09/27/2026
With the six chapter conclusion posted to Honeyfeed, "The Stylus is Mightier Than the Sword?!" is finished and in the running for their 2026 heroic fantasy contest. It joins hundreds of other fascinating entries, which I look forward to gradually reading in the coming months.
While there are fewer overall entries this year, the level of competition is far fiercer. There are a number of published authors participating, including some who have won multiple awards.
Completing a 50,000+ word entry in two months was quite the challenge. Because of the required prompts and contest rules, I had to create an entirely new story with little time to think on the particulars. Many scenes were written seat-of-the-pants, with unplanned plot twists because of the spontaneity. For example, in the outline, Dilara was missing from the climax. However, because of the unplanned mistrial, she was forced into it. As a villain she is supposed to sit back and watch the heroes perish. But in a surprise to both of us she ended up making choices that made me want to root for her.
So what's next? The contest judging is over three months long. Consequently, I'll be putting "Stylus" on the shelf for a while before further revisions. Next week I will return to "My My Tenshi Life" on Webtoons and also continue outlining "Enduring Gale". Because it will take many months to compose and score the soundtrack for "Enduring Gale", I cannot give any idea as to when it might start serialization on Honeyfeed.
https://www.honeyfeed.fm/novels/32368
Cover Art: 53C
