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.
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