Sandra

Will see what I can do between now and the deadline, Libby 😊✨

I write like Margaret Atwood apparently 😄

This is a really great thread! The checklist and things-to-consider offered up so far are treasure. I’ve only beta read twice, and the fact that the writers are gorgeous at their writing probably made it easy for me to gush feedback and even get critical (mostly just asking questions for my own clarity, and hopefully theirs as well) without…[Read more]

I’ve found beta reading an excellent way to learn. I think it’s easier to see crafting mistakes in others work, and then I try to carry that knowledge across to my own writing. Easier said than done.

I always jot margin notes as I read to record my initial reactions. It’s harder on a reread to see the parts that jolt me, and you only get one…[Read more]

Libby and Jane have come up with some excellent questions and I can’t add much except for:

Does the writer have any specific questions? This might be something that’s crucial to whether the story works or not, e.g. Did you work out whodunit? If so, when?

Did you notice any discrepancies / inconsistencies in the story?

Were you conscious of…[Read more]

Why do you say you’re a terrible beta reader?

It’s a bit like when I had to read books for exams at school. It was no reflection on the work itself and I’ve read many of the books since with great pleasure. Something about picking up a book for a purpose (a meta-purpose if you like) that isn’t simply pleasure, idle curiosity, whatever, and my…[Read more]

Wow. So so much interesting and useful stuff, @Libby ! It would make a brilliant checklist for anyone. It will take me a bit of time to assimilate it all. I will say though, with my ‘Being betaread’ hat on, that I wouldn’t expect a beta reader of a whole novel to cover all that for me in one go if anyone is feeling a bit daunted.

@athelstone Why…[Read more]

Thanks for the topic. May I add that I’m a terrible beta reader. I would like to be more useful and hope to pick up some tips if this discussion develops and hopefully turns into something more.

James Joyce!

I’ll try with a more lyrical section… watch this space.

Ha ha! I write like Stephen King! I think Libby is right though and the program looks at content mostly as this was a particularly horror full section!

I am all for the idle chatter and discussions on beta reading as well. I think that is another wonderful pro of what we have here, along with the comps. The ability to get quality critique on the works we want and hope to publish. It’s like the second, necessary step on the road to being a writer. You do the work and write the thing, and then you…[Read more]

Hi – that was a reply to Sandra, just for avoidance of confusion. Yes, there are several very appealing forums available, including Discourse (and I must say as a longtime repairer, I like your forum and the topic). That said, with Discourse, we would need a VPS or similar non-shared server arrangement*, unlike a traditional web-host, so the…[Read more]

Also – apologies of lack of participation. The Covid situation has totally mucked up my mojo. I’ve not written a word, stopped playing my (relatively new) sax, hardly even read a thing blah blah blah. It is what it is. I have developed an obsession with weightlifting, so haven’t been entirely idle! But I’m starting to feel the odd twinges of…[Read more]

I’ve long thought that people would bite your arm off for a decent beta reading service.

I flung out an idea on Jericho Townhouse ages ago along the lines of: author pays £X to Jericho who assigns the MS to a selected beta reader from their pool. There is a standard rubric the beta reader must follow (timescale, topics covered, length of…[Read more]