The Writer’s Diary: ONC Final Results, Fresh Covers, and Theme Park Horror

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Lots to Celebrate

The dust has officially settled on the Open Novella Contest for 2026. It has been a long, thrill-packed ride over the last few months, and while the waiting game was a test of endurance, the outcome is something I am definitely celebrating in the pond today.

​Memory Letters Earns an Honourable Mention!

​The ONC judges have finally announced the grand winner and the four runners-up. I want to share my heartfelt congratulations to each of the authors on that list. I've read many of the stories, and they absolutely deserve their places. 

While Memory Letters wasn't in that top five, the story ended its contest run on a massive high note. And I'm so pleased. 

​Along with the main winners, the judges also released an official Honourable Mentions list—a curated selection of just 40 stories chosen from the entire competition. I am absolutely delighted to share that Memory Letters earned a spot on that list! Starting from the thousands that entered, surviving every culling to reach the Shortlist, and finishing among those top 40 recognised pieces is a brilliant validation of Jane's story. 

Now that the contest has wrapped, I can finally focus on setting up the wider release and also on getting the upcoming audiobook edition into your ears!

​Fresh Ink: Sci-Fi Cafés and Dark Theme Parks

​Alongside my usual manuscript updates, I've had a productive burst with three brand-new short fiction pieces. Two I've completed, and one I'm about a third of the way into:

• ​Borrowed Time: A tight sci-fi piece centered around a mysterious man who approaches a writer in a quiet café asking for an hour of time. I've also put together the official cover design for this one, featuring a striking triple-hourglass concept that sets the mood perfectly. (Word Count: 1,272)
• ​The Last Ride: A horror short that hits very close to home for a theme park fan! It follows three friends exploring a theme park near closing time as the atmosphere shifts from fun to something far more sinister. It is a fully written flash fiction piece, and I've also created a cover for this one too. (Word Count: 660)
• The White Rider: This is shaping into an unsettling tale about a man returning to his childhood home to face his destiny. (Word Count: 591 ... and counting)

​These may well form part of the new Kindle Short Reads rollout I mentioned recently, giving you quick, self-contained tales to dive into between my longer releases. Or they could end up somewhere else. 

​Pushing Forward Across the Board

​My primary active projects are continuing to gain momentum:

• ​Sanctorum’s Veil: Adding fresh scenes, even just a few words at a time, and expanding the narrative depth now that the early chapter restructuring is settled. (Word Count: 17,312)
• ​The Whisper in the Margins: Continuing Rollo Whitglade's investigative adventures as he navigates the magical archives. (Word Count: 4,258)
• ​The Void Between: Adding new lore and content while refining the broader Voidborne universe. (Word Count: 3,458)

​Ventures in Dread: The White Rider

​Finally, I am continuing to lean into darker themes at the moment. This is for a dedicated submission. There's an open call for short story submissions to a horror anthology. My story, The White Rider, when it is finished should be perfect. Fingers crossed. 

It's proving to be a fun challenge, leaning into pure tension and atmosphere for this piece, and I'll keep you posted on how the submission fares once it's sent off into the world.

The Writer’s Diary: Shortlisted, YouTube Refresh, and Standing Firm on AI

Good News and New Words

​It's good to be back at the keyboard after an amazing family break at the House of the Mouse. Hugs from Mickey were great, even with the heat of the Florida, but coming back to the desk with some really big news has made returning to the pond so much sweeter.

​Memory Letters Makes the Shortlist!

​Yes, I can officially share the fantastic news. Memory Letters has been named on the recently announced ONC 2026 Shortlist!

​To say I am over the moon is a such a huge understatement. From the thousands of initial entries, being narrowed down to 672 in Round 3, then 300 on the Longlist, the judges have cut the field down to just 96 stories. Knowing that Jane’s story has made it all the way into that final 96 is an amazing milestone. I know that it has taken a long time to get here, and for the ultimate winners to be announced this year, but I am doing my absolute best to practice patience.

​The delay in the contest’s final stages is having a knock-on effect for the wider release of the story, including the upcoming audiobook edition. I've been assured that the audio production is now almost complete, and what I've heard so far is fantastic, but the full multi-platform rollout has to wait until the contest officially wraps up.

​Across the Multiverse: Ongoing Fiction Updates

​While Memory Letters sits in the shortlist spotlight, the rest of my fictional universe hasn't been standing still:

• ​Sanctorum’s Veil: The comprehensive rewrite and expansion of the opening chapters is coming along brilliantly. Having worked out the little plot hole in Chapter 7, the manuscript is sitting at a really solid foundation. And I'm able to push further into the narrative.

The big news here is that I've officially started Chapter 13.

Word Count Check:  17,145

• ​The Whisper in the Margins: My D&D-inspired wizard-archivist mystery with Rollo Whitglade is gathering pace. Chapter 3 is fully underway. Blending urban fantasy with magical record-keeping is proving to be a blast to write, but I'm really enjoying the story as it develops. 

Word Count Check: 4,007

• ​The Voidborne Saga: The foundational world-building for this HFY sci-fi series is taking root in my brain. I’ve been fleshing out characters and creating alien languages (like the untranslatable title 'Stoth') while I continue hunting for human-crafted, non-AI artwork for the cover of The Void Between.

• ​Forever Jupiter: The blueprint for expanding this 2022 novella into a full-length novel, and hopefully setting up a multi-book series following James Hamlin’s immortal Roman, is now mapped out and ready for the next writing sprint.

​What's Coming to the YouTube Channel

​Speaking of audio and covers, I’m planning a bit of a refresh for my YouTube channel.

​I'm hoping to begin posting more of my stories in audio format, including some of my flash fiction tales. Also, I’m going to start creating practical 'how-to' videos for fellow writers and indie creators. My main focus to start with will be practical, zero-budget author skills. My first one is going to be something on how to design book covers without using GenAI. Learning how to manipulate typography and clean, human-made imagery on a shoestring budget is a crucial skill for indies, and I’m looking forward to sharing all the tips I've learned. 

​Short Reads and Polish: A New Kindle Focus

​Looking ahead on the publishing front, I am planning a new initiative for my digital shelf. This will be a dedicated set of Kindle Short Reads.

​I’ll be kicking this off by dusting off some of my older short stories, giving them a thorough polish, before releasing them on a reasonably regular basis. Depending on how those go, I'm also considering a curated collection, bundling these shorter reads into one book.

​A Line in the Sand: AI in the Publishing Pipeline

​There’s been a lot of chatter in the writing community lately about traditional publishers adopting "AI detection checks" to screen submissions. The irony, of course, means they are feeding manuscripts into an AI tools to do the scanning. Thus compounding the AI issue. 

​As someone who prides themselves on human-crafted storytelling and transparent, non-AI cover design, this is a concern. These AI detectors are notoriously unreliable and frequently flag legitimate human prose (notably Mary Shelly's Frankenstein). 

Currently I'm fully committed to remaining self-published, but I’ll say this plain and clear: 

If I ever decide to change my approach in the future, I will not query any publisher or agency that claims to use AI to detect AI. 

The human element of storytelling needs to be respected at every stage of the process.

​Recent Rhymes

​Finally, my brain dipped into verse, rather than prose, over the last few weeks. My recent trip (and a contest I saw hosted by The Failing Writers Podcast) inspired me to write some really bad poems. They're all really poor attempts at humour, and I'm not lighting up the poetry world here, but I’ve included a couple below for your reading pleasure: 

A Spin on the Rides

This was inspired by our first day at Epcot.

Can you identify the rides we were on? 

The Invisible Man

We also went to Epic Universe for a day, and I met The Invisible Man!

The Writer’s Diary: Waiting Games, Lost in Translation, and Silly Rhymes

Waiting is a Skill

Another week, another anxious period of standing by the inbox. Waiting. 

It's a good job I am a patient person.

While the Open Novella Contest judges continue their deliberations over the upcoming shortlist, I’ve been busy making sure the ink in the pond doesn't have a chance to dry.

​Still Waiting on the ONC

​There is no fresh news yet on the shortlist front. And I get why. It is a massive reading task for the judges, so the silence is entirely understandable, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t keeping one eye on my notifications at all times. In the meantime, the distraction of new projects is keeping me sane.

​Progress on the Pages

​The Whisper in the Margins: My D&D-inspired wizard-archivist mystery is moving at a great pace. I’ve pushed through to Chapter 3, and Rollo Whitglade's adventure is proving to be a lot of fun to write.

​Sanctorum’s Veil: The extensive rewrite of the early chapters is almost entirely behind me. I’m currently 95% done with the edits on the first batch of chapters, and I am just about ready to dive into the next part of Sam's story by drafting the next chapter.

​World-Building: Creating the Backstories

The Voidborne Series: ​I’ve been spending a lot of time mapping out the foundational lore for the series, especially the first book, The Void Between. I am specifically focusing on character layouts and alien biology. I want the extra-terrestrial elements to feel genuinely alien, which includes their language.

​I’m working on concepts that our human-engineered Universal Translators simply won’t be able to process easily. For instance, the Renth Hegemony use titles like "Stolt" to refer to a ship's commander or captain. It is a title wrapped in cultural nuance that a computerised translation AI just can't quite bridge.

Forever Jupiter: I am adding a whole new set of secret soceities and sects that make the world of the immortal Roman senator feel real. The novella is already written, but to flesh ioot out into a novel length, more details are needed.

​Going Visual (And Budget-Friendly) on YouTube

​I've also been planning a bit of a refresh for my YouTube channel. Alongside sharing more of my stories in audio format, I want to start producing practical 'how-to' videos for the indie community.

​My first planned guide is one I think a lot of indie writers will likely find useful: how to design your own book covers. This will focus on how to create stunning covers without using GenAI, without a design degree, and without any actual drawing skills. This is in no way aimed at removing professionals from the look. However, when you're operating on a shoestring budget as an indie, learning how to manipulate typography and clean, human-made imagery is an essential survival skill.

​A Silly Little Poem

​The lovely weather we've been having in the UK this last few weeks has not been condusive to writing. So, when the prose brain temporarily locked up this week, I decided to let off some steam by writing a light-hearted piece of verse. I’ve called it, fittingly:

'A Silly Little Poem'

​Sitting here with keyboard and not a pen,
I've been trying to write poems again.
Unfortunately my brain is almost blank,
I don't have anything in the tank.

​I don't want to make another silly rhyme,
But it's hard when you don't have the time,
As the clock goes tickedy-tock,
My thinking part, that grey stuff, has a block.

​So, roses are red, and violets are blue,
This poem is REALLY bad, I know it's true.
I tried to write something good and clever,
Instead, it's just the worst thing ever.

​Stepping Away for a Summer Recharge

​With so many creative irons in the fire, I am taking a short, well-earned break with the family to relax, recharge, and step away from the screens for a bit. Because of this, the pond will be briefly quiet. I expect to return to both the blog and my YouTube channel in mid-August, hopefully refreshed and ready to jump right back in at the deep end.

​Thank you for reading, and I'll see you all on the other side of the summer sun!

Geoff

The Writer’s Diary: Longlisted, Lost ID Cards, and D&D Inspiration

Celebrate good times. Come on! 

​(Thanks Kool 😊) What a difference a day makes! After weeks of radio silence from the judging panels, the floodgates finally opened yesterday, and the pond has been hit by a tidal wave of fantastic news.

​Memory Letters Makes the Longlist!

​The Open Novella Contest has finally dropped the big ones: the Round 3 Winners, the Ambassador Picks, and the official Longlist.

​I am absolutely thrilled—and still slightly stunned—to tell you that Memory Letters has been named both a Round 3 Winner and has officially secured its place on the Longlist! Out of the 672 stories that entered qualifed from Round 3 for consideration, the judges have narrowed the field down to just 300 stories.

When the notifications started popping up, I honestly didn't know how to react. To see Jane's story survive every single cut and stand tall among those final 300 contenders is a massive milestone. 

The waiting was agonizing, but the result is more than worth the wait!

Next step? Maybe the shortlist... who knows. 

​Grounding the Logic in Sanctorum's Veil

​While celebrating a win is always good, the daily grind of editing waits for no man. My custom dashboard script has been keeping me honest as I push forward with Sanctorum’s Veil, and this week required some serious narrative surgery on Chapter 7.

​During the review, I hit a scene that frankly made no sense. Originally, my main character, Sam, needed an ID card, which was mysteriously sent to him anonymously. It was an odd plot point that I just knew I'd end up having to explain badly later on in the book. So, I’ve cut the anonymous delivery entirely. Now, Sam finds the ID card organically while going through his mum's things. It’s cleaner, far more believable, and doesn't rely on a clunky mystery to move the plot forward.

​New Project: The Whisper in the Margins

​As if my digital shelf wasn't busy enough, a new story has crept out of the archives. Being the 'forever DM' for my Dungeons & Dragons groups, my D&D Beyond account is practically a graveyard of characters I'll likely never get to play. While perusing them the other day, an archivist and mage named Rollo Whitglade practically jumped off the screen at me.

​His concept was just too good to leave on a character sheet, so I’ve started writing an urban fantasy/wizarding mystery centered around him called The Whisper in the Margins. Chapter 1 is completely done, and Chapter 2 is already halfway there.

​The Void Between: The Search for Authentic Art

​On the flip side, progress on my HFY sci-fi story, The Void Between, has hit a temporary pause due to a personal quirk of my writing process. I’m a bit particular when it comes to focus; I find I can’t truly connect with the soul of a story until I have a solid title and a proper cover design to look at while I type.

​The title is locked in and feels great, but the search is now on for the perfect inspiring imagery. I love creating my own covers and now I am specifically looking for royalty-free or paid art that is strictly NOT GenAI created. I want real, human-crafted illustrations or photos to form the backbone of the Sol Explorer's visual identity, so the keyboard is on hold for this one until I find the right piece of the puzzle. 

The Writer’s Diary: The Silence of the Judges, Reworking the Veil, and a Piece of My Past

Patience is ...

​If you are reading this and hoping for a massive, triumphant update regarding the Open Novella Contest, I have to ask you to hold your breath for just a little longer. It has been a testing fortnight in the pond, mostly spent staring at an unchanged notifications screen.

​The ONC Silence

​There has been absolutely no update from the ONC judges for a full month now, and I’ll admit, it’s starting to become a bit of a concern. Rationally, I know what’s happening behind the scenes. They have hundreds of qualifying manuscripts to read, re-read, score, and debate. I realise that the process takes an immense amount of time and care. However, knowing that logically doesn’t do a single thing to quiet the writer’s nerves.

​So, while Memory Letters sits in judging limbo, I have been doing everything I can to keep my mind occupied and my fingers moving.

​Keeping Distracted: Reading and Reworking the Veil

​My main weapon against the waiting-room jitters has been the keyboard. I’ve been throwing myself into some heavy editing sessions for Sanctorum’s Veil, tightening the plot hooks and expanding the world-building to ensure it's in the best shape possible for when I fully resume the project.

​When I haven't been editing, I've been doing a lot of reading, escaping into other authors' worlds to give my own brain a bit of a rest from the constant data-tracking and plotting.

​From the Vault: "My Brother, My Nephew"

​Aside from the novels, I have also been working on a small digital preservation project. I’ve gone into my personal archives and created a publicly downloadable version of a seminal, autobiographical piece of writing for me called My Brother, My Nephew.

​This is a short story I wrote all the way back in 2000 for an assignment in a creative writing class I was taking. The brief we were given was simple: write about a 'childhood memory'. Ideally it was meant to be a 'happy' memory. However, due to a severe accident, which is what my story refers to, I actually don't have many childhood memories at all. Good or bad.

​It’s a deeply personal piece that marks a very specific moment in my life. It was very nearly three end of my life. In my journey as a writer, I’ve shared many things and a copy of this is available on Wattpad too, but I know not everyone is on Wattpad, or wants to be (for their own reasons). Therefore, I've decided it’s time to share it a little wider. 

If you’d like to read it, you can grab a copy directly from my Google Drive right here: Download "My Brother, My Nephew".

Fair warning: This refers to a traumatic event in my life, agreements even I am still emotionally affected whenever I read it. 

The Writer’s Diary: Round Three Success, Custom Code, and the Longlist Waiting Game

Distraction needed

​It has been an anxious but incredibly rewarding couple of weeks in the pond. When you are entirely at the mercy of contest judging panels, time seems to stretch out like an endless horizon. The only real cure for those waiting-room jitters, of course, is to keep your head down and let your fingers fly over the keyboard.

​Memory Letters Ploughs Ahead

​The headline news for this update is that Memory Letters has officially made it through the Round 3 qualifiers! I've recently learned that there are 672 stories in total that made the cut for this round. To know that Jane's claustrophobic journey is standing tall in a field of nearly seven hundred incredible pieces of work is a brilliant feeling, and it makes every late-night editing session worth the effort.

​We are currently in a bit of a scheduling limbo regarding the next official stages, however. The ONC Longlist announcement was originally expected around the 20th of May, followed swiftly by the Shortlist at the end of May. Given that the judges have the monumental task of evaluating all 672 qualifying manuscripts, it's no wonder things have shifted behind the scenes. So, I am still playing the waiting game for those final lists to drop. My fingers are firmly crossed!

​Crafting the Code: My Custom Writing Dashboard

​While the ONC judges do their work, I’ve been channeling that nervous creative energy right back into Sanctorum’s Veil. The total refresh and expansion of the original draft is progressing beautifully, and it's being guided by a brand-new tool I've built.

​Putting my techie skills to use, I have written a custom script for Google Docs that acts as my personal manuscript progress dashboard. 

I created a similar one for Memory Letters, but now I've refined it and improved its features to allow me to use it with any manuscript. 

It does a lot more than just look at a simple number; it allows me to set a minimum and a target/maximum word count for each individual chapter, giving me real-time insights into exactly how each scene sits within those parameters. I can also plug in an overall total word count target, and the script instantly tells me where the manuscript stands in respect to the grand finish line.

​It’s been an absolute game-changer for my workflow, so much so that I mentioned it in a Discord writing group I’m part of. There has been quite a bit of genuine interest from the community over there about seeing it released for others to use! 

Now I’m seriously considering polishing up the user interface so I can share it with the wider indie author world.

​Data-Driven Editing: Sanctorum's Veil

​Thanks to that very script, I can see the data shifting in the right direction for the Veil. I’ve currently pushed the edited manuscript to almost 17,000 words, which means I have officially achieved 21% of my ultimate word count goal for the novel.

​There is something incredibly satisfying about watching those percentages tick upward on the dashboard. The prose is feeling much sharper, the stakes are higher, and the world-building is becoming far more immersive with every single chapter I rework.

Being a techie through and through, these numbers help me to stay the course. 

​Between waiting for contest notifications and watching the word counts rise, the daily grind continues to bear fruit.

The Writer’s Diary: Double Winners, Multi-Platform Releases, and Podcast Features

Busier than a busy bee

​If you had told me at the start of the year that the month of May would bring contest wins, a major multi-platform re-release, a podcast feature, and an audiobook production hitting its stride all at once, I’d have thought you were spinning a grand sci-fi yarn. But here we are, and the pond is absolutely buzzing.

​A Double Victory for Memory Letters

​The wait for the mid-contest results in the Open Novella Contest on Wattpad is finally over, and I am absolutely over the moon to share that Memory Letters has been named both an Official Round 2 Winner and an Ambassador Pick!

​To make both of these prestigious lists is an incredible honour, and it is a massive boost to my confidence as a writer. We are still playing the waiting game for the final Round 3 judging phase—the final hurdle before the coveted Longlist is announced—but whatever happens next, Jane's story has already exceeded my wildest expectations.

​Speaking of Jane, the audiobook version is progressing beautifully. The Voice Artist has let me know that roughly a third of the narration is now complete, and the tension of the story is translating brilliantly into audio. She also told me that she's really enjoying the book, which is always lovely to hear. 

​Out Now: Divided Hits More Digital Shelves

​In other major news, I’m thrilled to announce that I have officially re-released Divided, my urban fantasy/paranormal story. If you enjoy a mix of supernatural mystery and gritty reality, this one is for you.

​I've re-edited and refreshed it somewhat and I've hopefully removed some errors that had slipped through several edit phases.

The story follows Jimmy Jones, who, after a harrowing near-death experience, finds himself suddenly able to see ghosts and spirits. In fact, his new best friend, Henry, happens to be a spirit and the two actually met in the operating theatre before the doctors managed to revive Jimmy. With Henry by his side, Jimmy has to navigate this strange new reality while going on a desperate search for his missing sister.

​I’ve wanted to get this story into a better shape and out into more outlets for a while, and it is now widely available to download on Kindle, Google Play Books, and Kobo / Kobo+.

​Tuning In: The Failing Writers Podcast

​If you are reading this on Monday, then today is a very special day. My 999-word flash fiction piece, Dust, was accepted by the team at The Failing Writers Podcast!

​They have featured as part of their Hypewriter slot it in the brand-new episode releasing today (25th May). They kindly sent me a sneak-peek copy of the audio ahead of the release, and I can honestly say the performance is outstanding. Hearing professional voices bring your words to life is a surreal experience, and I can't recommend today's episode enough.

You can find links to the episode, and others, at https://www.failingwriterspodcast.com/ 

​Spinoffs, Space, and the Sanctorum

​With the celebrations and releases sorted, the daily grind of the keyboard continues across my other ongoing projects:

• ​Sanctorum’s Veil: The total refresh continues. I’ve completely reworked the first three chapters, sharpening the hooks and tightening the prose to match the momentum I found during the ONC.
• ​The Void Between: The first chapter of my psychic HFY saga is down, and I’m letting the universe breathe a little before I launch into the next segment of the Sol Explorer’s journey.
• ​Forever Jupiter: The architectural work is paying off. I’ve completely fleshed out the plan to expand this from a 2022 novella into a full-length novel. Better yet, the new brainstorming sessions have unlocked a wealth of ideas that will easily allow me to stretch James Hamlin's immortal Roman history into a sequel or two!