I'm so glad you're not leaving Westie. I know we used to talk a lot, but real life can make it hard to stay active with 'online life'. I don't always get to keep up with the things I'd prefer to be doing on here. I often start with stories and then lose track of them as they continue posting but move out of my mod queue. I try to be as active in the public side of GA as I can, because the site means something to me. Without that element I would stick with all the behind the scenes stuff only.
Recommendations on longer stories, see that's where I'm somewhat useless. I've lost track of what's finished or not, since I am so often involved in the beginning of author's journeys here on GA. I believe that Sean Halford just finished a very long novel 'Stronger than Lions' that is popular. A contemporary, young adult type of story-similar to a few of Mark's.
Do remember that GA Stories search is completely custom. You can include genre, length, status ... in your search at the same time to narrow down the field to the types of stories you prefer. Just use the 'title' search features without a title.