2025 is the time for experimentation.
So, I want to invite you to participate in something I have never done before. I want to write a gay short story and let you decide what it is about. That's right: Setting, characters, tropes and micro-tropes, title, cover design—it's all up to you! That cover and title you see above? They're just placeholders until the community decides!
All you have to do to be part of this journey is subscribe to my newsletter. I will send you news about the current progress and polls where you and other subscribers can decide!
And the best part?
Once the short story is finished, every subscriber to my newsletter will receive a complimentary copy!
What kind of story can I expect?
I write sweet and spicy contemporary gay romance. So, something in that direction. Whether the story will be more sweet or spicy is up to you! If you want to get a better idea of what to expect, check out my other publications.
What has the community decided on so far?
Setting: A public park in a small town in the fall
Tropes: Bi-Awakening, Best Friends and Grumpy/Sunshine
Age Range for the Main Characters: 31-39
Point Of View: First Person
Heat Level: 8/10
Couple/Story: Cato and Matt/Dogdaddies
Dogdaddies
Cato, a thirty-two-year-old programmer, has walked his husky, Pounce, the same route around the park in front of his house every morning for four years. He knows every dog owner in a two-mile radius. Because if there's one thing that gets people talking, it's two dogs trying to figure out who they're meeting. To his delight, this is also the case when he meets thirty-year-old Matt, who’s out for his first walk in the park with his beagle puppy, Sora. They strike up a casual conversation that Cato can barely concentrate on. Why? Because Matt is simply the most handsome man Cato has ever met. From then on, they run into each other every day. Their conversations grow longer and deeper. Matt recently moved here for a new job at a local brewery after breaking up with his girlfriend. Their shared interests in beverages, video games, and action movies provide plenty of bonding opportunities. Soon, Cato finds himself taking longer walks just to see Matt. Until one Friday night, the dogs just can't stop playing with each other. Luckily, Cato lives just across the river, and Matt accepts his invitation to have a drink together... But Cato has more than just drinks in mind.
Note: There were two more stories up for voting, and just for the fun of it, here are their descriptions:
Ice Cream Truck Guys
Nathan and Andrew have been best friends since college. They're both thirty-three, both majored in marketing, and both have a knack for coming up with silly ideas for businesses they'd open if they ever got the chance. But they have never followed through on any of them. So when they both lose their jobs and find themselves single at the same time, a joke becomes reality. They buy an old ice cream truck, give it a complete makeover, and open their first business together. They drive from one small town to the next, selling their products wherever the weather is good enough. When fall arrives and the last sunny days announce the end of their short-lived success, they face the fact that winter won't do them any favors. But when Nathan tells Andrew that they should probably look for other jobs, the mood changes. Other jobs would mean seeing each other less. For the first time, Andrew is so down in the dumps that Nathan doesn't know how to cheer up his best friend. But when Andrew suddenly confesses that he doesn't want to be away from Nathan ever again, it turns out that it's not just about their business but that Andrew has feelings for Nathan that he can't put into words...
Stormchasers
Thirty-nine-year-old photographer Brian meets Theo, who is five years his junior, at an exhibit at the local art center. Despite Brian's reputation as the grumpy old man, Theo tries to befriend him. He wants to learn to photograph with the same passion and precision as Brian does. After some back and forth, Brian eventually gives in. They start to go on photo tours together in search of the next prize-winning image and soon become friends. When a storm is announced for the small town where they live, Theo has an idea: he wants to take a picture of the natural spectacle and convinces Brian to join him in the local park. Theo has even arranged for the keys to the bell tower in the middle of the park, which is the highest building in the area so that they can overlook the entire town. When the storm hits, Brian is far from happy, but since the ever-cheerful Theo is a bit reckless, Brian can't leave him alone. Who knows what kind of danger Theo might get into otherwise? They stick together and take every picture they can until the weather turns so bad that the small river in the park turns into an all-encompassing flood within minutes. The current carries away their equipment, and Brian barely manages to rescue Theo and himself to the top of the bell tower. Trapped there, Brian is happy that they escaped with their lives but not happy that they are now soaking wet and freezing. Theo, on the other hand, is surprisingly calm because he knows a good way to keep them warm. And yes, Theo’s solution involves physical contact.
What is currently up for vote?
Now that the community has chosen the title "Morning Walks & Midnight Talks" for the short story, the cover is up for vote. And these are all four options:
What's next?
All that is left now is for me to finalize the story! As soon as it is finished, it will be emailed to everyone currently subscribed to my newsletter. So if you'd like to read it, you can sign up below.
Then you know, what to do! You'll even get my steamy short story Three Sheets To The Wind for free!
Thank you for subscribing!
Have a great day!
ABOUT FLYNN WOODS
Flynn Woods is an US-based contemporary gay romance author.
His books focus on personal fantasies about strong men who know what they want and will do anything to get it.
When he's not working on the next story, Flynn enjoys reading, cooking, and hiking with his husband.
