Writing Contest Winners
- Amy Lynn McConahy
- Nov 6
- 3 min read
Hello All! I won't make you wait because I know you will ignore whatever I say here today anyway. Check below for a Cover Art Contest update and a brand new Story Fodder. And now, our winners!
Fantasy Winner
The Star Collector
By Elizabeth D. Marie
Romance Winner
The Light that Promises Warmth
By Emmarayn Redding
Science Fiction Winner
Golden Treasure
By Rose Q. Addams
QUARTERLY COVER ART CONTEST: So far, we have had over 840 votes cast and we still have three days to go! Voting goes through November 8 (Voting is FREE). You can vote for your favorite once per day on our website. The winner will be announced on November 13 in our Newsletter.
This Contest is Sponsored by Author Jessica Bertrand (jessicabertrand.com) and Finding God in Anime Devotional for Otakus (@findinggodinanime).
Vote for Your Favorite: https://www.sunsetvalleycreations.com/vote
The painting of Mrs. Richard Brinsley Sheridan by Thomas Gainsborough painted between the years of 1785-1787 shocked me the first time that I saw it in my high school art history class. It shocked my classmates and teacher as well with how much I looked like the woman in the painting. My teacher actually thought that someone was pranking him when one of my classmates decorated the room with some close-up shots of famous paintings, thinking that they had replaced one of the close-ups with a photo of me. I don't know if it is the unique asymmetry of our eyes, the shape of our mouths, or the red-brown color of our hair, but I cannot deny that I resemble this woman. I do wish that I could walk around with my hair in careless, chaotic curls like hers, but the only ones who get to witness my hair in this state are my family, not for lack of ability, but for lack of confidence in public scrutiny.
There are so many cases of doppelgangers that if you search the term online, you could scroll for hours. I know that strong resemblance can be found in family lines, as I am a perfect match to both my mother and her mother, but even after I scrutinized our family tree, I found, as is true in most cases, that we are not related. This thought led to an idea, whether related or not, what if we bore a resemblance to someone else for a reason?
Imagine a story where the main character has a passion for history and is currently working on solving a mystery that hasn't been solved for generations, only to stumble upon a painting in a gallery that so strongly resembles them that they reach out and touch it against all the rules and personal convictions for preservation. The moment they touch the painting, they are brought back in time to possess that particular person at or around a point in their life where the mystery that they are trying to solve in the present is mentioned in the past. The story could be a leapfrog-type portal fantasy following the main character as they gather more and more puzzle pieces to solve the mystery, or you could make it a family line situation where their ancestors have been working on the mystery, and each one shares their insight as the main character encounters them. What would you do with this idea? I would love to know.
This Story Fodder is based on the existence of doppelgangers. Do you feel inspired? If so, let me know via email or in the comments.
May your day be bright and your reading be epic!
~ Amy Lynn McConahy, Clean Fiction Publisher
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