I found printed out chapters in all in disarray on my desk. Apparently my daughter has been into them. I need to make sure that chapters 31 and 38 aren't anywhere to be found.

Aside from some minor corrects, it looks like I've gotten through 54. Things have changed a lot from the rough draft, especially with me not worrying as much about the word count aspect. OTOH, this means I'm not quite as close to the end as I thought.

I changed the ending of 54 because of listening to an audiobook on the way home. Things were going well for Lyra and I expected them to continue going well and then bad stuff happens (though I actually think the bad stuff scene was unnecessary). Well, I realized that I was going to build up to a character making a decision that will a major bearing on what happens to the main character. The decision was going to be good for the MC and likely expected. I changed the decision to bad and hopefully unexpected. I'm much happier with the chapter now.

I'm done with 54, now I've got to fix things up again, but I have a plan.

Hey Liese,

You mentioned being willing to beta read the book as a whole. I have what is now Book One pretty much done for this revision. Would you still be willing to do that? Reading as a whole at this revision could be helpful because I want the next revision to be last one where I'm making plot changes.

I sent the proposal for the second Gothic Charm School book to my agent yesterday. I am now trying not to shake the laptop like an Etch-O-Sketch in the hopes that it would make a reply appear.

You need to shake it more like a magic 8-ball.

Good luck!

YUP! I have data limitations, so it`d be best if I could get the file after the 23rd, but I`d be happy to.

Thanks!

I'll make sure to zip it up before I send.

I working slowly on 55. Taxes got in the way this weekend, but at least they are all done.

I got a chapter back from Beta Exchange person two. One of the comments is that it all (the manuscript) reads more like an outline than a draft. I'm a bit like, it's not good enough even to be a draft? Maybe it just means there are too many places where scenes could replace narrative, that doesn't seem unusual for a draft.

I just got an e-mail asking for my opinion on a query. I'd like to help, but I'm not to the point where I've even researched how to write one. I think I'll just have to say, sorry, but I can't give you anything useful.