Bcqu is a closely knit research squad which specializes in exploring and documenting the life of dangerous planets. After all, it's easy to coordinate risky plans if you're all the same person. Planet GU-T64A isn't supposed to be one of those missions, but when one of him makes a critical mistake, Speaker is ripped from the rest of himself and thrown into the depths of space. Trapped 10,000 lightyears away from known civilization and floundering as a mere portion of his entire self, Speaker hardly knows how to function. The engineer who effectively murdered him is determined that they work together to steal a ship and find a way home, but the civilization they have landed in offers new and deep connections he never knew he could have. It's no replacement for the rest of himself, but the longer he stays here the more he begins to wonder if returning to his old life is a goal worth pursuing at all. After all, what could be more fulfilling than being understood by minds completely different than your own?

Liss Aguilera can see things that aren't there. The world is cruel to a girl it perceives as crazy, so she's learned to live her life in the quiet--to ignore the false voices, act normal, and believe in only what she can touch. Until the unseen monsters start to come for her. Her protector is just as strange as every other hallucination, but he's determined to convince her he is real and that he needs her help. He's the servant of a guardian spirit tasked with defending humanity from behind the veil, but the spirit he serves has disappeared, and he believes Liss is his key to finding answers. He might still be imaginary. But if what he says is true, this could be Liss's chance to finally understand her own fractured existence--and maybe even save it. 𓁿 Written for the Open Novella Contest 2025, using prompt 105: "Your childhood imaginary friend, who disappeared years ago, suddenly returns--only this time, they're real." Credit to @Heuristic_Hashmath for the gorgeous cover

Saoirse Rowan has just one wish: to escape with her best friend from Saltwood and begin a life anew. But there's a problem: the town of Saltwood is cursed. No outsider can step inside, and while the folk can venture out, one way or another, they always come back. As Saoirse and her friend start planning their escape, one stormy night a gift from the woods is left in front of her house, a man on the brink of death that only knows two things: her name, and that the shadows are all going to die. Vowing to nurse the man back to health, she'll slowly realize that he's less human than what he first appeared to be, and that the secrets she thought she knew of Saltwood were nothing as they really were.

Reverse Handmaiden's tale set in a fantasy medieval land. *** Fynn of Teleni is an orphan born and raised within the Great Kingdom of Teleni. The particularity of his home is its rare breed of virgin male soldiers. Currently stationed in the same barrack for nearly five years, Fynn is determined to climb in grade and become commander. Seileia is from the Eleenora's wood, an uncharted forest and the last unconquered territory by the Kingdom of Teleni. Descendant from a race of powerful witches and dragon riders, Seileia fears being the next one like her many sisters who have gone missing, taken by the Kingdom of Teleni. With no proof to attest to her suspicions, Seileia storms into Fynn's barrack on her dragon to rescue them all. The plan should have worked as she comes disguised as one of Teleni's soldiers; however, Fynn catches her, and the two of them fight with Fynn exposing her naked body to everyone and calling her "a demon." To fall in love with a demon is the last of their wishes, and yet, outnumbered, the Kingdom of Teleni captured Seileia and leaves her under Fynn's sole guardianship. This is a clumsy fantasy fairytale with an ending that you will never expect. *** ONC 25' Prompt 2: To be in love with a demon was the last thing on your wishlist. Prompt 61: The silence in the room is deafening, as though it has a life of its own. It's time to rewrite the fairy tale, but this time, the ending will be yours, and it won't be happy. ROUND 1 & 2 QUALIFIERS AND AMBASSADORS PICK. *** CW: Depictions and mentions of violence with a bit of foul language but mostly a war of the minds over the ones of the bodies. Sensible chapters will be marked with *** at the end of their titles.

| Round 2, Ambassador Pick | When media mogul Richard Langley demands his children declare their love to inherit his empire, the refusal of his youngest daughter sparks a bitter family feud, forcing her to choose between healing old wounds or securing her place in the business world. ✦✦✦ The year is 2025, and the world of family legacies is as ruthless as it is glamorous. When Richard Langley, a powerful titan of the industry, announces his retirement, he demands his three adult children-Gwen, Riley, and Cora-profess their love for him in exchange for their share of the family empire. Gwen and Riley fall in line, but Cora, the youngest, refuses to bow to her father's demand and offers only brutal honesty. Enraged, Richard disowns her, casting her out of the family. As his mental state unravels, Gwen and Riley fight tooth and nail for control of the Langley legacy, manipulating their father and each other in a battle of wills and ambition. Meanwhile, Cora, heartbroken but determined, builds her own path to success in the media world. But when Richard reaches out, desperate and broken, Cora must decide whether to heal the rift or walk away for good. ✦✦✦ ✦ A modern retelling of Shakespeare's King Lear x Succession ✦ Cover design by @TheWildCyde ✦ Open Novella Contest 2025 | Prompts 31, 110, 111, 129 ᴄᴏᴘʏʀɪɢʜᴛ © 2025 ʙʏ ᴀᴜᴅʀᴇʏ ᴀʟʟ ʀɪɢʜᴛꜱ ʀᴇꜱᴇʀᴠᴇᴅ. ᴛʜɪꜱ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ᴏʀ ᴀɴʏ ᴘᴏʀᴛɪᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇᴏꜰ ᴍᴀʏ ɴᴏᴛ ʙᴇ ʀᴇᴘʀᴏᴅᴜᴄᴇᴅ ᴏʀ ᴜꜱᴇᴅ ɪɴ ᴀɴʏ ᴍᴀɴɴᴇʀ ᴡʜᴀᴛꜱᴏᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴡɪᴛʜᴏᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴇxᴘʀᴇꜱꜱ ᴡʀɪᴛᴛᴇɴ ᴘᴇʀᴍɪꜱꜱɪᴏɴ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡʀɪᴛᴇʀ ᴇxᴄᴇᴘᴛ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴜꜱᴇ ᴏꜰ ʙʀɪᴇ

Ellery Mazick -a low grade shifter tasked with guarding the missives of war generals and commoners alike- never expected to be drafted for war. When General Valerus, a self-proclaimed Bloodtracer, charges into her world with frosted veins and a challenge hung over his head, Ellery's bound to hate the man who serves their corrupt crown. Thrown into a whirlwind of scales and swords, she investigates the lies among fire-breathing beasts, while catching the attention of reclusive misty eyes. A voice filling her head. A presence over her shoulder. Watching. Waiting. As more secrets are uncovered about her heritage and the threat against Valerus' life intensifies, Ellery must decide not only her allegiance, but if winning his war will cost her a heart. Round One 》✔️ 2k 》✔️ Round Two 》✔️ 8k 》✔️ | Cover by the lovely -MilaSteele | | An Open Novella Contest Entry |

Entry-level magic professors aren't supposed to be responsible for fixing the generations-long problems that come from a library haunted by fae. But when the administration sweeps the dangerous situation under the rug, Constance Wylf sets out to expose the truth. Armed with logic, a cart of books, and her personal-companion fairy, Constance is ready to storm the long-abandoned shelves. What she isn't prepared for is a tavern-keeper who's madly insistent on tagging along, especially since he seems convinced she's unravelling along the edges. Which is impossible. Unravelling, as everyone knows, is for people with emotions. And Constance Wylf is absolutely determined to keep any emotions she might have tied up tight. ~ * ~ ONC 2025 Prompts 65 and 102 Main: What is science, if not magic governed by laws instead of emotions? Secondary: In a world where books are feared for their power to possess readers, one Scribe enters a haunted library full of cursed stories. The question is: will they leave the same person?

53. On your honeymoon, you discover the most shocking truth about your spouse - one that could change everything. For Celia, nothing matter more in the world then marrying the love of her life, well that and becoming one of the few women to win the Nobel peace prize. So when her new husband shows her a secret base that he and the other scientist have been working in during their honeymoon, Celia is more then ecstatic. This is it, her chance to finally get everything she's ever wanted and nothing is going to stop her. Nothing excepts the scientist top project, a humanoid mutation named Avan. The more the scientists torture this experiment, the more Celia wonders if a piece of medal is worth this. Torn between her wants and her morals, Celia needs to make a choice soon before all is lost to her forever.

Mabel's life is falling apart. Between her long-time situationship who wants to be more than friends now, her rapidly deteriorating grades, and a group of friends who've been conveniently excluding her from their plans lately, nothing is going her way, and the pressure keeps building up from all sides. That's when Katie comes along, a brilliant new student who is quickly arranged to be her tutor. She seems like everything Mabel could never be. And yet, she understands her better than anyone ever did before. As the two start spending more time together, and Mabel's life becomes increasingly messier day after day, Katie will add another problem onto Mabel's plate-one that, if not handled properly, could leave a bitter taste in their mouths... and hearts. ~ 🍋 ~ Entry written for Open Novella Contest 2025 Prompts: 126, 118, 134, 69 Genre(s): Contemporary YA Romance PUBLISHED: 2/1/2025 COMPLETED: TBA

An apprentice silversmith, haunted by his reflection. A wealthy family, falling to ruin. A patron spirit, searching for a pact. Five games will decide their fate. After acquiring great wealth from a boom in silver trade, the Blackwood family moves into a mansion that was mysteriously abandoned by its previous owners. The property has everything a family of established silversmiths could need: prime trade location, a smithing workshop, and a large mirror that was left behind. To Kyren Blackwood, the promises of a new life and the riches that come with it are more than enough to overshadow the eerie tale. But the mirror watches. Reflections are not what they seem. Driven to the brink of insanity, Kyren must uncover the mirror's secrets before his family loses everything. In a desperate attempt to free himself, he agrees to play five games with the spectre in the mirror. If he can win three, the curse will end. Lose, and he surrenders his soul to the silver spirit. ~An ONC novella, inspired by prompts 13 and 55. ~Set in the same world as Buried in the Sea but can be read completely independently (with no spoilers to one or the other).