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Top Read Romance Stories Since Deep Dive 9 Top 3 Most Read Romance - Academia / STEM Romance Romance set in STEM, academia, or featuring scientists/engineers; Jody and the Team by KKirk Complete Sparks for Nyx by Myr Complete The academic slut by Kileoli In Process Top 4 Most Read Romance - Billionaire Romance Romances involving wealthy protagonists, often with power imbalances and glamorous lifestyles. TRAVISTY by Mark Arbour In Process Collateral by Laura S. Fox Complete Velvet and Venom by ASH PHOENIX Temporary Hold Sibylline Morning After by Kreston Bach Temporary Hold Top 10 Most Read Romance - Contemporary Romance Set in the present time, focusing on the romantic relationships of characters in modern settings. The Cockney Canuck by Dodger Temporary Hold Misaligned by Laura S. Fox Complete A Good Place by Mark Ponyboy Peters Complete A to Z by Parker Owens Complete Wolf in the City by Laura S. Fox Complete An English Teen, Circumcised in the USA by Riley Jericho Complete Cards on the Table by Headstall Long-Term Hold Love Truly Is Blind by Lee Wilson Complete Dichotomy of Love by Mrsgnomie Complete Jay's Loelife by Mrsgnomie Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Cozy Romance Low-conflict, feel-good romantic stories often set in small towns or involving comforting professions like bakers, bookshop owners, or teachers. Begin Again by Tony S. Complete Seaside Entries by ObicanDecko Complete Essence of Life by W_L Complete Oceanbank by quokka Complete My Straight Best Friend Asked Me to Be His Boyfriend by StoriesByTroy In Process My Valentine Came With a QR Code by Soren Kraft Complete There's Always Time by Paladin Complete Pace Control by Soren Kraft Complete Uncut Control - Taming the Spanish Bull by Soren Kraft Complete Snow? Never heard of it! by Kileoli Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - General Romance Stories that focus on relationship The Freshmen by Mark Arbour Complete Swing for the Fences by LittleBuddhaTW Complete Learned to Lie by Krista Complete Shadow Effect by kbois Complete Noah's Adventure by AquariusGuy Complete My Best Friend’s Brother Dylan Was Supposed to Be Straight by StoriesByTroy Complete Dichotomy of Love by Mrsgnomie Complete I'm Gay: A Nifty Story by Jeff Burton Temporary Hold Jay's Loelife by Mrsgnomie Complete The Making of a Slave by and9993 Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Grumpy and Sunshine Romance A romance trope pairing a brooding, serious character with a cheerful, optimistic one. Frequently found in rom-coms Granny's Got a Plan by Topher Lydon Complete Flying Otters - Tackled by Team Heat by Soren Kraft Complete Pace Control by Soren Kraft Complete Rough Strokes for the Golden Egg by Soren Kraft Complete Sliding into Secrets by Soren Kraft Complete Nude Pics Please! by Laura S. Fox Complete Grumpy Gym Regular by Soren Kraft Complete 12 Seconds To Forever by Rafy Complete The Double Hex by Topher Lydon In Process Bringing Up Himbo by Boy Mercury X Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Historical Romance Set in a specific historical period, often featuring historical events and figures. The Freshmen by Mark Arbour Complete Peace of Amiens by Mark Arbour In Process TRAVISTY by Mark Arbour In Process Gap Year by Mark Arbour Complete Northern Exposure by Mark Arbour Complete Paternity by Mark Arbour Complete Black Widow by Mark Arbour Complete Odyssey by Mark Arbour Complete 9.11 by Mark Arbour Complete Chronicles Of An Academic Predator by Mark Arbour Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Paranormal Romance Involves supernatural elements such as vampires, werewolves, or witches in romantic relationships. Into the fields of Summer by gabz2000 Long-Term Hold Oregon in the Fall by drown Long-Term Hold Shadow Effect by kbois Complete BigPaws by Jack Poignet Complete The Light at the End of the Tunnel by kbois Complete Beyond the Veil by Laura S. Fox In Process Cernunnos by astone2292 Complete Exile to Érenn by Mark Paren Complete Death in the Shadows by astone2292 Complete Love in the Shadows by astone2292 Complete Top 6 Most Read Romance - Regency Romance Regency romances are a subgenre of romance novels set during the period of the British Regency (1811–1820) or early 19th century. Regencies usually feature a great deal of intelligent, fast-paced dialogue between the protagonists and very little explicit sex or discussion of sex Odyssey by Mark Arbour Complete St. Vincent by Mark Arbour Complete HMS Belvidera by Mark Arbour Complete Master and Commander by Mark Arbour Complete The Wardroom by Mark Arbour Complete Hunger & Habit by Invnarcel Complete Top 6 Most Read Romance - Rock Star Romance Romantic stories involving characters in the music or entertainment industry. Do You Ship Us? by Littlelovestories Complete Rising Stars by Littlelovestories Complete Roadie In Love by Lee Wilson Complete Shooting Stars by Littlelovestories Temporary Hold Robbie and Mark: Latest chaos by unilive In Process Between Love and Fantasy by unilive Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Romantasy Romantic Fantasy (Romantasy) - A blend of fantasy and romance, often involving magical worlds, powerful love interests, and emotional high-stakes. Popularized by authors like Sarah J. Maas. The Brotherhood: Awakening Book II by The Writer X In Process Gone Away, Gone Ahead by Mawgrim Complete A Knight in the Darkness by Topher Lydon Complete To the Weyr by Mawgrim Complete Higher Education by WolfM Complete A Thousand Years of Hope by lilansui Complete Threadfall by Mawgrim Complete Incandescence by Demiurge Complete Spirit of Fire by Stellar Complete Warming The Cold One by garfwiz Temporary Hold Top 10 Most Read Romance - Romantic Comedy (Rom-Com) Focuses on love stories with humorous elements. Films like "When Harry Met Sally" and "Crazy Rich Asians" exemplify this genre. Swing for the Fences by LittleBuddhaTW Complete BigPaws by Jack Poignet Complete Tyler's Dilemma by Jason Rimbaud Complete turmoil by Paladin In Process Groom for Rent by vanalas Complete The Secret Lies of Schoolboys by Topher Lydon Complete Gabriel's Gambit: Contract Terminated by Jason Rimbaud Complete Love is... 2 (Gus and Rex) by Tony S. Complete Ash's Marriage Trigger by Thirdly Complete Tuesday Staff Meetings by Thirdly Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Romantic Sci-Fi Blends romantic elements with futuristic or science fiction settings. Fates Mates & Pirates by P. E. Knapp Temporary Hold Denied by Cia Complete Hidden Sunlight by Stellar Complete The Vega Vixen by Topher Lydon Complete Veil of Shadow by Stellar Complete It All Started With A Shuttle Flight by P. E. Knapp Complete Shelter by Comicality Author Passed Away Twinks in Space: Fantastic Voyage - Part Two by Adam Andrews Johnson Long-Term Hold Crave by LitLover Complete Goon by dkstories Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Romantic Western Romantic stories set in the American West during the 19th century. Bearpaw: An Old West Tale by Headstall Complete Oklahoma's Son by Wayne Gray In Process LEGALLY BOUND by vanalas Complete Groom for Rent by vanalas Complete Where Love Lies: Book 2 by vanalas Complete THROUGH IT ALL by vanalas In Process Echoes of the Heart by vanalas Complete Lone Wolf Ranch by Justin4Fun Long-Term Hold Roping the Moon by Headstall In Process Mr & Mister Danvers: Initiation by LJCC Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Slow Burn Romance A romantic story where the relationship develops gradually, building tension and emotional connection before any physical intimacy. Circumnavigation by C James Complete Swing for the Fences by LittleBuddhaTW Complete Medellín by LittleBuddhaTW Temporary Hold Deeds of Their Past by Mike Carss Complete The Best Man At My Brother's Wedding by StoriesByTroy In Process Arcum Dawns by mastershakeme Complete The Roaming Sea by Mike Carss Complete Alpha Awakened by Painawakened In Process Another Time by Celian In Process Rising Stars by Littlelovestories Complete Top 10 Most Read Romance - Spicy Contemporary Romance Modern romance stories with explicit sexual content, focusing on emotional intimacy and popular tropes like enemies-to-lovers or fake dating. Role of a Lifetime by KKirk Complete The Asset and the Liability by Topher Lydon Complete Collateral by Laura S. Fox Complete The Cwtch. by E K Stokes Complete I'll Kiss You in the Rain by William King Complete Taming the New Guy by Edged Bound Temporary Hold Rókus by E K Stokes Complete Frozen Peaks, Burning Heat by Soren Kraft Complete Flying Otters - Tackled by Team Heat by Soren Kraft Complete The Lost Jock by Edged Bound Temporary Hold Top 10 Most Read Romance - Sports Star Romance Sports star romance features at least one main character who is an athlete or involved in the sports industry. These stories typically combine romance with drama, competition, and passion, as the characters face challenges both on and off the field. Some common themes in sports star romance are enemies to lovers, opposites attract, and second chances. Jay's Loelife by Mrsgnomie Complete The Best Year by Krista Complete The Field of Love by Enoch Temporary Hold Jody and the Team by KKirk Complete Lee: Lessons in Adulting by Bndmetl Temporary Hold Flying Otters - Tackled by Team Heat by Soren Kraft Complete Desire in the Dormitory by chris191070 Complete Tuct Side by Westley D. Long-Term Hold Rough Strokes for the Golden Egg by Soren Kraft Complete Bearding the Lion by Boy Mercury X Complete

Google suspiciously dropped that "don't be evil" thing a long time ago. You can tell.

Not in the story text. Google is being a pain again. I will investigate

I asked AI to research genre trends in popular reading, as well as age demographics and general male preferences, to recommend ways to write that capture more of the current zeitgeist without forgetting our current audience. The AI is familiar with genre trends on Gay Authors as well as our sites declared genre preferences and age. So the advice is geared towards appealing to existing audience and new audience as a way to attract interest. As always, you can write what you want. But if you want to be more focused or try new things, give this a read and maybe try out a short story in the upcoming Anthology that fits one of these suggestions. After seeing the report, I asked the AI to to generate a guide of how users could catch the wave, as it were. This is the result. Provided in case you were interested. How Gay Authors Can Use Rising Genre Trends to Reach More Readers You do not need to abandon the stories you love to reach a wider audience. You may only need to give those stories a stronger engine. Romance remains one of publishing’s most commercially powerful categories, but some of its fastest-growing areas now combine relationships with fantasy, sports, suspense, danger, or adventure. Romantasy and sports romance have recently shown particularly strong growth, alongside romantic suspense and contemporary romance. Psychological thrillers, dark fantasy, and horror are also gaining readers. At the same time, readers are increasingly willing to experiment. Fable’s 2026 State of Reading Report found that 80% of surveyed readers tried a new genre during the previous year. It also identified growing interest in niches such as cozy fantasy, cowboy romance, dark academia, and Afrofuturism. Men particularly prioritized science fiction, fantasy, and history. That creates an opportunity for gay fiction. A gay story does not have to be marketed only as a romance or coming-out story. It can be a murder mystery, space adventure, western, supernatural thriller, sports drama, or historical epic whose central characters happen to be gay. The question is not, “Which trend should I copy?” The better question is: What popular reading experience can I combine with the kind of gay characters and relationships I already write well? Give the Relationship an External Story Engine A romance asks whether two people will form or preserve a relationship. A broader genre story also asks whether they will: win the championship; solve the murder; survive the mission; expose the conspiracy; save the ranch; master the magic; escape the regime; rebuild the community; or uncover the truth. This external objective gives readers another reason to begin the story and another source of tension once the relationship develops. Consider the difference between these two premises: Relationship-only premise: A closeted hockey player falls for his openly gay teammate. Genre-driven premise: A closeted team captain must lead his struggling hockey club through its final championship season while falling for the newly traded player whose arrival threatens both his position and his carefully controlled public life. The second version still contains the romance, but it also promises competition, teamwork, professional consequences, public pressure, and a concrete ending. That is the central technique behind many of today’s strongest genre opportunities. Ten Trends Authors at Gay Authors Can Use 1. Sports Romance: Add Competition to Attraction Sports romance combines emotional intimacy with goals readers can immediately understand: make the team, win the season, recover from injury, defeat a rival, or protect a career. The best sports stories do not treat the sport as decorative scenery. The competition should force the characters to make difficult choices. Try this: Choose a sport and define one measurable objective. Your protagonist might need to win a championship, earn a contract, recover before the playoffs, or save a failing team. Then make the relationship complicate that objective. Possible gay-fiction approaches include: rivals competing for the same position; a veteran mentoring a talented younger adult; teammates hiding a relationship from management; an injured athlete confronting life after competition; a coach returning to the town he once escaped; a famous athlete falling for someone who dislikes celebrity culture. Sports romance can appeal strongly to readers in their late teens through their forties, but retired athletes, coaches, and second-career protagonists can also reach older audiences. 2. Science Fiction and Space Opera: Change the World Around the Couple Science fiction allows authors to examine identity, belonging, prejudice, family, and relationships without reproducing the modern world exactly as it exists. Begin with one major speculative change: Humanity lives on generation ships. Artificial intelligence has legal personhood. Memory can be edited. Marriage is assigned by an algorithm. People can change bodies. Earth has lost contact with its colonies. First contact challenges every assumption about gender and sexuality. Then ask what that change costs your protagonist personally. A strong science-fiction premise needs more than futuristic furniture. Give the characters a mission, discovery, political conflict, survival problem, or technological dilemma. Story formula: A gay or bisexual protagonist must accomplish a dangerous mission in a world transformed by one major technology, while his relationship forces him to question the society he is protecting. Science fiction and fantasy have particularly broad potential among younger and middle-aged male readers, but classic adventure structures can reach readers across every age group. 3. Psychological Thriller and Romantic Suspense: Make Trust Dangerous Thrillers are built around uncertainty. Someone is lying. Someone is watching. Someone has disappeared. A trusted institution is hiding something. A relationship may offer safety—or be the source of danger. Gay fiction is especially well suited to stories involving secrets, identity, reputation, chosen family, and the difference between privacy and deception. However, the secret does not always need to be that a character is gay. Consider: a new partner using a false identity; a husband uncovering evidence of a past crime; a witness protected by the man he once betrayed; a journalist investigating a powerful community leader; an apparently perfect couple receiving anonymous threats; an estranged brother vanishing after asking for help. Try this: Write down three things before outlining: What does the protagonist believe? What is actually true? What will happen if he learns the truth too late? The relationship should make the investigation more emotionally dangerous, not replace it. 4. Western and Cowboy Fiction: Use Place, Work, and Community Western fiction offers clear conflicts involving land, family, isolation, tradition, labor, law, and masculine expectations. It also extends well beyond the nineteenth-century frontier. Modern possibilities include: ranch owners facing development pressure; rodeo competitors; rural veterinarians; firefighters or rescue workers; small-town sheriffs; men returning to inherited family property; former soldiers starting over; older men finding love after decades of silence. The setting should actively shape the story. A remote ranch changes how characters seek help, hide a relationship, build trust, and depend on one another. Try this: Give the protagonist three connections to the setting: something he wants to preserve; something he wants to escape; and someone who makes leaving—or staying—more difficult. Cowboy romance and small-town stories can reach readers from their twenties into retirement, particularly when authors include mature protagonists, family responsibilities, and second chances. 5. Historical Fiction and Historical Mystery: Put Love Under Real Pressure Historical gay fiction has an immediate source of tension: different periods allowed, prohibited, concealed, or interpreted same-sex relationships in different ways. But legal danger should not be the only plot. Your characters might also be: solving a murder; surviving a war; crossing an ocean; protecting coded correspondence; exposing espionage; working in the theatre; serving aboard a ship; building a business; or preserving a community threatened by political change. Before writing, define: the precise year and location; what the characters can safely say in public; what social role each man is expected to perform; what historical event affects their immediate lives; and what external problem would exist even without the romance. Historical mysteries and adventures can appeal particularly well to readers over 45, but younger readers will respond when the story begins with a strong dilemma rather than a history lesson. Research should create pressure and possibility—not paragraphs of background information. 6. Paranormal and Dark Fantasy: Give Every Power a Price Paranormal fiction remains attractive because it turns emotional struggles into visible forces. A character’s anger may become dangerous magic. His family history may carry a curse. His desire to belong may bind him to a supernatural community. His greatest strength may slowly transform him into something he fears. The most useful rule is: Every supernatural ability should solve one problem while creating another. Possible approaches include: a detective who can hear the final thoughts of murder victims; a healer who takes another person’s injuries into his own body; a werewolf expected to lead a pack he no longer trusts; a vampire protecting a community that would kill him if exposed; a man inheriting a house inhabited by his family’s secrets; rival magical factions forced to cooperate. Dark fantasy and horror can explore repression, bodily autonomy, transformation, obsession, and survival. The darkness should create meaningful consequences rather than existing only for shock. 7. Progression Fantasy and LitRPG: Let Readers Watch the Hero Grow Progression fantasy follows a protagonist who deliberately develops skills, knowledge, status, or power. LitRPG makes that advancement even more visible through levels, classes, abilities, rankings, or game-like systems. These forms are well suited to serial fiction because each installment can deliver a new achievement while advancing a larger quest. Start with: a skill the protagonist lacks; a hierarchy he wants to climb; a rival who is currently stronger; a system with clear rules; and a cost attached to advancement. The romantic relationship can progress alongside the external journey. Two characters may begin as competitors, become reluctant allies, develop trust, and eventually realize that advancement is forcing them toward incompatible futures. Do not add statistics merely because the genre uses them. Readers should understand what each gain allows the character to do—and what new danger it creates. 8. Cozy Fantasy and Cozy Mystery: Build a Place Readers Want to Revisit “Cozy” does not mean nothing happens. It means the story offers a reassuring emotional center even when something disrupts the characters’ lives. A cozy fantasy might follow two men rebuilding a magical inn. A cozy mystery might feature a retired couple investigating suspicious events in their seaside town. The conflict is manageable, the community matters, and the story ultimately restores a sense of safety or belonging. Strong cozy stories usually need: a memorable location; a recurring group of supporting characters; a problem large enough to require action; low or controlled graphic violence; and an emotional promise that the reader will not leave the story feeling punished. This is an excellent area for found family, mature protagonists, established couples, later-life romance, and stories about healing after difficult experiences. Cozy fiction can bridge age groups: younger readers often value its refuge from anxiety, while older readers may appreciate its community, clarity, and recurring characters. 9. Dystopian, Climate, and AI Fiction: Focus on One Human Consequence Near-future fiction works best when it avoids trying to predict every detail of civilization. Choose one system and examine its effect on an individual life. For example: an algorithm decides who may become a parent; climate relocation separates established communities; AI companions become more emotionally attentive than human partners; governments rank citizens by social usefulness; memory evidence becomes admissible in court; medical technology extends life only for selected groups. Then create a protagonist who benefits from the system in one way and is harmed by it in another. The gay relationship should reveal something about the world. Perhaps the society accepts sexuality but controls reproduction. Perhaps identity is legally protected while privacy has vanished. Perhaps prejudice has changed form rather than disappeared. This approach avoids simply placing twenty-first-century characters in futuristic clothing. 10. Dark Academia and Gothic Campus Fiction: Make the Institution Dangerous Dark academia combines intellectual ambition, atmospheric settings, secrecy, rivalry, history, and institutional power. Useful settings include: universities; boarding schools for adult students; graduate programs; museums; archives; libraries; archaeological expeditions; elite artistic institutions; or secret scholarly societies. Possible plots include stolen research, forged artifacts, forbidden archives, academic sabotage, secret relationships, unexplained deaths, or a discovery powerful people want suppressed. For stories with mature sexual material, use adult university students, faculty, researchers, or professional scholars. The institution should not merely provide attractive old buildings. It should control something the protagonist desperately wants: acceptance, credentials, knowledge, status, or access. Match the Story to the Audience Age demographics can help authors make deliberate choices, but they should never become rigid stereotypes. Readers approximately 18–24 may respond particularly well to sports, dark academia, progression fantasy, dystopian fiction, romantasy, and stories about entering adult life. Open quickly and make the protagonist’s objective clear. Readers approximately 25–44 often have broad interest in fantasy, science fiction, thrillers, sports, horror, and relationship stories involving careers, competition, and difficult choices. Readers approximately 45–64 may be especially receptive to historical fiction, mysteries, westerns, science fiction, romantic suspense, second chances, and protagonists carrying substantial personal history. Readers 65 and older should not be treated as interested only in gentle stories. Many enjoy adventure, speculative fiction, mysteries, and complex relationships. Clear presentation, completed arcs, mature protagonists, and substantial character continuity can be especially valuable. One of the simplest ways to widen a story’s audience is to vary the ages of the characters. Gay fiction does not need to end at first love. Characters can begin again at 35, 50, 70, or beyond. Build Your Trend-Ready Premise Use this sentence to test a new idea: This is a [specific subgenre] about a [distinctive protagonist] who must [achieve an external objective] before [a concrete consequence], while his relationship with [another character] forces him to [change, choose, or sacrifice something]. For example: This is a historical mystery about a closeted radio operator who must identify a spy inside a wartime intelligence unit before an invasion plan is exposed, while his growing relationship with the chief suspect forces him to choose between duty and trust. That premise promises more than representation. It promises a complete reading experience. Before beginning, answer five questions: What genre experience am I promising? What must the protagonist accomplish? What happens if he fails? How does the relationship complicate the external problem? What will make this story recognizably mine? Try One Step Outside Your Usual Genre You do not need to become a completely different writer. A romance writer can add a mystery. A fantasy writer can add visible progression. A contemporary writer can move the story into a sports team, rural community, or historical setting. A thriller writer can place a gay relationship at the emotional center without turning the entire plot into a coming-out story. A long-time author can also begin with a short experiment: one scene, one chapter, one 5,000-word story, or one premise shared for feedback. The largest genre trends are not closed worlds reserved for other writers. Gay characters belong in championship arenas, haunted houses, starships, frontier towns, magical academies, intelligence agencies, cozy bookshops, and every other setting readers are eager to explore. Choose one unfamiliar door. Then send your characters through it.

Well sort of, probably. All those privacy laws. I suspect it is this. If you set your Consent preferences to block certain cookies, then the third party stuff can't load. Scroll to bottom of page and click "Consent Preferences". I'm not sure which one it is, but "Allow All" allows the images to work and "Block All" blocks them. Gay Authors doesn't sell data, but third party services use it. Up to you how you want it to work.

We normally send this out via the newsletter email, but today we are posting it to let other's see it to. Here it is — a focused look at what Gay Authors readers are actually reading right now. Here’s where attention concentrated most for Romance, Paranormal, and Poetry in the last 30 days: The second Friday of the month is the day for Romance, Paranormal, and Poetry: 👨‍❤️‍👨 Top 10 Most Read Romance in the last month are: Ride of Your Life by mastershakeme In Process Revelations 2026 by mastershakeme Complete Circumnavigation by C James Complete Oregon in the Fall by drown Long-Term Hold Oklahoma's Son by Wayne Gray In Process The Cockney Canuck by Dodger Temporary Hold TRAVISTY by Mark Arbour In Process Lost in the Sand by Topher Lydon Complete Peace of Amiens by Mark Arbour In Process The Lord of the Pierced Dawn by Topher Lydon Complete 👻 Top 10 Most Read Paranormal in the last month are: Oregon in the Fall by drown Long-Term Hold Morningstar: The Malaise by Headstall Complete Into the fields of Summer by gabz2000 Long-Term Hold Running with the Pack by WolfM Complete Beyond the Veil by Laura S. Fox In Process Alpha Awakened by Painawakened In Process Shadow Effect by kbois Complete The Light at the End of the Tunnel by kbois Complete Spirit Wolves by kbois Complete Death in the Shadows by astone2292 Complete 📚 Top 10 Most Read Poetry in the last month are: tim's Bits and Pieces by Mikiesboy In Process Headstall's Reflections by Headstall Temporary Hold Occasional Poetry by Parker Owens Complete Timmy's Journal by Mikiesboy Complete Cozy Contemplations by Headstall Long-Term Hold Moggy's Mutterings by mogwhy Complete timmy's poetry by Mikiesboy Complete Disasters, Delights and Other Detours by Parker Owens Complete Path Forward by Jean87 Complete Musings of a Messed Up Mind by Mikiesboy Complete 👉 Read what caught the most attention — and if a story stays with you, consider leaving a review. Reviews help guide future readers and support our authors. Gay Authors is supported by Premium Members who value curated discovery and community insight. If this weekly list is useful to you, please consider supporting the site: https://gayauthors.org/subscriptions/ Thank you for being part of an informed, engaged reading community.

Targeting "Pay Expenses" Not "get rich". Way better to spread the cost out in small amounts across many then rely on smaller numbers of higher value. I mean, we'd be doing fairly well if every active member paid $2 per month.

That's sustaining Member tucked near bottom of Subscriptions. It turns off the Google Ads. Which are the annoying ones.

I will answer this slightly differently... I created Gay Authors because I got tired of hunting all over the place for good gay stories that had plot. Not that I didn't enjoy the Nifty Erotica Archives . Not long after I started Gay Authors, I created the forums so we had some place to chat about stories. For those of you that weren't around back in 2003, Yahoogroups and varius little forums were the places you could chat with others. Gay Authors put them together. We started off with custom websites for each author that were heavy to maintain. (We only have 2 of those lurking out there still... https://cjames.gayauthors.org and http://comicality.gayauthors.org ) Hosted Authors eventually morphed into Signature Authors. Around 2008, I think it was, we implemented eFiction as @Krista mentioned. it's a still a thing out there: https://efiction.org/ I really didn't like having to maintain so many different sites and efiction to, so in late 2010, we created the Story Archive as an App for the InvisionCommunity. And we've been running it ever since. The very large major changes to the system are lurking in the background. Hopefully we'll be entering into Alpha testing this week for the new V5 Stories app. Once that's working, we'll be able to jump to the 5.0.X version of the Forum software, which has major overhauls making it more visual and more mobile-friendly. Why do I stay? There has not been a single day that I haven't been on the site doing something since 2003. The amount of time I put in keeping things running and operating properly is more than I like to think about. I keep doing it though because people enjoy the site. And I still get some communication every so often thanking me because Gay Authors was there when someone was having a rough time in their life. That makes it worth it. How Long Can We Go? I don't know. The last 10 months or so have seen the biggest change to the Internet since social media went wild. And if you aren't in the space, you may not notice much yet. But lots of websites are going to start going dark. Google is killing the internet to try to save itself from AI. It's not going to go well. To simplify for those who just browse things... Websites used to create content that would attract Google Search Bots, and when people used Google to search for things, Google would send them to their website. Google sold ads both on its search results page and, usually, on the site it directed you to. But with AI search, the AI now provides the answer without needing to go to the site. A lot easier for people trying to find a quick answer, but it kills the source of information. Which is why you see news sites going under, merging, or going pay to use. Because our content is such that we aren't here to answer questions, but to provide reading material, our traffic has not been impacted as much, but we're still down. And ad revenue has dropped 70%. And to keep what we're getting, Google keeps making the ads more and more annoying, which annoys all of us. If we didn't have Premium Membership, Gay Authors would close. We are running in a critical state for Premium Membership as well. I've been holding off messaging this widely, until we complete our upgrades. We'll then focus on more recruiting. But if you enjoy Gay Authors and can afford to do so, Premium Membership and Sustaining Membership literally keep us open. https://gayauthors.org/subscriptions/