MK Harkins- Author spotlight

1.) Biography - hmmm - how to wrap this up in a few sentences.  I was born and still live in the Seattle area. I love the rain (those two facts need to be together in order to live without wanting to throw oneself off the closest bridge)
2.)  Five facts:  I don't wear shoes from May to October (scandals) I like my toes to roam free.  No one knows that I write - not even my best friend (yet). I own a large Montessori preschool.  I have only one hobby- reading.  I've been known to read 8 hours per day.  Once I get into a story, I'm like a dog with a bone - you can't rip it away from me.
3.)Interests: travel.  I love to meet people from other cultures. 
4.)Books - I love anything romantic.  It can include steamy scenes, but sometimes I get tired of it.  I just want a good story.
5.) This is the hardest one!  I would have to say that I would choose not to write with another author.  There are many that I respect, but once I get into the "mode" I might smack someone if they interrupt.  That wouldn't be good :)

Intentional is my debut book.  As I mentioned, it hasn't been out of my hands yet.  I did have two editorial evaluations and a copyedit done (I know the grammar police are out there!)

I have attached some comments from the copyeditor:

Overview

Thank you for the opportunity to work on this compelling manuscript. Intentional is both a heart-wrenching love story and a revenge mystery—an intriguing balance of narrative elements that keeps the reader in suspense throughout the book. I focused my comprehensive copyedit on resolving basic punctuation and grammatical errors (detailed in the Grammar section below), as I found the foundational components of the book to be solid and logical, requiring very little revision.

 

Structure/Plot Flow

The book’s structure is carefully conceived and straightforward, albeit sophisticated, as it involves numerous time changes and POV changes. The header for each chapter and the section heads within chapters are very helpful as signposts for the reader. I have no additional recommendations for structural improvements.

 

Characterization

The character development is also consistent and engaging; each character follows a clear arc that is resolved by the end of the book. I have no further recommendations in this area.

 

Tone and Style

Your writing style is consistently straightforward, featuring short sentences and brief descriptions, and your tone is relatively casual, even conversational. This approach makes for a smooth, pleasant reading experience and facilitates the reader’s sense of your characters’ emotional accessibility. While I do not recommend any overarching stylistic revisions, you will find a number of queries in the manuscript that call your attention to repetitive wording that may seem a bit awkward to the reader, and that I believe can be easily revised while preserving your intended meaning.  

 

Dialogue

The dialogue is one of this book’s strong points—it flows naturally, better acquaints the reader with all of the characters, and is well placed in every chapter. The only recurrent dialogue issue that arises is punctuation related.

 

Point of View

Although you have opted for a complex approach to point of view, changing POV frequently from chapter to chapter to reflect different characters’ perspective, you tackle this challenge superbly throughout the manuscript. I have no recommendations for further improving the narrative’s point of view.

 

Grammar

The grammar and punctuation issues I identified and corrected in the manuscript are resolved.

 

 

Formatting

The formatting of the manuscript is well organized and consistent overall. The one recurrent formatting issue that I identified and resolved throughout the text.

 

I hope these edits and comments are valuable in helping the manuscript achieve your publishing goals. Good luck in your revision, and I wish you all the best for this manuscript and future books.