Unrelated To Movies: I Request Your Assistance!

To take a break from the recent onslaught of reviewing I've been doing, I'd like to ask all of you a favor (if you have the time).

I'm entering one of my novels into the Amazon.com breakthrough novel award contest that begins in February (the winner of which gets a $25,000 book deal with Penguin, Inc., and anybody who knows anything about the publication world knows how huge Penguin is). Anyway, the novel I chose is the best fitting for the contest; however, while it has one of my favorite stories/plots, I don't believe it's my strongest on a stylistic level. And I keep hearing that it's great, the style works for the type of story, etc., etc. (and this from people who wouldn't hesitate to tear it to shreds if it were bad). But like any writer, I'm hard on myself.

So that's why I come to you, the people who don't really know me on a personal level. I've posted up a preview/excerpt of the novel and would like your input. It's less than 5000 words, so it's not like it's an insane amount. It's just a prologue and the first chapter of the book (though you'll see it labeled as chapters one and two. This is because, for the contest, I had to re-title the prologue as chapter one). There are questions and a star-rating thing at the link with the excerpt, as well. If you don't find, for whatever reason, that you have enough space for all your comments, you can always comment here.

If you do this, please keep all comments constructive. You don't have to be all positive or anything about it... but just don't be like 'omg this is gay go die'. But if you don't like something, tell me what it is and why. If you do like it, then awesome. Anyway, besides all that, I suppose the last thing I have for you is the link.

Click Here.

And thanks again!