemporary Scandinavian adaption of the legend of Jack Frost/Jokul Frosti. *** A first kiss changes everything. When Joakim kisses his childhood friend Anton it puts their relationship and also the weather in turmoil. Snow starts to whirl over Stockholm, turning the capital into a chaotic state. Is Joakim's emotional state actually affecting the weather and can his inner turmoil be stilled once he reunites with Anton, who mysteriously has disappeared after their intimate encounter? An ONC novella using prompt #69: "I had a marvellous time ruining everything."

Always willing to put herself last, Catalina Juárez has never rocked the boat. But that all changes when her father insists she marry a man she cannot stand to be near. Hopping into a carriage for hire, she spends the last of her money on a ride to nowhere. Because this mysterious carriage has one rule: you go where it takes you. Well, that was a waste of money, because she isn't even to the edge of town before she's unceremoniously dumped off at a train station. With no money to buy a ticket and no time to think of another plan, Catalina pushes through the crowd and onto the train. Marcos Caballero has never met a problem he didn't want to solve. Traveling alone on a ticket meant for him and a woman who didn't want to be with him, he's taken in by the scared, doe-eyed look of the woman in the dining carriage. She's ticketless and alone; he's lonely and has an excess ticket. Stepping in to save her, he claims her as his wife, not really expecting her to play along past the point of danger. But she quickly steps into the role with ease, acting as if they've known each other their whole lives. Somehow, it seems like they might have. But being on the run from troublesome and powerful fathers isn't without its struggles, and Catalina and Marcos are going to have to decide how much they are willing to risk to put love ahead of duty. ~ * ~ * ~ This is one of the five novellas I'll be writing for this year's ONC! You can find the rest (Hang it Up, Christmas at the Cabin, Love Lies & Red Eyes, and I Don't Want to be Queen) on my profile! For this story, I selected prompt 9. "There's an urban legend that's been circulating for years about a taxicab that doesn't take you where you want to go, but where you need to go. One night, you stepped into this cab." Except make it pre-car-era.

Sixteen-year-old Grace Williams has always been destined to a life in servitude. Born to poor parents, she has spent her life knowing that service is all she shall be able to achieve. Levi Edgeworth has no such fate. Even though he has everything he could ever wish for at his fingertips, he still wants more from life. During a chance meeting, the flip of a coin becomes the decider of their destiny and the two of them agree to follow a stream to uncover its end. Although a seemingly ordinary journey, Grace and Levi quickly find themselves trapped underground with no hope of rescue. Injured and imprisoned in darkness with only each other for company, they must find their own way out of the maze of tunnels before the crumbling walls collapse around them. Based on Prompt 5: 'Flip the coin and make a life choice with it. Two choices, one coin, and no turning back. Do you dare?' (C)Spruce_Goose

There was a time when Antheia feared death above all else. After all, what else did a goddess have to fear? However, after thousands of years, she knows the truth. There are worse fates for the divine. She should know. Antheia was living it. After the fall of her temple, the goddess Antheia is lost to time. With no followers, she is just one of the many goddesses forgotten by the mortals and frozen in her heartache. That is, until centuries later when a simple gesture of kindness breaks the shackles on her grief. Awakening in the twenty first century, Antheia is stunned by all that has changed and all that remains the same. As she fights to adapt to the new world, attempts to train her newest priestess, and most definitely does not fall in love, Antheia soon comes to realise that the fall of her temple was not just an act of fate. It was a consequence of divine intervention. When her new priestess is threatened, Antheia must make a stand or risk losing everything once more.

AU Stranger Things Fanfiction Steve Harrington x Jonathan Byers Written for ONC 23 - Prompt 62 "I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul" - Pablo Neruda _ Trapped in a dark, alternate world with no evident escape, two halves of the same soul are pushed to face their deepest desires and fears, while dealing with consequences of their fates. _ Started: 27th February 2023 Round 1 Qualifier

If you'd like to pick up mind-reading, look no further! This unorthodox guide by a normie draws on first-hand encounters with mind-readers, which means you get an outsider's perspective. If one day you find yourself unable to read minds anymore, or it suddenly occurs to you that you could never read minds, pray that 1) you do not expose yourself, and 2) you have this guide with you. Else, you're in for a wild ride. Hope the taxi from the urban legends exists in your city. It will make things a tad easier since it takes you to places you never knew you needed to be at until you're there.

Closed. This is a book club specifically created for ONC entries. We aim to help you make your entry the best it can be through peer review and feedback. We move fast to keep up with the ONC: two chapters a week! So, being a member can help keep you on a steady track to getting the novella written.

The dead objects know how to tell a story. If you know how to ask them... An unfinished novel. A golden medallion. Even an ordinary coin. When she was only a teen, Clara learned that the voices in her head - the ones that tormented her - came from the objects around her. The family curse that was sprung upon her had followed her for years before she learnt how to live with it. But no learning happens without mistakes. Once anonymous threats start arriving to her door, Clara knows her past has finally caught up to her. Now, she must trust her powers and solve a murder that happened ten years ago before it becomes too late. ----- Entered into the Open Novella Contest 2023 ONC Prompts #5 & #15 ©2023 Jana Tulisa Published to Wattpad 1st of Feb, 2023 Draft Ongoing

Olivia wasn't supposed to see Regulus on the bus, leaving him flumuxed by the Muggle girl who spoke to him as he was trying to visit his older brother without anyone in the family find out he was doing so. Disclaimer - I don't own Harry Potter. This is an alternative universe written for ONC 2023 using the prompt "you finally build enough courage to talk to that cute someone you see every day on the bus. Their face turns dark as they respond 'You shouldn't be able to see me.'"

"We called them angels not necessarily because we believed them to be merciful but because back then we had decided they came from either Heaven or Hell, and devils at least bore some resemblance to humans." "These beings did not." ~ Once a month, the city at the end of the world is plagued by Dark Days-days wherein the sky goes black and the sun refuses to shine. Gray Barnes, a struggling university professor, has spent years studying the strange beings known as "angels" who appear during the Dark Days. They've never been harmful before, but Gray has reason to suspect that this coming Dark Day, the angel's intentions are far less innocent than they may seem. When an unexpected arrest disrupts Gray's plan to flee with their wife, they find themself trapped in the city during the Dark Day. And though they've spent years researching this phenomenon, nothing can prepare Gray for the day that awaits them. The city is dark. The angels are coming. The world is slated for change-and Gray can rely on the people around them, but for the first time, they're not so sure they can rely on themself.

ONC 2023 Shortlister His features had haunted her for years; a boy with silver eyes peering out from beneath a mask of bone. His body cloaked in darkness, a wicked grin upon his lips that spoke of treachery-- a smile that had broken countless hearts. And in that instant, in the midst of this game of life and death, Lucy wondered if hers would be next... .................... Lucy was warned never to trust those within the Carnival of The Lost-- a circus of strange creatures who spend their nights in performance, vanishing during the day. Yet she is drawn in by its music, her dreams filled with the face of a mysterious boy who's eyes shine pale as the moon, the air of a dark power shrouding him. But when by her own hand a deadly mistake is made, she must play the carnival master's wicked game to set everything right. Written for the Open Novella Contest 2023, this novella is a companion book to my short story 'At Autumn's Edge.' Prompt used; 49. "Master the rules of the game until you can play it better than they can." Cover image AI generated using Canva. Cover composition made by the author.

72 On the twilight of their sixteenth birthday, a shy bookworm escapes their surprise party to find refuge in their favorite library. While walking through the shelves in search of a good read, they stumble onto a peculiar book that changes their life. ~~~ Being a Great-Granddaughter of Greek Gods doesn't make you special. In fact, there was maybe two people who thought about Grace Rose Sterling and special at the same time, and she didn't believe it was because they understood her. Aglaea and Hephastus knew she had the family talent, but talent on loan from Gods isn't the same as being known. Sharp but shy, Grace could hold her own if she was willing to be burdened by people who wanted favors, not friends, but she was very unwilling to play social games. They even roped in her childhood crush as her personal temple guard, making her his obligation, not his choice. It was enough to push a girl to hiding in the small library attached to the ballroom they held her Sweet 16 in. Problem is that the Gods truly did know her, and worse, they had ancient Greek ideas involving God-tier tasks. So, they gave her a burden in the form of the scariest Love Djinn they knew. Either she would control the monster threatening her sleep, or she would brave everyone else to stay free of his machinations. One way or another, her talents would be forced to the surface. Either way, a young demi-god is not allowed to be shy-or herself. ~~~ Trigger Warning: This is a 16 year old kid, not a Reverse Harem story. That being said, the Djinn is intimidating and may be too much for some readers.

Buried in the wreckage of a Compound meant to imprison her, Faine awakens a shell of her former self. With no memories and a growing taste for revenge, she is given the ultimate decision. She must save the city, or herself. Round One 》✅️ 2k 》✅️ Round Two 》 ✅️ 8k 》✅️ Round Three 》✅️ 20k 》✅️ Longlisted 》 ✅️ 》Featured on WattpadUrbanFantasy and Fantasy《 || Start Date 2/1/2023 || Finish Date 4/20/2023 || || Open Novella Contest 2023 ||

Eletonias is a kingdom of great technology and pain. Magic is banned, and those found with it face a fate worse than death at the hands of the King and his machines. Runa barely leaves the candlelit alleyways she calls home, working with a rebel group to overthrow the rulers who have forced her to hide her true self. Cyrus is a prince, grappling with vicious court rumours and a secret that could soon become fatal. Desperate to protect himself, their worlds collide when a series of deaths and a shattered crown reveal a darker past than anyone could have expected. But, to save the kingdom and their lives, they must first discover that things will be a lot harder when hell is empty and all the devils are here. Trigger warnings - fire, blood, swords, death, dying, dead bodies, demons, soldiers, skeletons The trigger warnings are not shown in each individual chapter at this point, sorry Main prompt- 62

Kenna's life has been turned upside down. Though the changes are positive, her past ensures that she still suffers from nightmares every time she closes her eyes. It's not long before her roommate notices, but she informs Kenna that she used to have bad dreams too. Except she managed to make those bad dreams disappear. Forever. Kenna's roommate offers her the opportunity to get rid of her nightmares too. Apparently, she and her friends found a way to fully control and manipulate their dreams, and with practice, they've been able to use this ability to improve their waking lives as well. They invite Kenna to join them, and though reluctant, she's hopeful to finally have a restful night's sleep. Kenna accepts. Problem is, dreams were never meant to be controlled. __________________________________ This story contains contain profanity and violence, and brings up past abuse (intensified through nightmares). • ONC 2023 •

For eons, the people of Crisium spun tales of a subterranean continent called Frigoria, located deep beneath the perilous Ice-Cap Mountains central to the continent. Over centuries, many have explored the icy region, only to turn up empty-handed. As time passed, many reduced the tale to nothing but a figment of a rambling madman's imagination. Little did they know that Frigoria actually existed! It was in Frigoria, that an archeologist working on a dig found a thick pane of glass and discovered a massive bio-dome, hidden for too long. Only one organism was inside, and it was meant to be forgotten. However, the creature escaped through a crack on the other side of the dome, into Crisium. As the townspeople of Catherina Island are overcome with a deadly sickness, it's up to Aria Octavia, the only one not afflicted, to find the cause and cure.

** When a wish brings devastating consequences, Pan must join forces with a fallen star to stop the walking dead before Neverland sinks into eternal darkness. ** "We can sail away tonight on a sea of pure moonlight We can navigate the stars to bring us back home In a place so far away We'll be young; that's how we'll stay Every wish is our command When we find ourselves in Never, Neverland." - Neverland, Zendaya - Everyone knows the stories and adventures of Peter Pan, the boy who didn't want to grow up. But hardly anyone knows that this story did not end the way it is told. After his most significant victory and worst loss, the boy who never wanted to grow up has to give up what is most important to him. What he does next, however, not only changes the course of Neverland's history but could also mean the island's demise under the two stars. So the future of this dreamy isle rests once again on the shoulders of Pan - and those of a fallen star. **** ONC2023EN SHORTLIST/HONORABLE MENTION The NanoWatt Longlist 2023 - Highlights 6 x WATTPAD FEATURED **** 🥇 1st Place Sunflower Award - Fanfiction 🥇 1st Place Laurel Wreath Award - Fanfiction 🥈 2nd Place Phoenix Award - Fanfiction 🥈 2nd Place TCR Awards - Adventure 🥉 3rd Place Starlight Mini Awards - Best Title 🥉3rd Place Fluorescene Awards - Fanfiction

2023 Leighyeann A. Mies All rights reserved An entry for the Open Novella Contest 2023. Based on prompt #39 Billie Presley isn't exactly the luckiest woman when it comes to relationships. When she decides to try a new dating app, she scores a date after three months, but her "match" isn't what she expected... She only stays out of politeness even though she's uncomfortable and would just like to leave... That is, until an attractive stranger comes in, changing all cards on deck...

40. Accidentally stuck in a place between life and death, you open a door that allowed the dead into the world of the living. Now you and the grim reaper have to pull each of those souls back.