Sunny

Alas, my writing goals have only been partially met as I prep to get back into the office post baby. But it’s been a fun ride, Wattpad. You’ve been incredibly helpful with my transition into parenthood. ❤️ 

The Nanny Protocol just made it to Round 3! I'm thrilled. This was my first attempt at writing (what I think is) a commercial romantic comedy. ONC occurred during some of the toughest three months of my life (story for another day, I suppose). 
          
          But setting that aside, I am so incredibly thrilled for all the love this story has received and for all the wonderful new people I've connected with through ONC.
          
          Please note: if your book is on my ONC reading list, I will absolutely get to it before the end of the year. So please don't disappear after ONC. I fully intend to keep reading ONC stories long after the contest is over, God willing.
          
          As always, much love. Hope you're having a good weekend.
          
          https://www.wattpad.com/story/407498810-the-nanny-protocol-onc-2026

@ProlixRemedy
          Hey, thanks so much for choosing to follow my page, I hope you find it worth your while.

Are we permitted to add an author’s note to our ONC submissions at this point? My story is marked complete, but adding an author’s note won’t disqualify it, right?

~~ ONC SHOUTOUT ~~
          
          "Water and Sand: A Modern Retelling of Ariadne and Theseus" by @NicoletteSalle is a beautiful retelling of the myth of Theseus and Ariadne. The story follows a young woman set up on a blind date by four retirees, and the hilarious, witty journey that unfolds afterward through Naples, Italy.
          
          If you know me and happen to be reading my Grace Sumer series, then you already know Naples and I have a connection. ;)
          
          So if you’re looking for pleasant and immersive slow burn that transports you to modern-day (and perhaps not-so-modern-day) Italy, give it a read.
          
          https://www.wattpad.com/story/408382573-water-and-sand-a-modern-retelling-of-ariadne-and

Thank you to @ScienceFiction for adding "The Sky Gods of Atlantis" to their Sci-Fantasy reading list, and for adding "The Android of Atlantis" (my ONC submission from last year) to their Robots & AI reading list.
          
          I’m genuinely thrilled to see these two stories, which I love so dearly, continuing to gain recognition and find new readers. It means more to me than you know.
          
          The Sky Gods of Atlantis: https://www.wattpad.com/story/387903304-the-sky-gods-of-atlantis-a-novel
          
          The Android of Atlantis: https://www.wattpad.com/story/389202532-the-android-of-atlantis

I’ve been writing pretty actively for the past two years, and I think what it’s really become is a close study of human emotion.
          
          My conclusion thus far is that humans rarely, if ever, make sense. We are contradictory by nature. We love and destroy, fear and desire, cling and run all at once. Logic usually comes after emotion, not before it. And yet… there’s still some strange sense to the madness.
          
          Rumi once said something along the lines of: clarity does not come before action. Maybe that’s part of why we write and read stories in the first place. Fiction allows us to emotionally experience lives, choices, desires, griefs, and transformations almost the same way dreams do or lived experiences do.
          
          So then the best stories aren’t about perfect people making rational choices. They’re about emotional truth… about trying to attain clarity and self-actualization (dare I call that love?) through confronting emotional chaos and our own beautiful, messy existence.

@ProlixRemedy ❤️❤️❤️

I’ve got another ONC rec for you by @missivylynn called "Marked."
          
          Marked is written for my second favorite prompt: “You wake after a mafia raid with a vampire bite marking you as ‘claimed,’ but the vampire heir accused of biting you insists they are innocent.” The hilarious vampire mafia whodunit is such a fun ride. As always, Ivy brings layered, compelling characters to life in a short time, which I appreciate. And a couple of my Atlantis and Nanny Protocol characters (Ibris and Grace ;) ) even make a quick cameo in the story.
          
          Read this if you enjoy comedic, fast-paced mysteries with vampires and mafia intrigue.
          
          My vampire-Lycan romance novel, "Bound to the Lycan King: Idrien & Anna," is in turn inspired by this story. I know, I know. We’ve come full circle. XD
          
          https://www.wattpad.com/story/408136284-marked

I’m officially nostalgic for an era I never even lived through: the 1960s. Maybe it’s because I keep seeing that aesthetic in marketing lately. Or maybe it’s because I was listening to The Beatles the other day. Or maybe it’s because I’m reading an incredibly compelling slowburn by @nikszabo called “Falling Sideways” set in that era. 
          
          Either way, I’m a big fan. 
          
          I highly recommend the story too.
          
          https://www.wattpad.com/story/402972761-falling-sideways