I’m thinking Kinsey three or four. This would also explain his extreme dislike of the shy Dr Simon (who we now know was played by a gay man).I’d love to see a post Serenity, space opera treatment of someone like Jayne’s self-realization. Now what would be his type… hmmm… what man would finally drive him wild enough to face up to his repressed desires. It should include all of the attendant emotional turmoil (inside monologue) of someone with his low IQ and high survival instincts, and yet include the outside language of someone who was trained to say as much with as few words as possible. This man has depth, but the waters are pretty murky.Anyone take the challenge?Photo Description: The original request included a promotional shot of Jayne Cobb, a character from Firefly. He is gruff with a face shadowed by stubble, and he is crouched and holding a gun. The request wanted “a man deep in the closet, striving to be hyper-masculine, and completely misogynistic, simply to hide his attraction to men.”This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

    Can you please help explain this to me?Photo Description: Three teenage guys stand in shallow water wearing black shoes and wet khaki shorts draped low on their hips, shirts carried in their hands. The two on the right stand closer together, but one of them reaches out to wrap his arm around the shoulders of the third taller boy. That guy stands a little apart, his expression cool.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.Download the story, read it here or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Volume 4.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, m/m/m, barely legal, high schoolWord Count: 7,900

    I never intended to meet him at all, but here he was laughing his ass off at my miserable state. My first spoken words to him were nasty and reflected poorly on me. But he wasn’t much better, laughing at another’s misfortune. By the time I learned the reason behind his strange laugh, he had given me a glimpse of his true self, and I could only hope I would prove myself worthy of his love.Dear Author,“I cannot believe how badly my day has gone what with the rain and the mud. To top off this craptastic day, my roommate invited some friends over. The guy I have been crushing on took one look at me and laughed his pretty ass off. I really want this day to be over.”This poor boy. Do you think you can make his day better?Photo Description: A well-built young man with longish brown hair stares sideways at the viewer. His hair is wet and hanging over his eyes. His face and naked chest are splattered with mud. He does not look happy, in fact he looks furious.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

    Write a contemporary, HEA, double gay-for-you. What makes this a challenge? Well gay-for-you is always a challenge, and a double-gay-for you has been done very well by a select few. But these stories are dynamite.See these two guys in the flannel shirts? Well, this isn’t insta-love, but they are taken by surprise by the growing attraction, and it causes them to question who they are. The ramifications are different for each one. What will make this story fun and hot is how they get to the HEA. Awkward situations, soul searching and above all, believable based on their characters. The old miscommunication thing is not as interesting as internal conflict. Maybe they’ve been friends for years? How do they ease into the physical side of the relationship? Or maybe they don’t ease into it, who knows.Photo Description: Two formerly straight young guys holding hands… the distance between them showing a fledgling relationship with some uncertainty and hesitation in their affection… the clasped hands indicating the desire for connection and their attraction to each other… will love conquer social and family expectations?This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story. This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

    See below for ePUB and PDF**T.K. Rogers knows his Alpha Phi Kappa brothers would never accept a gay brother, so he’s kept that secret for two years from even his closest friends. Who can blame them? If he had the choice, he’d be straight too. But once pledge number seven gets under his skin and into his bed, T.K. can no longer separate his frat life and his sex life.Carlos Castillo has everything figured out. A fraternity will give him instant friends, and he’ll gain real world experience in event planning and management. He just has to get through the hell of pledging. No problem. Staying in the closet was never part of the plan, but then again, neither was T.K. Rogers.Hiding a relationship from the twenty guys you live with isn’t easy, but T.K. loves APK and risking his place in the brotherhood for a pledge he’s just met is not an option. How far will T.K. go to keep his secret?WARNING: dubious consentPHOTO DESCRIPTION:Two dark-haired young men sit on a hardwood floor, viewed through a doorway. The younger, clean-shaven man has his back against the wall, wearing a white undershirt, dark pants, and boots. The other man faces him, bracing himself with his hand between his boyfriend’s feet. He wears a dark t-shirt and has the beginnings of a beard growing in. The men’s faces are close, suggesting an intimate conversation or a kiss.STORY LETTER:Something new that must be kept a secret. But secrets will out, and who discovers this 'forbidden' relationship? (And is it really as 'forbidden' as they think? Are they keeping their relationship a secret because of a game, because its easier, because one person in particular cannot know the truth?)HEA (or a strong HFN), and a “forbidden affair” at least at the beginning. Bonus points for some dub-con and/or (reluctant?) kissing in public. Can be any level of heat.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

    More the fool me.It wasn't as if *you* knew he was married, either.And for the record, I never said I didn't care about you. You said you didn't want a relationship with me.So, what changed?Photo Description: A man's face: startlingly blue eyes glare out from a frame of thick black eyeliner, under a one-sided fall of black hair. Lean cheeks and strong chin are accentuated by a stubble of beard. His full lower lip meets thin upper, mouth firmly closed. A chain of silver V-links circles his neck, under his open white shirt.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.Read the story here or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Volume 4 or Don't Read in the Closet: GayRomLit Retreat 2011 Special Edition.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, goth, club, guyliner, friends to lovers, unrequited loveWord Count: 2,909

    From living the horrors of war to falling in love. Will their love survive a life altering injury and PTSD?Please write these guys a story where they find peace and a HEA with each other. I don’t expect it to come easily.Photo Description: One man sits, leg drawn up, his head resting on his knee. He and the man kneeling behind him are naked. The other man has his arm wrapped around the seated man, holding his hand. Their eyes are closed and their posture cries out their love and care for each other.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

    Two years ago, Derrick Cole took one of his teenage probationers to learn about a new program that helped at risk kids by teaching them how to train shelter dogs. There he met the executive director and founder, Nigel Rutherford. Although the two men came from different worlds, they immediately found common ground in an interest in social issues and a desire to help others. A strong mutual attraction grew over time into the kind of solid loving relationship that so many people only dream about.But getting to this point wasn't easy. Bias and intolerance barred the way, and Derrick's foster father, Ronald Bryant, was at the core. When Ronald dies tragically, the couple is forced to face demons from their past that threaten to destroy everything they've fought so hard for.Death does a lot of things to people. Nigel and Derrick must fight to make sure that their relationship isn't yet another tragic loss.Warnings: Contains grief and loss, death of a parent, lots of crying, a bit of PTSD, snarky teens, adorable but opportunistic dogs, foul language, emotionally intense hot man on hot man sex action, and an excessive number of pumpkins.--------------------------------------------------------------This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

    Hot. Very hot. Felt like he had his hands everywhere. But when I woke this morning, I couldn’t see him anywhere. There was something in bed with me, though.Photo Description: A half-mast erection being weighed down by the octopus that’s wrapped around it, little tentacles clinging to hairless skin.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

    Well thank god then that I didn’t meet Patrick in high school; that’s just the time I fell in love with him. We actually met the day we were born, our mothers going in labour the exact same day and us being born just minutes apart from each other. We grew up together, always being at each other’s side, no matter what. So why are people so shocked about us falling in love? Why are they telling us that for us to be close is great but for us to love each other is wrong?But all this doesn’t matter, because no matter what our families may think, I am never letting him go. I simply cannot live without him and I certainly don’t want to. So even if everybody will turn on us, we’ll be good, because we have each other.Photo Description: Two teenage boys cuddle outside. One is leaning back against the other’s chest and they’re smiling at each other like nothing else exists in the world.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.

    So when the dinner hostess sits him with a bubbly woman and her single, gay, and very sexy brother, Tad’s vacation started looking even better than expected.The crystal blue ocean doesn’t hold a candle to the hard abs and cocky smile of Nick Boden, but Tad has spent his entire adult life building up the walls of his closet, while Nick has never put anything but clothes in his. The ship is called Freedom, but will its message be heard on the open ocean.Original Prompt:Dear Author,Last summer, I went on a cruise, and one day while I was out roaming the ship, I saw this guy sitting and reading and he just looked so peaceful and content that I needed to take a photo. But when I got home, I saw the guy in the background who looks like he is spying on him... I wonder if they have a story to tell.Photo Description: A man relaxes in a lounge chair in nothing but swim trunks and shades. One arm reaches over his head, showing off strong abs. One knee bent, a book is propped on his thigh. In the distance, behind a support beam and tinted glass partition, a figure appears to be discreetly watching our reader.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.Download the story, read it here or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Volume 4.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, closet, vacation, meddling sister, lawyer, artistWord Count: 14,757

    And now he's here. The first night, my brother ignored him, but he keeps showing up. First it was with a guitar and a love song, but the neighbors hated that and had their dogs chase him down the streets. The second night, he just stood under the windows looking pitiful while holding a bouquet of roses. For tonight...well, I see him trying to climb up the fire escape to my brother's room. To be fair, I did ask him if he wanted to just go up the stairs like any normal person while my brother is still out, but he said that this was just one of love's trials and he would find a way himself. Crazy person. And how did he know where we live anyway?Should I call the police or let this be and watch how it unfolds? I mean, this could be a crazy killer instead of an obsessive lover, not that either seem to be very good options.Photo Description: The grey 3-piece suit is impeccable, set off by white shirt, dark tie, and leather driving gloves held in elegant hands. The man is equally fine, slender, with a long narrow face, hooded dark eyes and styled black hair. He leans against a stucco wall, gloves in hand. There is a slight quirk to his full lips.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.Read the story here or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Volume 3.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, geeks-nerds, rom-com, humorous, earworm, x with a heart of goldWord Count: 18,650

    After coming out and experiencing a painful rejection from his parents and friends, Kurt feels as if he's lost everything that mattered. Then he connects with James Theard and his perspective on life and the truth found in love changes forever.Original Prompt:Dear Author,Where is this guy? What’s he looking at, I wonder? And is that guy down the hall watching him with longing? Maybe he’s been too shy to make his move before now. Maybe he’s trying to build up his courage. So, what do you think? Can you help the shy little guy get his happy ending?Photo Description: A slim, classic-featured boy in low-riding briefs leans against a wall, washed in dim blue and gold light. One graceful hand brushes his own bare chest, as he gazes forward. Behind him, down the hall, a shadowed dark-haired boy in shorts leans out of doorway watching in rapt attention.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Hot Summer Days" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.Download the story, read it here or find it in Don't Read in the Closet, Volume 3.__________Genre: contemporaryTags: gay m/m, italics, dash and ellipsis point abuse, sappy romance, prose with a mild purple hue, non-explicit, college, athletes, oh, teh angst!, excessive blushing, locker room groping, public displays of adorable, sports, nosey strangers & swimming allusion pornWord Count: 12,663

    He keeps his head down and looks after his family, but every two years the sick fear comes around again as the Feds arrive for a new harvest of kids.It’s Trace’s last sweep; he’s about to serve out his term of slavery. One last run and then… what? A life alone, with his books and music? He’s seen far too much of the dark side of human nature to think that’s a possibility.Trace and Isaac both know happy ever after doesn’t grow in the parched desert. Maybe together they can change that.This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love’s Landscapes" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story. Dear Author,I always knew it was a possibility. Have known since childhood that they could take me someday. The slave traders have been sweeping the area for weeks now but I didn’t think they’d want me. They usually take girls and if they take boys they’re younger, blonder… prettier. There’s not usually a demand for someone who looks like me and has reached the ripe, old age of twenty-four. But I was wrong. Someone did want me. I’m so fucked.One last sweep of this dirt water town and I can get back to my life. My books, my music, my art and my life that doesn’t revolve around grabbing kids to sell to the highest bidder. I hate this shit. One last run. My debt will be paid and I’ll be free from that son of a bitch who grabbed ME as a kid. Maybe then I can finally stop thinking and dreaming. Turn off those dark desires that swirl in my head and wake me up at night in a cold sweat. I’m not HIM. I will never be HIM. My last fucking run and it all goes to shit when some guy, trying to be the hero, gets in my face. He’s too old, too dark, too inked… but God help me I want him.I don’t know what I was thinking when I stood up to him. I just wanted the kid to have half a chance at getting away. He’s so angry. I screwed up his quota and now I’m going to pay for that. He told me to get clean. EVERYWHERE. Then he gave me a thick chain with a padlock on it and told me to chain myself to the table when I was done. Something about “inspecting the merchandise”. I’m so fucked.Photo Description: A dark-haired, young man crouches naked in the corner of a bathtub, beneath a spray of water. White tiles and chrome fittings surround him. A heavy chain with a sturdy padlock is draped over his right shoulder, above a large tribal tattoo on his bicep. The man protects his head and chest with his arms, cowering, as he apprehensively meets the gaze of the viewer staring down at him.This story may contain sexually explicit content and is intended for adult readers. It may contain content that is disagreeable or distressing to some readers. The M/M Romance Group strongly recommends that each reader review the General Information section before each story for story tags as well as for content warnings.

    Geneticists rule, instituting a DNA-based caste system in their effort to restore the human genome.As a Zed, Will's a virtual slave who isn't allowed medical care. A tragic accident has left him crippled, awaiting death. Just before his time is up, Malcolm, an enigmatic Alpha with two differently colored eyes, sweeps in and buys him. Will becomes part of a family of freaks--other damaged Zeds who should be dead. Life seems ideal until Malcolm makes a request that could change Will's life.Malcolm harbors more secrets than his Zeds could imagine. His attraction to Will unravels his carefully cultivated control, and one secret escapes: he craves pain, not just as a sexual release, but as a way to atone for his past. Will may be the one person who can give him what he needs if Malcolm can only allow him into his heart.As they struggle to build trust, each secret Malcolm reveals threatens their relationship. In the end, their desire for each other may heal both men if they can unlearn the lessons of the past.In Distress is a dystopian, science-fiction love story and contains adult language and situations.