Ownvoices Stories

Hi, I'm Samantha. 💜 For the Own Voices Contest, I wanted to write a story about disability that focuses on the person behind the disability-not just the challenges they face. Disability can be part of someone's story without being their entire identity. I hope this one-chapter story reminds readers that everyone has their own experiences, struggles, strengths, and dreams. Thank you for taking the time to read my story and see the world through my character's eyes.

SPOILER: Neurologist, Dr. Kaya Jerito, finds out her patients are dying from an alien killer, not injuries or disease, but she's too late to save her own family. In the midst of falling for an undercover humanoid alien posing as a co-worker, Kaya's family is attacked. Now she must seek revenge against the ET killer that destroyed her patients' lives and her own. A family secret will expose her to the untapped abilities she needs to embrace in order to enact revenge. She grows powerful but risks her humanity and all that she stands for when her abilities cloud her judgment. A hybrid of reality and fiction, ancient alien theology meets alien abductions in a story driven by interdimensional love! Even super-powered aliens cannot stop a determined parent from saving their child, learning to use latent psychic powers, and finding the strength to love again.

'Death never stops surprising you.' A sentiment Aria knows all too well. Her world on its surface is perfect. A completely enclosed ecosystem protected from the nuclear winter of the Outside World. No sickness, no famine, nothing to worry about. Nothing that is except for Spectre, the computer system that determines who lives and dies annually based on their importance to society. Somehow everyone around her seems to cope, but seeing as how Spectre has taken every member of her family, Aria struggles to fall in line with the status quo. Whether it's pressure from the powers that be, her first potential love, or full on revolution, Aria seems to be pulled in every direction, each one with drastic consequences, and no clue which way to go.

Seven Fires Seven young warriors are called by Country when the land, sea, and sky fall under threat from those who seek to exploit it. Each carries a gift: tracker, healer, storyteller, diplomat, hunter, weaver, and seer, and together they must learn to walk the old ways while facing new dangers. From the deserts of Uluru to the whale-song of the coast, from burning mountains to city streets wired with surveillance, the Seven fight not just enemies, but the stories that twist truth into fear. Guided by their Elders, their memories, and the spirits of Country, they discover that survival is more than strength; it is balance, story, and fire. But their names are now known. Their faces are broadcast. And the net is closing.

My daughter and I are both autistic, and over the years I have compiled a list (read: Pinterest board) of many great references and helpful articles, which just occurred to me to share here. This book will include info about all aspects of the autism spectrum, as well as sensory disorders, anxiety, ocd, giftedness, twice exceptional people, overexcitabilities, and more. I will also add many of my own thoughts and our experiences living with all of the above so be prepared for my random personal thoughts. If you are autistic or love someone who is, or just want to know more, please enjoy and feel free to ask respectful questions!

A boy whose home was taken from him seeks freedom. A mindrenderer with dangerous hands hopes to undergo his own redemption arc. When Cole was younger, his mother told him about the men who played at being gods. Self-righteous, arrogant fools who stole his people and used their wicked mindrenderers to take away their free will. And as he got older, they nearly took away his mind, too. Alistair didn't like his job. If it were up to him, he would've discarded the part of him that made him a mindrenderer years ago. Perhaps then he wouldn't have hurt so many people. When the pair are forced together after a failed assassination attempt, they discover they might have to put aside what they know about each other in order to survive. Or kill each other in the process. (WARNING: THIS IS A ROUGH DRAFT!! i'm so very sorry)

BASED OFF 'Merchant Ships' SONG OF THE SAME NAME Seventeen-year-old Michael Horowitz is the rock of his dysfunctional family, shouldering the burden of his mother's hospitalization, his father's addiction and arrest, and the protection of his younger brother, Gary. But when the 9/11 tragedy shatters their world, Michael must navigate grief, anger, and despair to lead his family out of darkness. Haunted by prophetic dreams and an uncertain future, Michael's unwavering love for Gary and his faith are put to the ultimate test as he strives to keep the last flickers of hope alive in their hearts.

Skiddy Cottontail, an eight-year-old rabbit, had two fathers who were happily married to each other, his best friend, Leslie, a transgender eight-year-old female, had two mothers who were the same. An elephant has been elected as the next President, and both of the children are afraid that they are going to lose their parents because the tyrant elephant follows the values of Homophobe ideology that would separate their own families from each other. The two children must work together and keep their own families together, even if it becomes an outlaw in their own city. The story is about standing up against homophobes and far-right ideologies, protecting same-sex marriage, and defending the LGBTQ community.

Opinions, wonderings, and creative scrap metal.

One man is her family's dream. The other could be her undoing. Suraiya Rao has never quite belonged. She's not white enough for society, not brown enough for her family... not enough for anyone. She's spent her life walking a tightrope between British reality and Indian expectation, doing everything by the book, no matter the cost. Then one chance encounter changes everything. Haydn Ellis Clarke isn't part of the plan. He's rich, ridiculously handsome, and absolutely not the man her family has chosen for her. But he sees her - not the dutiful daughter or the girl buried beneath generations of pressure, but the version of herself she's never dared to be. Mendhi My Heart is a story of identity, belonging, and choosing love, even when it means breaking every rule. Because love doesn't always arrive in the "suitable" package. Sometimes, it wears torn jeans... and gives your grandmother a heart attack.

The world wanted quiet. It got a riot instead. The school called it policy. They called it war. One boy is trapped in a mind that has betrayed him. The other is an artist who stopped sketching and started swinging. But if the world will label them as villains, they might as well give them a reason to be afraid.

Four princesses from the districts of Brown Town are accepted at the prestigious Brown Queen University, the only remaining university in the country to train princesses into the official royal family. Of course, there's a catch. The selected Brown Queen must be the epitome of what it means to be the most socially accepted and desired brown girl in all of Brown Town. Who will the next queen be? Or more interestingly, who will the next queen NOT be?

High school is a period when many young adults discover who they are and what they want to do with their lives. But for some this path is longer and takes more unexpected turns than others. Thomas Swan is about to embark on just such a journey as he finds himself caught up in the machinations of the popular clique who've discovered a way to make the impossible, reality. A collaborative novel written by four trans women, Sophie: A Story of Change features original illustrations.

After moving on from the Nighthowlers incident and graduating from the police academy, things seem to be looking up for Nick. With a more reliable (and legal) job, being introduced to the greatest friend he's ever had, and a nice apartment it seems like nothing could go wrong. That is until Vincent Greyson is thrown into the mix. -ENTRY FOR THE FANFICTION CONTEST MAY 2019-

The family's smart but lazy crackpot once wished to get her youth back. And by that, she meant- to lose the dark circles and those damn joint pain. She did not want to move back to the neighbourhood she grew up in, only to play 'parenting' while dealing with her paradoxical younger sister who's slightly scaring everyone with her new persona; her self-proclaimed fitness expert of a mother who thinks she's a successful influencer; her father who is too attached to his culture to stop making new experimental dishes; and her sister's three kids, including an obnoxious one, who may possibly help her out on the angst-ridden-self-discovery journey that she thought she had given up years ago. Worse, she'll have to listen to her mother's scathing sass in person instead of their long distance calls where she usually tunes out the aging (not aging!) proud influencer.

"Just because we're in college, doesn't mean things have to change. That's what I thought. But now I feel like an idiot. Of course things would change. We can't stay a perfect trio forever, now that I know I was so wrong about the twins. I thought Kara was a straight girl, and I thought Caleb was a gay guy. How could I not realize it was the other way around? And how can we all stay friends if they're fighting over me?"

In the vibrant world of Eltryia, Ryn stands as a shining star, celebrated for her mesmerizing performances that light up the virtual realm. As the monthly competition approaches, anticipation crackles in the air. Gamers from all corners gear up for a series of intricate puzzles that promise grand rewards. Yet, as Ryn dives into the challenges, an unsettling realization sets in---the puzzles delve into her personal story in a way that could unveil her real-world secret as she is the final piece. VRChat meets Belle meets Ready Player One meets Code Lyoko #1 Cyber Love

What am I? Who am I? How do I know what I am? Better yet, how do I come to terms with it? **Awesome cover by @shermssss**

All through university, my friend, Rubee would pick me up and bring me to her home to chill whenever studies got too much for me. Long before I even turned up, Rubee befriended and cared for international students like me and she still does. This is her secret life. By day she is a medical lab scientist but in the evenings and weekends she makes sure the students under her care are well looked after. She has so many tales about her adventures with them buried deep within her heart. This book is an attempt to collate some of them. If you remember an instance or story and would like it included in this book, please message or facebook me. :) If you recognise the story and would like to tell it from your perspective get in touch.