In the eerie town of Darkwood, situated deep within the dense forests of Washington, a tragic incident shatters the lives of six teenagers at the heart of it all. As the new girl, unsocialized and sheltered, Grace finds herself thrust into a tumultuous world of confusion and torment, grappling with the aftermath of the tragedy. She struggles to find understanding behind the tragedy and wants to uncover the events and truth that led up to it. As she pieces the puzzle together, she grows close to her equally tormented friends and embarks on a jaded coming-of-age journey to discover who she can be. Cody and Emily are childhood friends, deeply in love, and are torn apart by guilt and insecurities. Cody blames himself for the tragedy and has been pushing Emily away as an excuse, unable to face the real sinister reasons. Emily has her own guilt and masks it by trying to ignore it while trying to fix the crumbling relationship with her childhood love. Amidst their struggles, both Cody and Emily embark on transformative journeys, seeking self-forgiveness, discovering the meaning of acceptance, and moving on. Twins Andrew and Sara carry the weight of their hand in the tragedy, haunted by the trauma that lingers within them. Andrew, a rebellious force of nature, delves deeper into the criminal underground. Tormented by his involvement, Andrew descends into self-destruction intending to cause as much chaos around him. Sara battles with depression and copes with hard drugs to escape the pressure of the secrets she keeps, slowly succumbing to them. Both siblings teeter on the edge of despair, desperately trying to hold on. Among this group of tormented souls, there is Chris, an enigmatic and brilliant young mind who believes he possesses the ability to foresee the future. Chris's tenuous grip on reality makes him relentlessly pursue an answer with no question. Along his journey, he encounters someone who shares his unique perception of the world, prompting both Chris and the reader to question his own sanity as he tries to prevent another tragedy from occurring. As these six friends persevere through their struggles, they uncover the tangled web of tragedy and uncover the malevolent curse that looms over them all. (This is a redux of Petrichor. I was unsatisfied with how the story went. I rushed things and left things to happen off-screen a lot. So I'm rewriting it, this time dividing the acts into their separate books to allow the characters to properly develop. The story will mostly stay the same but I'll fix all the plot holes I found and change some character motivations here or there.)
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A Happy Place
A husband and wife recovering from marital strife attempt to rekindle their affection with a vacation trip to Maine. In hopes of putting the past away, they look to the future, to the old couple running the bed & breakfast, and to each other. In a desperate fight for their marriage, they find themselves in a battle where the stakes are life and death.
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Colors of Fire [BL]
When Minyook sees a short, blond guy, he kind of forgets to shut up. That's where their friendship begins. Jinxi usually doesn't get what he wants. So he fights for it. Desperately. A feel-good, rainy day, easy read to escape the reality of everyday life.
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I Summoned You
Julia wanted revenge, but she didn't imagine she'd get a demon to help her with it. Three girls worked together to cast a ritual, and summoned a demon to grant their wishes. Whether its peace of mind, the confidence to not be bullied, or revenge, the demon is willing to please. What matters afterward is the price that has to be paid. Not only by the summoners, but by the ones who have wronged them. --- Cover photo by Mallory Johndrow on Unsplash.com --- [participant in the NaNoWriMo Royal Road challenge]
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Empty Window
"His empty window now reminds me of how far I am from everything I love." - A short story inspired by a Twitter user's past.
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The Arora Chronicles
Ever since childhood, Monica looked up to the heroes of her myths. So, when she discovered that she had a gift unique to her, she made a choice to become just like the heroes she once aspired to. Everyone remembered the white mask and the vigilante who wore it. They knew her as the Lady in White', whose watchful eyes made sure to keep the crimes of the country in check. But real life proved to be harsher than the stories. After a series of violent events, by those trying to imitate their hero, the reign of the superhero came to an abrupt end and everyone presumed that the Lady was dead. A year after her death as the Lady, Monica found herself returning to the world as a normal woman once again. She was determined to lead a normal life, but how long can one keep the soul of a rebel in check? As she tries to come to terms with her mistakes, the pull to don the costume once again is stronger than ever before. Only now the world and herself ask, should the alter-ego return?