@DomiSotto
I started checking out fresh ONCs as much as I can. To no-one's surprise the first one is Starless. Cosmos, love story with that one perfect woman to who no other can compare, evil officials - yup, you'll find all these elements we come to expect from @wdhenning and more in this story. I love the sweet and lyrical introductions to each chapter! https://www.wattpad.com/story/407741668
Happy Valentine's Day to all those who love and have the capacity for love and empathy. I celebrate the lovers this year by starting this novella. I don't think I can stick to the ONC schedule, but I really liked the prompt about the mortal enemies bound together unless they share a kiss. So, it's a simple story where they hate each-other in the beginning and kiss on the last page. Love you all!
https://www.wattpad.com/story/407812823
Good luck everyone entering the ONC 2026. I'm bookmarking stories that caught my eye for reading when I have time. Usually it takes me a year or even more to go through my ONC picks, so my apologies in advance for being a slow reader.
I love space opera to bits, and so the story I've just finished reading is a classical space opera by @wdhenning . It has solid vibes of everything we love about Star Trek and Wars, and the world uniquely of its own. Highly recommend! https://www.wattpad.com/story/394534031-the-ranger-and-the-pirate-princess
Friends, the ONC is around the corner. I wanted to wish good luck to everyone who stands ready to take the plunge. I'll focus on Jilted by the Mafia to make 2026 the year I complete all my outstanding rewrites, and I want the Space Spinster rewrite as the next project. While this may hurt my readership, I want a clean desk this year as a part of my no-imposter-syndrome, no-burn-out, no-FOMO writing life.
@lisa_london_ Yes, the price of rejection is really stiff, while prize is not what I want. I want my own genuine audience. To find that, I need to write persistently until I find the perfect intersection of me and the audience's taste.
@DomiSotto Exactly that! So the equation for whether it's worth doing doesn't quite add up. And while I wish I wouldn't take rejections to heart, I know my brain doesn't work like that, and it sounds like yours doesn't either.
@lisa_london_ thank you! Yes, I feel that ONC is a double-whammy against mental health by both taking me away from my preference to work on something until I am done, and the fear of being told I am a garbage writer by the results.
A steamy mafia romance Jilted by the Mafia will start this Friday, January 16th. It is the 4th book in the L.A. Lawless series, and a bit more on the drama than action side than the first 3. The story can be read stand-alone, but it has cool call backs to various characters in the first three books, so chose your own adventure.
Happy New Year. I wish you a year of characters that make us care and plots that make us turn the pages, and world peace.
Happy holidays! The last chapter of my Inkitt project (Beta is for Breeding) had just been posted and fa-la-la-loaded. As always, I was aiming for 40K words, ended up with 82K words. I'm on a writing break now as my strategy for a happy, healthy writing routine. Will talk about my next project in the New Year, but if you haven't read my L.A. Lawless series, it's great for a winter break, and... well, my lips I sealed. Fa-la-la-la!
I had this delightful story bookmarked for a while, and now that I take a healthier approach to online writing I was able to finish it. It enters my Completed and LOVED list, with its gorgeous writing and the world with both conflict and heart. Amazing read from the first page to the last.
https://www.wattpad.com/story/309768302
@DomiSotto thanks so much for reading it and for your thoughtful comments! I am glad that you are enjoying a healthy approach to writing ❤️
My first happy smile of the day: Champion in Love has crossed 7K reads. It wasn't just the story that wrote itself, it also re-wrote itself., and it wants to be rewritten again. It also has a distinction of being my only story that my mother liked -- which, trust me, deserves a badge of honor. Anyway, I'm smiling as I write this. Have a lovely time of day, wherever you are.
https://www.wattpad.com/story/300227707
