Neutral Milk Hotel is a band that Stephen listens to a lot. (It comes up often in taping reports; they play music to get the audience jazzed before the show and during commercial breaks, and Stephen has a tendency to sing along.)

I don't have time to be a full-fledged beta, and I can't promise illustrations. I am available as a sounding board, so if you have ideas that you'd like a third pair of eyes to look at, or questions like "do you think Jon would do such-and-such in this situation?", I can do that. You might also ask around at tdstcr_workshop, which is a good place for beta-finding.

It's very flattering that this story is making such an impression on you. Hang in there! It'll get easier!