Y is for Yippee! and You

Second to last day of the A to Z Challenge, and I am almost all lettered out. And totally chuffed.

I decided to sign up for A to Z to challenge myself—no, to prove to myself, that I was better. Healed. Well enough to pick up the stiff, dry and cracked reins of my authorial dreams, get back in the saddle, and regain my balance, rebuild the strength and suppleness of mind and creativity atrophied after a couple of painful years, literally and figuratively. And Yippee! I am.

This is my twenty-fifth post for the month of April. Tomorrow will be the last post of this challenge, but not the last post of this blog. More importantly, I have proven to myself that I am able, I am capable, and I can find the time/space necessary to write, even if it's only a 500-word blog post. Now it's time to take off the kid-gloves and get busy polishing my MS for the editors that requested it.

I hope said editors forgive me delaying submission; I needed to ensure I was physically capable of managing time and writing requirements should I receive a positive response to my manuscript. No sense applying for a job I am physically incapable of performing, and these opportunities are too precious to squander (haste, often makes waste). So, it is with a light heart that I look forward to May, and another Yippee! when I have a shiny MS to submit. There is only one other stop my MS needs to make before it goes to the editors…you.

Yes. You, aka Beta Reader. Someone who loves to read, in particular romance, and is willing to read and offer constructive criticism, i.e. "Your heroine started out strong in the first chapter, but by chapter three she devolved in a sobbing patsy, see pg () and her reaction to []." Or, "I just can't buy into the hero. He's too nice/nasty/geeky/vague/cliché/standoffish. For example…" Or, "Your heroine's father has multiple personalities; he went by George in the second chapter, Gary in the eighth, and Rufus in the final chapter. ;)", or, "You seriously need to work on homonyms, she prayed for peace, not piece!" (Okay, maybe not _that_ critical. Writers are tender-hearted folks; a simple highlighting of misspelled or grammatically incorrect words will do. J).

So, if you're interested in reading the finished manuscript and providing feedback on the story, characters, spelling/grammar, etc., and can do so in a timely manner (two-to-three-week turn-a-round would be great), please email me (forgive the long form address (but not the spammers that make it necessary)):

debaanderson at gmail dot com

Thank you.

Deborah

The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheaply, we esteem too lightly; 'tis dearness only that gives everything its value. ~Thomas Paine