I'm putting the call out here for a little bit of help. If you're interested...great. If you're not...that's fine too.

This is for a vampire novel that I'm going to be submitting to a publisher in the very near future. It's still not complete, but it's getting there rather quickly. Better to be ahead of the game and get this part out of the way. When will all of this start? Not for another 2 or 3 weeks.

Beta Readers...

Now, before everyone emails me and says, "I want to beta read/edit...", I do have some requirements. One, is that you agree not to discuss any part of the story with anyone other than me. No posting of excerpts or little details on any sites -- yours or anyone else's. Two, is that you can't bug me and ask me when new chapters will be sent out. :-)

1) You absolutely must comment with something other than, "this was good" or "I liked it". What I want is your honest opinion and if something doesn't make sense or is contradicted from one chapter to another, I need to know. Plot holes? You bet I need to know about that one...although this one should be simple and pretty straight forward. You cannot be afraid to speak up and tell me what you think. If you don't like something...please let me know why.

2) This book does have sex, so if that bothers you in any way....maybe reading isn't for you.

3) If you can't handle blood...then again, reading is probably not for you.

4) I'm only taking a limited number of readers, so when I say that I'm full up on readers, that's it. If you sign on to read and real life and other commitments get in the way, preventing you from doing so -- Please, just let me know.

As for Editors...

I'm looking for one, maybe two Editors. Two, because sometimes one will catch what another might miss. It's essential that you have a strong background in English and that you have a very firm knowledge in sentence structure, punctuation, grammar, etc. I'll send anyone who is interested the first chapter of the story for edits. The changes made will depend on who gets to stick around.

I use the WORD commenting/track changes system for editing. It would prefer that you are familiar with the system and that you aren't afraid to use it :-)

The things that need the most attention:

1) Grammar

2) Punctuation

3) Word Usage

4) Active vs. Passive voice

5) Continuity

Damn, reading that makes me sound like a harsh, demanding bitch. I'm not. I'm just trying to be picky enough NOW, so there are no surprises later if/when I need to ask questions or for advice.

If you've gotten this far and are still interested and/or have questions, just email me directly at vampire@jourdanlane.com.

Thanks in advance!