Marvin gets edited

Well, my-oh-my, how the time does slip away. But, rest assured, I've been editing away on Marvin and the gang. The writer's group has been through almost 200 of the 330+ pages and they're finding all sorts of things that need to be fixed; holes that need to be filled.

Which is probably why the manuscript didn't advance into Round 4. Lesson learned: Do not enter a novel competition with a third or fourth draft. It needs to be edited until you're sick of looking at it and then edited some more. And, should it actually get chosen or picked up by an agent or publishing house, expect to do another couple of rounds.

I've also had a couple people do a beta read on the entire manuscript. One has finished and sent me some very useful information; the other hasn't finished yet, but promises to do so before heading out on a 3-week cruise to the Netherlands. The only difficulty with my two readers - who are extremely good at content editing, by the way, - is they are both female. I know some of this book may escape them and they've given me help in beefing up the appeal for women. And though Marvin is definitely an escapade and adventure from a man's perspective (that may explain why my pitch labels it as a 'bromantic comedy') I still want women to read it and enjoy it. But, still, I sure could use some male input.

It crossed my mind that some folks did not get the chance to read the excerpt on Amazon before it disappeared. Or, if they beat the deadline, they didn't have a Kindle and weren't able to read it.

So... I'm going to post those chapters here. Let me hear your thoughts by leaving a comment. Is it funny? Did it grab and hold your attention? Did it leave you wanting to follow the adventure?