My Sister’s Last Game (Women Fiction) *Third Place Winner

Jasmine hasn’t been coping well since her sister, Kayla, passed. They had a strained relationship, and Jasmine believed it was her fault. She had always dreamed of fixing it and now she can’t. 

Weeks later, Kayla’s best friend takes Jasmine out to lift her spirits. But when Jasmine loses her wallet that contained the last photo she had taken with her sister, she panics. Eventually, she finds her wallet, but the photo is missing. In it’s place is a note starting Jasmine on her sister’s last game. 

Throughout the short story, Jasmine is faced with learning how her sister always felt about her. It’s a touching and moving story of getting to see Kayla’s feelings about having a sister who is neurodivergent. 

The Dress Thief (Young Adult Fiction) 

The day before prom, Ivy walks into her fashion class and finds a note in the place of her dress. The dress is thirty percent of their final grade. But not only that, prom is tomorrow, and scouts from the prestigious fashion schools will be there. Her mom prematurely already made invitations to a congratulations party for Ivy getting accepted. She has no idea what to do, especially when the note makes it clear that Ivy deserves to learn a lesson.

Imperfect Pair (New Adult Fantasy)

Sophomore year in college is your last chance to match with a dragon; if you don’t, you’re sent to the outskirts to die. Since necha’s are half-souls, without finding their dragon—their other half—they can’t handle their magic or survive.

Last year, Skylar was the first freshman to not have a single dragon select her name. She’s tempted to run this year and admit her defeat instead of being shamed at the matching ceremony. Everyone keeps telling her to give up, so why shouldn’t she? Even her therapist doubts her determination to fight for her survival. He claims that until she sees herself as worthy, no one will match her. But how can she do that when she finds her neurodivergent brain as a hindrance, not the extraordinary gift it is?

Will Skylar’s opinion change about herself before it’s too late?

Join or Die (Adult Speculative Horror)

Until venturing to the themed event at a local bar, Jude finally thought his past was behind him. But he couldn’t be so lucky. After all, if it weren’t for Jude, the police would’ve never captured the famous serial killer. Now, the killer escaped and is hunting down Jude.

Will Jude make it out a second time? Or will the killer get his revenge?

Mission to Freedom (Adult Sci-fi) 

1000 years ago, the Martians took control of Earth, and humans fled to the galaxy. To survive and one day defeat the Martians, the Earthlings had to adapt. Over time, they became half-human, half-machine. After so long, the leaders mastered an army of Earthbots and are ready to take back Earth. They send Vanessa, the greatest inventor and strongest fighter to lead a group of 199.

Vanessa is about to change the universe, but not in the way any would ever dream. While inventing weapons, Vanessa had discovered several horrifying truths. She lived in a dystopian society, brainwashed by the leaders who had programmed them into robots.

Vanessa has found a way to fix this, to free herself and her team, but it’ll require her trusting the enemy.

Time to Fly (Young adult Fantasy) 

In Galexia, on a fairy’s eighteenth birthday, they go before the governor to show the unique gift their god, Magellanic, granted them and their strength with their heritage abilities. So, for elemental fairies, that meant showing how well they had mastered the four elements: earth, water, wind, and fire. From there, the governor would inform them what job they’d take for the community. Oso, the new governor of Fae, took this a step further. Every strong fairy would be enlisted as a soldier, and every weak fairy would be shunned out of the community, with their magic and wings permanently removed.

Marsae, a fairy whose wings don’t work, believes tomorrow, on his eighteenth birthday, the governor will label him a disgrace. Not wanting to part from his Fae heritage, Marsae runs away, only to get caught and have his whole world turn upside down. Everything he ever believed is a lie.

Time for Change (Young adult Fantasy) 

Lauryn is the last fairy Sharma in the entire land, but in order to take her powers and her wings, she must go through and pass a ritual, a ritual she has always been afraid to complete and never wanted to. Without her powers awakening, the land and everyone in it are doomed.

A Curse Left Unbroken (Genre Mashup) 

Nylax is destined to die tomorrow. Every witch in her bloodline is cursed to die at the age of thirty-five. No one has ever been able to break this curse. Just attempting to destroy it could kill them. But since Nylax is dying tomorrow anyway, she’s willing to take the risk, even if that means that she might have to accept help from a vampire, her mortal enemy. 

Splash of Death (Suspense-Thriller) 

Lorelie and Lanette have to win the award for best costume pair at this year’s Halloween Party if they want to follow their parents’ path. Plus, there is a superstition that if they don’t win, their friendship won’t last after they separate for college. Lorelie doesn’t have any other friends she can’t lose Lanette. But Lanette just told Lorelie not to show up at the party, and drives away. Lorelie tries calling Lanette to ask for an explanation when a message tapped on her phone sets her on an adventure to find and defuse a threat to the Halloween Party. 

Debt Paid (Horror with speculative fiction) 

To be free from her master’s hold, Clanet must sacrifice one hundred souls to him. On her last mission, with two deaths left, things go haywire. Her master, a Wendigo, acts out of character and spoils everything. Clanet also ends up discovering that once you make a deal with a Wendigo, there is no breaking it. So, unless the Wendigo dies, which will also kill her, she’ll remain forever her master’s slave, forced to kill people. How will she free herself now? 

The Bottle Hottie (A Paranormal Romance/Horror) 

Amelia hates holiday dinners with her family. Every time it turns into her sister gloating and her family looking down on her, especially since Amelia is always single. Claire introduces Amelia to Belle, a witch who can help her. Belle has a Rent a Date, incubi. The incubi is sexy and the perfect thing to show off, the only problem the payment is ten years of Amelia's life force. The witch needs it in order to stay young and alive long enough to break the curse her master has placed on her.

Christmas Solo (A Paranormal Romance) 

Without starring in the spotlight solo for the Christmas play, where college scouts will be in attendance, Genieva has no chance of furthering her education. After her parents passed away three years ago, her aunt, who has a huge family, took Genieva in. Not only is Genieva an added expense, but her medical bills and constant need for insulin is expensive. So this solo is Gen’s last chance, and her way of moving forward after her parents’ passing. She had designed the choreography for the spotlight dance and is performing it to a song she wrote about her parents centered around Christmas.

But when Genieva returns to school after a two-week absence due to a hospitalization stay, they changed the solo to a duet, and the leader of the unwanted group of paranormals who started their school this year will be the male lead. If she still wants to be in the spotlight, she must get over her disappointment and anger that they changed tthings. She’ll also have to get over her hatred of the paranormals.

So much has changed, so much is still at stake, and she only has five hours to get over her hurt and master the dance with the arrogant vampire Isani.

Dragon Medallion (A Paranormal Suspense/Romance) 

For over a year, Matayis and his coven have searched for the dragon medallion that trapped their magic. A prophecy foretold it would be in the human lands at Bunker High School. Matayis and his coven go to the school with two objectives: stay unnoticed and find the medallion.

Everyone is staying on track until something calls Matayis to Corrie. Corrie's boyfriend doesn’t like this and challenges Matayis to a fight. Right before the fight, his best friend, who is also the love of his life, shares that if he loses, his covens will desert him and Kaleb will usurp him. As Kaleb is a tyrant, Matayis now has to win. The only problem, before the fight he offers people talking about him, and how if he wins, it’ll awaken something that needs to stay hidden or the world will burn.

Either way, Matayis looks at this, he is screwed. Also, he still needs the medallion. What will he choose to do? And will he find the medallion before it’s too late?

Take My Hand(Adult Speculative Fiction) 

This piece was chosen to be part of TREAD LIGHTLY, SPEAK GENTLY, an anthology on death and grief. Anthologist: Lindsay Schraad Keeling. Editor: Brittany McMunn

Flying Free(Adult Fiction) - Anxiety Rep.

This piece was chosen to be part of Kaleidoscopic Quill, an anthology on the meaning of butterflies. Anthologist: Demi Michelle Schwartz. Editor: Andie Smith