A beta reader is not quite an editor but someone who does read a manuscript before it's out to find errors. I found both of mine by their emails to me after books were out where they had caught the kinds of things that I missed. Some readers have that knack, and since they were especially kind to tell me privately, I decided to use beta readers this year. My first was for the second Oregon historical.
The fourth Oregon historical is set in the John Day country and involves some places I have loved being but never lived. I have though spend weeks in the region, slept there, walked the trails, and feel I know it as well as you can when you haven't lived somewhere. Anyone who reads my books knows that the setting, the place, nature, are very much integral to the stories. They are to my own life and of course, would be to anything I write.
Lots of work for you but so close to done! John Day is a great setting for a story. Our Dad took us through there on camping trips when we were kids. I'd imagine who had lived there in bygone days (especially about abandoned buildings) and wonder what had happened to them. Many stories out there. Looking forward to yours.
ReplyDelete