elmaloney
Really hating all these bots/scammers that are in my comments telling me that they can help me get more views and engagement if I just reach out to them via discord, gmail, or whatsapp ._.
How do I make it stop?
elmaloney
elmaloney
As I race towards the finish line of ONC 2026, I find myself disappointed but not shocked at the volume of AI cover art in this competition. Do those writers know that it makes it seem like their work is made with AI too?
All of my covers are made using Pinterest and Canva. No, I don't claim the work to be my own, and no, I have NEVER used AI to capture what I'm after. And if I know the artist, I will credit them in the blurb of the book.
Remember, Pinterest and Canva are free (Canva also has free stock images!). It's not the worst thing in the world to challenge yourself into making something of your own, right?
Oh wait...
_marmoris_
@elmaloney thank you! totally agree. and besides all the environmental and borderline theft aspects... they are also not even nice to look at, mostly? it's the same soulless "pretty" faces over and over again, the same style, similar compositions, depending on genre, that all look the same. it's sad but enough people use ai to write, too which is even worse
elmaloney
I've decided that this year is finally the year I attempt the Open Novella Challenge again. My last successful attempt was Never Green in 2023, and I did try both in 2024 and 2025, but I've been focused on my main manuscript that I have been writing/editing for traditional publishing, so I couldn't focus on the ONC.
But this year... I think it's finally time to put effort into the challenge once again. I'm about to start querying my manuscript to literary agents, so why not start a new work?
Is anyone else going to try the Open Novella Challenge 2026?
AuthorESElias
@elmaloney I'm entering. Hopefully its okay that I leave my link here? Just for convenience so you can add it to a reading life. ♥ https://www.wattpad.com/story/407340533-alien-among-us-onc2026
totalkatastrophe
Never Green sequel in the works? i think the epilogue just broke me
elmaloney
@totalkatastrophe unfortunately not, but I will likely rewrite it to be the length of a proper novel. Aramis and Rinley may see each other again some day though, just not in the way you might want. I'm working on a large project called the Amorium Archives, which this novella is a part of, so it's not the end--not technically.
elmaloney
lowkey miss writing on here.
elmaloney
Hello everyone, I'm going to be pulling Super (Not) and Super (Ish) down. I'm never going to finish the trilogy, I don't love the series anymore--if anything, I'm lowkey embarrassed by it. It was first written eight years ago, and it just doesn't represent me anymore, and it's written so poorly, I can't even justify it anymore haha.
Thank you to all of those who read it, appreciate it, but time to move on <3
elmaloney
Hey guys, I'm actually going to drop out of the ONC 2024. I've just taken on the responsibility at a magazine and don't have time to be working on it, in time for the competition.
elmaloney
To Be Made of Stone made it into the second round of ONC 2024!!! I'd love your support on this project <3
It's about a young woman who doesn't have a name, chasing a life that she'll never get, in a city where flowers are the only things that matter
https://www.wattpad.com/story/362335415
Exequinne
Hi, thanks for adding DAHDAC to your reading list! :)
- Cae ~
alana_kate
Thank you for adding Vines of Hunger to your reading list! <3