So Book 2 is done, and has been handed off for its final read! Yay!

My beloved, dedicated, wonderful critique partner Patti is reading it. … Or re-reading it, as the case may be. She already read it once, but she offered to read it for a second time, bless her britches, to see the changes I made that Harlequin suggested. That makes her especially amazing, because that takes a lot of patience, and she’s just the best. … Go Patti!

I also have my first beta reader, Brianna, reading it. What’s a beta reader? It’s a term stolen from fan fiction, actually, (and the tech industry), but novelists are using it now to mean someone who reads your novel before you try to publish. While a critique partner is usually a fellow writer (and someone who will read your manuscript with the eye of a novelist, looking at all the “parts under the hood”), a beta reader is usually not a writer (and therefore will read your manuscript with the eye of a reader, looking at the “car as a whole”).

In fact, I think I could use another beta reader or two. … I’ve had Harlequin critique the manuscript through its critique service (which was an excellent service, by the way), but I made enough changes after that that I feel like I should have a couple more sets of eyes on it, to make sure I didn’t accidentally introduce any huge holes or errors.

If you are a regular romance reader, and you’re interested in reading through a contemporary romance of 100,000 words (that would be close to a 400-page book), and you really like romance characters and enjoy talking about why you like or dislike them, let me know! I’d love the help! : )