The #GrownAssMan Tour: Celebrating Real Men

Tired of angsty, premature boys? Want a real MAN? Become a fan of a grown-ass man, and join us for the tour!

Visit the Omnific Publishing blog to enter the grand giveaway HERE. You can win a $50 gift card plus a great ebook collection! You can also enter my giveaway at the end of the post.

These Omnific authors, led by Nicki Elson, love grown up men.

Amber Belldene, author of the Blood Vine Series

Autumn Markus, author of The Art of Appreciation

Feather Stone, author of The Guardian's Wildchild

Jennifer Lane, author of the CONduct Series

Julianna Keyes, author of Just Once

Nicki Elson, author of Divine Temptation 

Rachel Brimble, author of 16 Marsden Place

Check out their posts extolling the virtues of the scrumptious adult men they love to write, and you can download their grown up adventures for only $.99 - $2.99.

My grown-ass man is Grant Madsen from The Conduct Series (With Good Behavior only $.99, Bad Behavior, and On Best Behavior). He's a thirty-year-old ex Navy lieutenant whose Mafia family forced him to commit a crime, landing him in prison for two years. You'd think his family would cut him a break after that misfortune, but once Grant is on parole, they continue pursuing him. Good thing he meets gorgeous fellow parolee Sophie Taylor. She gives Grant a reason to keep fighting.

Grant Madsen

Grant is a beta hero. Packed inside his tall, lean body is a nature that's thoughtful, gentle, and kind. He doesn't try to dominate women, but knows how to respect and honor them. He struggles with self doubt as a result of physical abuse by his father. But don't threaten Grant or his love Sophie. He will come at you with everything he's got.

Grant's expressive character leads me to honor the vulnerability of men in my post:

Grown-Ass Men Have Feelings Too

Feelings, whoa-oh-oh feelings…

How do you feel when you see a man cry? Some people feel uncomfortable, and perhaps judge him as weak. "What a wuss!" some might say. "He's not following the stoic man code."

I have a different reaction to men crying: I applaud them for bravely facing their emotions. You see, we all experience feelings (even men!) -- we just vary in how we express them. We socialize boys not to cry or show any vulnerability, and they learn quickly how to "be a man". 

But as a therapist, I've witnessed quite a few boys and men cry as they heal from emotional pain. Experiencing these feelings doesn't kill them or weaken them. Instead, men seem to grow stronger from the freedom to explore the gamut of feelings inside of them. Emotion precedes change, and crying can be a wonderful relief for both genders.

In his book Real Boys, author William Pollack outlines the narrow range of qualities we accept in the male gender: tough, stoic, unemotional, athletic, strong. 

But what about the boys who don't like to play sports? What about the ones who show tenderness and caring? They get called cruel names, and try to stuff down their true natures to fit in.

When boys become men, they feel ill-equipped to manage relationships. If their partners ask how they're feeling, they may have no idea. They want to run the hell out of there.

My inspiration for Grant Madsen was actor Wentworth Miller, who portrays convincing emotion in his characters, possibly related to his own pain from trying to fit in as a gay man in a straight world. I find him damn sexy when he cries!

How do you feel about men crying? What are your thoughts about men expressing feelings?

Leave a comment with your email address, and you can enter my giveaway for a $10 Amazon gift card and The Conduct Series bookmarks.