Spotlight & $50 GC Giveaway: Grayality by Carey P W

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

 

Description of Grayality

 

Pate Boone, a twenty-six-year-old transgender man, embarks on a new adventure when his childhood best friend, and yes, ex-lover, Oakley Ogden, convinces him to escape their hometown in hopes for something new.

 

They land in Cloverleaf, a tiny rural town in Montana, so that Oakley can care for his granny who is battling breast cancer. She pressures the two young men to enroll in a nearby college. Pate immediately becomes enthralled with Maybelle, a young, vivacious freshman to whom he fears revealing his transgender identity. Still, he finds it impossible to resist Maybelle, even after he meets her ex, Bullet, a large, violent man determined to keep Pate away from “his girl.”

 

But there are others who accept Pate immediately, like Stormy. An outdoorsy, rugged freshman, Stormy warns Pate away from Maybelle and Bullet, but Pate’s too infatuated to heed these warnings.

 

Oakley tries to support his friend’s new love but finds himself entangled in his own emotional calamity when he unintentionally falls for Jody, a gay and ostentatiously confident drag queen. This new relationship awakens deep internal conflicts in Oakley as he struggles to accept his bisexuality, lashing out at Pate and causing friction between him and Jody.

 

Oakley must decide if he can overcome his insecurities so he doesn’t lose the love of his life. And Pate must discover if the love between him and Maybelle is strong enough for her to accept him as a transgender man, or if she will break his heart.

 

Read an Excerpt of Grayality

 

“Do you not realize that all these things you do hurt me?” he asked.

 

“I apologized for that. I thought we were over that,” I pleaded.

 

“Then you call me your boyfriend, but you don’t tell your parents,” he continued. “And you know that people around here already know about us, yet you won’t hold my hand at lunch. Not to mention that you still won’t touch me.”

 

I looked down in shame. “I told you it’s hard for me.”

 

“So when does it get hard for me, Oakley? How long am I supposed to date someone who seems repulsed by me?”

 

I shook my head. “I don’t know what to say. You know I’m straight.”

 

Jody wiped some tears from his eyes. “Maybe that’s the problem. I shouldn’t be wasting my time on a straight guy, or at least a guy who keeps insisting that he is straight. I told you upfront that we could be friends and that if you wanted to pursue this, then you needed to be ready to actually do it.”

 

“Are you breaking up with me?” I asked desperately. Jody finally made eye contact.

 

“No, not yet anyway. But I’m not waiting for you, Oakley. You need to figure this out because my heart isn’t a tool for you to figure out your sexual orientation.”

 

“I promise. I’ll try harder. Don’t give up on us yet.” I grabbed his hands.

 

Jody smiled and went to touch my cheek with his hand, but I pulled away. He shook his head in disappointment.

 

Interview with Author Carey PW

 

If you could have one paranormal ability, what would it be?

I guess I would choose psychokinesis. I am okay with moving objects, but knowing things or predicting events sounds more stressful than I would want to deal with. I could have some fun playing with my cats with psychokinesis. If I really had a choice of a power, I would be able to read really fast like Number Five in Short Circuit because I never have the time to read as much as I want.

 

What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to learn about you?

The only thing that comes to mind is that I am OCD. People who are around me pick up on some of it, but hardly anyone knows how bad it can get sometimes. However, I would say that I am highly functional.

 

When writing descriptions of your hero/ine, what feature do you start with?

I usually go with the hair. I love black or red hair, even though I also have characters with brown or blonde hair. I also describe if the hair is long or curly. Hairstyles matter a lot to me. The weirder or more noticeable, the better.

 

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

I have a general plot when I go into a book, but I don’t work out all the details. My entire ending changed with Grayality as I was writing it. I guess I would consider myself more of a pantser. Once I create my characters, I like to leave things loose in terms of where it will go.

 

Did you learn anything  from writing this book? If so, what?

Not so much writing it, but when I was working on my edits, I realized how much I have grown since writing the initial draft. I was very much like Pate when I wrote it, insecure and anxious. Now, I am way more confident in myself again. If I hadn’t written the book, I don’t think this growth would have been as noticeable.

 

 

About Author Carey PW

 

Carey PW (he/they) is a debut author, college instructor, and mental health counselor. Carey is currently completing his next manuscript, Acing the Game.

 

Carey lives in Montana, and identifies as nonbinary, transmasculine (AFAB) and panromantic asexual. Due to the lack of resources in rural communities, Carey has discovered that writing about his lived experiences is a therapeutic outlet for him and hopes that his readers relate to his own personal struggles and triumphs shared through his characters’ narratives. Carey is particularly interested in exploring relationship conflicts around sexuality and gender differences. He has also worked as a high school writing instructor and college writing instructor, earning a B.A. in English Literature, a M.Ed. in English Education, and Ph.D. in Social Foundations of Education all from the University of Georgia. In 2020, Carey earned his second M.Ed. in Counselor Education and works as a licensed clinical professional counselor, LCPC. He has a strong passion for working with the unique mental health issues of the LGBTQIA+ community.

 

Readers can learn more about Carey from his blog, www.careypw.com. When he is not writing, Carey is busy training for marathons, parenting his six cats, sharing his culinary talents on social media, serving on the board for the nonprofit Center for Studies of the Person (CSP) and learning photography.

 

 

Carey PW loves to hear from readers. You can find his contact information, website and author biography at http://www.pride-publishing.com.

 

Other links:

 

Author Blog: www.careypw.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/careypatrickwertz/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CareyPW2

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kerri.p.singer/

 

One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

 

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