AUTHOR NAME: Greyson McCoy
Tell us a little about yourself.
I grew up having been firmly planted in the soils of Tennessee. In fact, doing my genealogy, my ancestry reaches back to the first settlers (White and Black) to settle there.
Unfortunately, for my family, I’m a nomad at heart. All my life I’ve wanted to travel, and after our children moved out of the house, my husband and I took advantage of our empty nest and took to the road.
Writing came late to me, but now it seems to be all consuming. Luckily, being a writer works well with our travels.
What would people be most surprised to know about you?
Well, the truth is I’m not all that interesting. I’ve done a lot of things in my life though. I’ve been a teacher, raised kids, grew up on a farm, owned a small hobby farm, ran a real estate company for a while, and so forth and so on.
If I were to say one thing that might be surprising is that my husband and I sometimes renovate houses. Our favorites are the historical ones that we can clean up and restore to their original beauty.
Do you have a favorite quote (either from your own books or one’s you’ve read)?
I loved Alice Roosevelt Longworth’s spunk. I often quote her, “If you can’t say something good about someone, sit right here by me.”
What are your ambitions for your writing career?
To become the best-selling author and take over the world (cue thunder) Mwahahahaha!
No, honestly, I think my goal is to write books that cause people to get all the feels. If I manage to make my readers cry, laugh, laugh until they cry, I win whatever it is that we win when we write stories.
One of the best parts of using writing as your mid-life crisis is that it gets to be more about your work than it is about making a dollar. Although, let me be clear, I do want to make a few dollars doing this.
What’s your favorite part of writing?
I love the drafting process, usually. When a story just flows out of me it’s beyond exhilarating. Of course, I’m an avid reader, and I’m lucky that I have that so-called television in my head while reading.
When I can see the story playing out when I’m writing it, that’s just that much sweeter.
Tell us about your writing style.
I wish there was a style to it. I tend to have a story come to me, often in the middle of the night, and then I sit down and write until it concludes itself on the page.
The funny thing about me, is I’m often just curious how the story will end, therefore, that motivates me to sit down long enough to write to the end.
Why did you choose to write LGBT romance/fiction?
I love romance novels. I have since I was a young man. What I didn’t have access to until recently is romance novels written about LGBTQ+ people. I always wanted to change that, or more precisely to have someone change that so I could read more books about people like me.
When I discovered MM books, I sat down one day and began writing. It came out of me like water flowing down a brook.
Ultimately, I have to say, LGBTQ+ romance and fiction found me more than I found it.
Give the readers a brief summary of your latest book or WIP. What genre does it fall in?
My latest book is Bridging Hope, which is a novella about a couple of men whose lives crash together when they become responsible for two children after the kid’s mom passes away. One of the men is the kids’ uncle, the other the kids’ godfather.
This is in every way a forced proximity romance, but it’also has single father and hurt/comfort tropes as well.
Give us a little insight into your main characters. Who are they?
Pierce, the birth uncle to the children hasn’t been a part of the children’s lives. When his sister is diagnosed with cancer, she asks him to come help. When his sister passes away, he’s left with his niece and nephew. The problem is his sister designated a different man to inherit the kids.
Dalton loved his high school girlfriend, but in truth being a gay man, she was more his best friend than a real girlfriend. Despite that, when she passes away, he finds that she’s left the kids to him.
He returns to his small town to take on the responsibility he’s been given, only to find a grumpy, intolerable, sexy uncle standing in his way.
Of course, the two men decide to take on the job together, which leads to some hot, happy, and troublesome times.
Will we be seeing these characters again? Is this book part of a series?
I hope so, my goal is to release a series with these characters as well as plenty of new ones. The little town this is set in is having a renaissance. Our guys are simply leading the charge.
What genre/s do you enjoy reading in your free time?
I usually read romances, because that’s my jam. However, I also like the occasional urban fantasy.
What hobbies do you have outside of writing?
Oh, I just started one. I began silversmithing this winter and have made enough jewelry now to cover all my friends for Christmas. Next winter, I’m going to learn lapidary, which is a fancy word for learning how to shape all the rocks and gems to insert into my silversmithing.
THANK YOU
Book Title: Bridging Hope (Bridging Hearts Series, #1)
Author: Greyson McCoy
Publisher: DreamSpinner Press
Release Date: March 26, 2024
Genre: Contemporary M/M romance
Tropes: Hurt/Comfort, forced proximity, small town romance
Themes: New dads
Heat Rating: 3 flames
Length: 58 pages
It is a standalone book and does not end on a cliffhanger. It’s a HEA
Buy Links
DreamSpinner Press | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Blurb
When workaholic Pierce Simms’s sister passes, he suddenly finds himself unemployed, back in the hometown he fled, and raising his niece and nephew. Despite that, he’s confident he has things under control—at least until his sister’s high-school sweetheart shows up.
With his teaching grant ended, Dalton O’Dell is at loose ends and tight purse strings. Just as the world crashes down on him, he learns his ex-girlfriend has passed and named him guardian of her two young children. Chaos ensues when he and her brother, Pierce, are forced together to raise the toddlers in Pierce’s family farmhouse.
Nestled in the enchanting beauty of the farm, Pierce and Dalton bond over the challenges of co-parenting and their shared grief as unexpected love blossoms. Love might not be enough, however, if they can’t learn to bridge the gap between their different worlds and overcome the trauma of their pasts.
“Let’s discuss how to proceed,” Pierce’s attorney, a short, businesslike woman, said. For thirty minutes, Pierce kept the baby occupied while his attorney and Uncle Tim discussed the details of the will. I sat watching Pierce.
The little girl kept bringing her uncle toys that had been left in the office for kids to play with, and each time, he’d smile or ask her questions. Eventually, the baby boy settled and snuggled sleepily in his arms. That’s when my heart melted. This wasn’t an absentee uncle. Clearly, he was important to them and vice versa. It made me question whether a custody fight was prudent.
“Why did Lizzie want me to raise her kids instead of you?” I blurted, interrupting our attorneys and surprising myself.
A pained expression crossed Pierce’s face as he spoke to me for the first time. “When she made her will, she probably figured I’d never come back. We were… estranged,” he said, voice gruff.
“But you’re back now, and these two seem to trust you. How long have you been taking care of them?”
His pained look morphed into one so grief-stricken I felt tempted to hug him. “About six months,” he whispered.
I nodded in thought. “Do you have a job? Are you married? What’s your wife like? Is she on board with helping raise them?”
My uncle cleared his throat, signaling to me to let the lawyers handle the questioning, but I couldn’t help myself. For a moment, Pierce looked a little stunned by the sudden barrage, but he answered. “I’m recently unemployed, but I received a good severance package. I’m set for at least a few months before I need to work full-time again. I’m not married.” He hesitated then, his face resolute, before spinning the question back around. “You?”
I shrugged. “Unmarried and recently unemployed as well.” Ignoring his challenging stare, I continued honestly. “I see these two love you, depend on you. I don’t understand all this, but I trust Lizzie had her reasons for naming me their guardian. I won’t relinquish that responsibility. Not without knowing for certain they’re in good hands.”
Pierce nodded, and his expression softened a little. “I’m not stepping out of their lives without knowing the same thing. Frankie and Max have already been through too much for two little kids. I’ll be here until they don’t need me.”
“So we’re at an impasse,” I said.
Uncle Tim cleared his throat again. “Or maybe it’s an opportunity. Mr. Simms, may I call you Pierce? I understand you inherited your father’s farm?” Pierce glanced at him and nodded. “And Dalton, you’re looking for a place to stay. Why don’t you boys combine forces? Dalton, your farming experience might be of great help to Pierce, and you’ll both have time to get to know one another and observe the other’s parenting style.”
I looked at my uncle, aghast. “Uncle Tim, that’s probably not a good idea. Mr. Simms, surely you have a girlfriend or something? I couldn’t impose—”
Pierce barked out a laugh, nearly waking baby Max, who’d fallen asleep in his arms. “I’m gay and single.” He glanced down at his nephew, then over to his niece, Frankie, before refocusing on me. “I understand you work with kids, but do you feel comfortable caring for kids this young?”
I couldn’t help but smile. “I don’t have much experience being around kids this age. In my previous job, they already knew their ABCs when they came to me.”
Pierce appeared lost in thought before he sighed and his shoulders dropped, as if he were giving up the fight. “Honestly, I could use the help. When Lizzie got sick, friends and neighbors helped, but that tapered off. Now it’s just us. I could use another pair of adult hands, especially at night.”
“And there’s room at your house?”
He nodded. “Yeah, I’m staying in my sister’s room, which has an adjoining area where the kids sleep. You could take the main bedroom right across the hall. But fair warning,” he said, a mischievous smile forming on his lips, “if you move in, you’ll have night duty too. Max only sleeps four or five hours, which means 1:00 a.m. diaper-changing time. You up for that?”
I could tell he was testing me, and screw him. I slept like the dead, but I could set an alarm.
I nodded. “I’m up for it if you are.”
We both looked at our attorneys, who wore matching grins. “Well, then,” Uncle Tim said, “sounds like we’ve got a plan.”
Greyson McCoy loves to travel. After years of being tied down to a life of kids, work, running a small farm, and all things domestic, he and his husband have taken full advantage of their empty nest to travel the world.
The joy of writing came to Greyson late in life. While completing his master’s degree, he found himself fighting between desperately wanting to write fiction and finishing the homework and papers he’d been assigned.
After his master’s was finished, Greyson decided to shirk his life of responsibility and pursue his dream of writing full time. His stories reflect many of the locations he and his husband have visited over the years.
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