Feel free to skip the story and go to the next heading (Your Quest: Rules and Forms) if you want to get straight to the rules, quest, and eligible stories.
Silver Stalkerbane
What a night it is already. The hum of the city buzzes around you, but it isn’t the city that draws your attention. Trails of purple fog catch your eye. It’s as if you are being summoned.
Up ahead, nestled within a dark bubble between the neon lights and towering skyscrapers, is a simple yet mysterious house. With each step you take, the city fades, and the house itself becomes clearer. Strange indeed. Modern and old-fashioned at once with long narrow windows and thin curtains that glow with an eerie orange light. A strange humming comes from the building, deeper than the sound of an old refrigerator and steadier. You could almost ignore it if you really put your mind to it.
The fog strengthens. It curls like smoke and wraps swirls about the dark ground. It smells like old pumpkins, beeswax, electricity, and smoke.
“Well, well.” A feminine voice rings out of the darkness. A tall woman steps out from behind a lamppost, her manner confident and collected. “What are you doing out here on a night like this?”
The woman who approaches you looks like she’s blended monster hunting and modeling into a viable career choice, her auburn hair smoothed back in a sleek ponytail and her russet brown eyes surprisingly piercing. She carries a strange gun, but she doesn’t point it at you. It’s pressed to the side as if she is considering her best course of action. She wears a black tank top and snug jeans with fingerless gloves and a utility belt.
“I’m just walking,” you say. No sense in acting like she’s a threat until you know more. Some little voice inside your head whispers that this is who you were supposed to be meeting anyway.
She gives you a once over. A faint whiff of floral jasmine and mint shampoo reaches you. “Just walking? And you just so happened to come upon a place with a house that is a portal into the Abyss of All Consuming Evil and Enormous Inconveniences.”
You shrug. “Apparently.”
“Hm. Don’t suppose you could tell me anything else then?” Her gaze narrows. The hum from the house continues as the fog rises and swirls.
“Well.” It sounds a little silly to say it aloud, but you press the words out anyway as you rub the back of your neck. “I felt like I was being called to this place, so I followed.”
“You’re either very brave or very foolish. Maybe both.” She holsters her weapon and sets her hands on her waist. “You sure you want in on this? It’s dangerous. We’re bolstering the wards to keep unspeakable evil from breaking through. If we do our job right, Halloween will come and go with no one any the wiser.”
“Halloween is one of my favorite holidays,” you say. “I’d hate to see it ruined.”
“Can’t say I blame you there. It’s one of my faves too. So you’re really here to help then?” She regards you with curiosity, then smiles even more. “All right.”
“I’m—” You extend your hand, opening your mouth to say your name when she cuts you off.
“No real names here, friend,” she says with a grin. Still she takes your hand and gives it a firm shake. “Nice to meet you regardless. Sorry to be a stickler. But any time you’re around one of these magical wards or monsters, you need to keep your real name under wraps. I’ll just call you Seeker. Everyone here uses code names. You can call me Silver. Silver Stalkerbane. Stick around long enough, and we’ll figure out a better codename for you. In the meantime, I’ll call you Seeker since that’s what I need help with.”
“Seeker works.” You chuckle as you step back and set your hands on your waist. “I answer to almost anything as long as I know someone is talking to me.”
“Good. Well, as you’ve been kind enough to offer, I’m wise enough to accept because I could definitely use the help. Even if you are a stranger. Maybe fate did send you here. Not sure if I believe in all that, but what the hell.” She removes a black hardshell notebook from her jean pocket and rips out a green-lined page. “You’ll find a complete list of what I need. Romances set in our world with fantastic elements and certain tropes. Get me one of each, got it? You get me these, and I’ll make sure nothing breaches.”
“I’ve got it.” You take the list and fold it carefully. “What about do you mean breaches though?”
“I’m going to keep the creatures from breaching the ward and breaking out here.” Silver says this matter-of-factly, hands on her hips. “The Abyss we were talking about? Yeah. The reason the creatures can’t get out and inflict mind numbing horrors and acute irritations on the populace at large is because of the wards. You’ll get the stories that charge up the wards, and then I’ll keep the monsters from attacking.”
“Sounds like a plan. I know exactly the kinds of stories that will fit this.”
“Confident. I like it.” Silver gives you an approving nod. Her smile pulls a little higher on the left side. “Sounds like I found the right person to help with this. You really know about romances like this?”
You tilt your head in a small bow. “My knowledge of paranormal romances, urban fantasy romances, and monster romances is impressive. I’m one of the best.”
She laughs, her voice melodic and warm. “Sounds like you want to show off.” Her tone becomes more playful now. “Go ahead. Impress me. I love to see it.” She winks at you as she steps back. “See you soon, Seeker.” And with that, she disappears into the purple fog.
You shake your head, excited to start on your path. You know all kinds of wonderful stories, and it’s going to be a lot of fun to track down the right ones for this job.
Your Quest: Rules and Forms
Prizes
Everyone who turns in a completed Our World Quest Form will get access to the Our World Treasure Room, which is a series of digital prizes ranging from ebooks to prints. (You’ll get a link after the event closes. A few items may take some time to arrive after the event.)
Right now the Our World Treasure Room will include
- (will be updated as the event continues)
There are also three additional prize packs. You need to be in the US, UK, or Canada for shipping unless otherwise noted.
- First Place Prize Pack
- winner’s choice of sweet or salty treat (no more than $10)
- winner’s choice of tea/dry packaged beverage (no more than $10)
- $25 Amazon or online bookstore retailer gift card
- Second Place Prize Pack
- winner’s choice of sweet or salty treat (no more than $10)
- winner’s choice of tea/dry packaged beverage (no more than $10)
- $15 Amazon or online book retailer gift card
- Third
- winner’s choice of sweet or salty treat (no more than $10)
- winner’s choice of tea/dry packaged beverage (no more than $10)
- $10 Amazon or online book retailer gift card
Rules
To complete the Quest, you can only use stories that are included in this event. (All of the Our World stories are included on this page.)
You can only use a story for one element on the list in each quest.
As part of the point is to read new stories and celebrate ones you’ve already read, we’ve got a fun little tweak. If you know or discover that a listed story fits one of the items on your quest (even if the trope card doesn’t include it), you can put it on your list.
So, for instance, if you’re looking for a fairy tale retelling and there’s a story on the list that you know is a Beauty and the Beast, you can list that story as fulfilling that requirement even if it isn’t listed on the story’s trope card. You can also read the book’s blurb for added clues.
Be kind to your fellow readers and other authors.
The Forms
Your parchment includes the stories you need to find. You can download it as a PDF or you can fill out the Google Form. The prompts are the same.
(If you download it as a PDF and fill it out on your device, make sure you save your answers.)
Bonus Tokens
In addition to the regular tokens, you can get bonus tokens by completing the following acts.
One extra token for every story you share in an individual social media post except for the story with a trope, theme, or element that you think should get more attention. (Yes, you can post on multiple platforms.)
Two extra tokens for sharing on social media an individual post about the story with a trope, theme, or element that you think should get more attention. Be sure to state what the trope/theme/element is in your post and why it matters to you.
Use #ourworldbonus (and if you want to absolutely bless me, save off the links and paste them in the forms or an email to make sure we definitely see them).
(We have graphics of all the authors and stories here so you don’t have to make something separate. Just look look under the author’s last name to find the stories.)
Submitting Your Form
Once you’ve gathered up your collection of stories, you’ll need to turn them in so we can verify.
You can turn your stories in three different ways.
- Complete this form and directly post your answers (if you do this, you don’t need to turn in anything else. The form will allow you to return to it and edit your answers).
- Save and fill out the PDF and then upload it to this form.
- Directly email the form to faeornofae@farofeb.com. Make sure to include any of the bonus activities you have done as well.
Make sure to submit your completed form by October 30 at 11:59 PM EST.
If you have any problems, please feel free to email faeornofae@farofeb.com.
Ready to get started?
Great!
[Once you’re finished, be sure to see the conclusion of your quest with Silver Stalkerbane.]
Heat Levels
All stories are ranked on a romance scale of one to four chili peppers to indicate spice levels. We use the Heat Levels Guide depicted here.
This graphic has also been saved in the Graphics Folder for the event in case you want to share it as well.
Stories in Our World
