Dear Beta Readers and Critique Partners

Dear Beta Readers and Critique Partners,

Writers need constructive criticism to perfect their manuscripts, but just because “criticism” is in that phrase doesn’t mean you have the right to be nasty. “Constructive” is the keyword there. To be constructive is to be helpful and being rude is never helpful.

Etiquette for Beta Reading and Critiquing:

      -       Before you begin reading someone else’s work, keep an open mind from beginning to end. The story may start off boring but could become amazing.

      -       As you beta read or critique, it is perfectly fine to fix any errors you see with grammar or punctuation (with Track Changes). This is extremely helpful to the writer. Even switching some words around in sentences to help the flow is fine. Just restrain yourself from doing so much that you’re editing their work.

      -       If you find repetitiveness (repeated phrases or ideas) or redundancies (sentences that don’t need to be said), point them out to the writer and suggest cutting them.

     -       Don’t just shine a light on the bad, though. If you read a metaphor that tickles your fancy or a sentence that strikes you with awe, let them know. Did a part make you laugh-out-loud? Highlighting it and leaving a simple comment like “Hilarious!” can really lift a writer’s spirits.

What if you find big problems?

      -       Don’t leave a scathing remark about how awful a scene is or how dumb the characters are. Instead, say you didn’t really care for the highlighted scene then explain why. Perhaps the characters’ actions weren’t believable, the scene wasn’t realistic, or something confused you. Then offer a suggestion or two for how the scene could be fixed if the writer chooses to do so.

Many people create a separate document of notes about the story or paste their notes into an email when they return the manuscript. There is also a way to go about doing this.

      -       Highlight the things you loved about the story, even if there wasn’t much. Tell the writer which characters you loved and scenes you enjoyed. Is the writing vivid? Does the writer have a knack for action scenes? Let the writer know all of this to boost their confidence.

      -       After you talk about the good, mention the not-so-good…the things you feel could be worked on. Tell them which scenes or characters could use some help, and include a sentence or two for why you feel this way. If there are plot holes, point them out and offer a suggestion for how the writer could possibly fix it. Try to be helpful no matter what; that is your job.

      -       Whatever you do, DO NOT write huge paragraphs bashing their writing, characters, or scenes. This is bad taste. And it doesn’t help the writer at all.

Below are real beta reader comments and what should’ve been said instead.

Beta Reader Comment #1: Oh, there are one or two one-liners in her first person POV, but not even those mentally spoken words show any real emotion. So it all just comes across as an author trying so hard to make the heroine the star that she's willing to make the men look weak and incompetent.

What Should’ve Been Said: Work on adding more deep POV and emotion into your main character here. And try to divide some of the heroism among the other characters in this scene.

Beta Reader Comment #2: You also put a couple of scenes in this book that were either unbelievable or ***** acted so contrary to anything a normal person would do that I just couldn't buy into the fantasy. 

What Should’ve Been Said: I pointed out a few scenes that need some work. I think your character’s actions need to be more believable. What would you do if you were in his/her shoes?

Beta Reader Comment #3: Single lines of deep, 1st person POV monologues work very well when used sparingly, but in my opinion, you've over used them in this manuscript and at times, it comes across as a short cut so you can avoid writing something more personal and descriptive.

What Should’ve Been Said: I found spots that could use more emotion and physical

responses so readers can connect personally with your characters.

There comes a point when “constructive” criticism becomes bullying. So remember, it’s important to be considerate during every phase of critiquing. From the first correspondence to the last.

Author of Hurricane Crimes, Seismic Crimes, 30 Seconds, Ghost of Death, and Witch of Death. Blogger. Reader. Auntie. Vegetarian. Cat Lover.

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QUESTION: Have you had a beta reader/critique partner say something harsh about one of your books? All of those comments above are from one of mine...who also said she wouldn't care if my heroine died.

Dear Scared Writer

Dear Scared Writer,

This post stems off my last post: Dear Lazy Writer because while some may not do certain things after their book is published because it’s too much work, others may just be scared. If there are certain things about publishing that scare you, but you still want to publish your book then take a deep breath and read on.

Fear #1 - Beta Readers / Critique Partners

When you’ve edited your book as much as you can by yourself it is necessary to seek help by asking talented writers for their eye. Doing this can be so nerve-wracking (I know it is) but it is a MUST. I promise that you’ll learn a lot and your book will be all the better for it.

First, only approach writers you admire and know through blogging or other writing communities. After they agree to look at your book, send it to them with your expectations (What do you want them to do? Check for grammar, look for plot holes?). And there’s nothing wrong with letting them know how nervous you are. They’ll understand. Then keep busy with another WIP or hobby until you hear back.

Before you open their email, take a deep breath and try to slow your hammering heart. Read what they have to say while keeping in mind that it’s their opinion and the things they say are suggestions. Also scroll through the document to read any comments. Seeing all the red can be discouraging but once you buckle down and focus, you’ll see many of their suggestions make sense. When you finish revising, you’ll feel more confident in your story. You just have to get over that initial fear.

Fear #2 - Querying Agents

Many writers are afraid of submitting their book for consideration. If you let this fear consume you, you’ll never realize your dream of being a published author. Don’t let the fear of rejection stop you. We are all rejected. It’s true. JK Rowling and C.S. Lewis received many rejections before publishing their first book, but they didn’t give up. The same is true of every best-seller.

Take the time to perfect your manuscript and query letter, research agencies, find the appropriate agent for you and read their guidelines. When you submit, remember that you don’t know them and they don’t know you. As much as they're faceless, you’re faceless. Any rejection you get is NOT personal. They are only looking for the book that they can be invested in and love even after reading it a few times.

Your book could be great but not right for that specific agent. Keep looking, keep believing, and keep submitting! Chalk up each rejection as a badge of honor. Once you get enough, you’ll move from aspiring writer to agented writer.

Fear #3 - Reviews

Reviews of our books can make us bite our nails, especially if they’re one or two stars. The same faceless rule for agents applies for reviews, as does the opinion rule for beta readers. Whatever is said by a reviewer won’t be shared by everyone. What one reader hates another may love, and vice versa. That’s the beauty of individuality.

Don’t ever let a bad review bring you down. It can be painful but it’s also selective. Read a good review you got for the same title. Better yet, hop on over to one of your favorite books by another author and read their worst reviews. See? Every author gets them.

CONQUER YOUR FEAR!

QUESTION: What about writing and publishing scares you?

Author of Hurricane Crimes, 30 Seconds, Ghost of Death, and Witch of Death. Blogger. Reader. Auntie. Vegetarian. Cat Lover.

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Beta Readers and How Does it all Pay off in the End?

I had two excellent comments the other day and they're sparking a full blog post.

The first was by Han Hills and he asked about tips on finding the right beta readers and the etiquette involved. He also wondered how to find those people with more expertise in structure and narrative flow and even those interested in non-fiction.

Oddly enough, the best place to find beta readers is online or in a writing group. I belong to a group of writers with over 20,000 members. The group is big and diverse. We come from all over the world. That gives a person looking for beta readers a huge pool to pull from. When someone asks for beta readers in the group, they give a synopsis of their book and asks if anyone would be interested in beta reading. Depending on the genre, the person could be swamped with responses. So right up front, be super honest about what your book is about. If it's a novel, then let them know and what genre it is. Some people won't touch certain genres and it's better to weed them out early. If it's non-fiction, definitely say that. I'm a person who cannot read non-fiction to save my life. I would never offer to beta read in that situation.

Several people say it's handy to have a form detailing what they expect from their beta readers. On that form, it could ask specific questions of things you're looking for. Things like structure and narrative flow. ;-) If you want someone to help you hunt for typos and grammar errors, then include those. If you just want to know if someone liked the story, then say that. Also, include if there's a deadline for when you need the feedback. Hopefully, if someone knows they can't meet the deadline, they'll back out then instead of leave you hanging. Another thing is, the more the merrier. Always expect some people to flake out. As you go through the final responses, you'll start building up your own directory of people to ask for help again in the future. You'll also know who to avoid.

Patsy hopes I'm right that all of the steps I outlined previously will pay off in the long run.

I can actually tell you a story about this, Patsy. Back in January, a young man in the group I'm in came in and asked us what we thought of his new cover. I'd never noticed him before. I never saw his book go through on promo days, but I was immediately drawn to the cover art. A lot of us asked him what the book was about and I went out and bought it. I saw the old cover and I can tell you, I would NOT have been interested based off that and his blurb.

In reading the book, I noticed a ton of errors. A lot of typos and odd uses of punctuation, but his 'rough draft' caught my attention and sparked my imagination. I will admit I gave it a rating it did not deserve. But I loved the story line so much, I was willing to overlook the errors. Most people aren't that lucky in hitting just the right tone with a story. And he has the reviews to prove that people were quite annoyed with the errors.

Since that time, I have followed that book through each of its versions. It went through a good editor and came back tighter and cleaner. It went through several beta reads and small things were caught and cleaned up. I was the proofreader on that book and helped with the final polish to get it as shiny as possible.

That book has jumped from barely being noticed to having over 100 reviews and is holding steady at a 4.8 rating on Amazon. It was also put into print at the beginning of this week. Until now, it had only lived as an e-book. The book was originally published 3 years ago. Since it underwent its transformation, it's climbing the ranks and starting to sell better. The reviews keep coming in. He is now preparing the second book in the series to come out early next year. Only this time, it's not being published until it has gone through the process.

And that book is Grave Beginnings by R.R. Virdi. We featured it on this blog twice... On accident. ;-) But I will admit it was fascinating to watch as it underwent its transformation and to see what each step of the process did for sales and reviews. If there is an audience for your book, then having it in the best shape possible is definitely the way to go. Don't jump the gun. You don't want to wait three years for your book to stumble its way to being "found" and recognized for the gem it should have been at the beginning.

4 Easy Tips to take Your Book from Mediocre to Stunning

I read an article this morning on how a mother goes about telling her 15-year-old daughter she couldn’t write. The premise of this article boiled down to, “You don’t!” Instead, you support her and encourage her to keep working on what she obviously loves. With practice, we all get better.

However, as a book reviewer, I don’t have that luxury. As I do not have a book out there for people to read, I don’t know what it’s like to take and hold my baby in my hands and ask a total stranger to read it and give me their opinion. But I DO remember what it was like to show total strangers my writing for the first time. Let’s just say I was terrified.

Now, I’m the total stranger. Authors come to me asking me for my opinion on their work. I promise to tell people my honest opinion on their work and I contact each and every one of them when I’m done. Nothing is more painful for me than to go back to an author and tell them their work needed well… more work. It is my least favorite part of my job. I much prefer to go yelling from the rooftops that the book I just read was terrific and everyone should read it. 

We have now entered November. During this month, probably more books are created than at any other time of the year. If I had been able to keep up with my reading list, I have no doubt I’d have people climbing all over me in December asking me to read their book. Those weird little novellas penned during what is known as NaNoWriMo. I’ll admit I’m glad at this point my doors are currently shut. Now I have an inkling of how publishers feel every time November rolls around. Do I hate NaNoWriMo? Absolutely not. As a matter of fact, I’m participating in it. But I know a few things from being a reviewer and I want to share them with you.

When you think you’re ready to self-publish, consider these 4 simple tips: 

1) Make your cover beautiful. In the world of self-publishing, the marketplace is flooded. We DO judge a book by its cover. There are many talented cover artists out there. Hire someone. If you’re not awesome at graphic design, please don’t try it yourself. It will show.

2) Make sure you EDIT the book when you are done. Nothing is more painful than reading a book that obviously would have benefited from such a service. Does it cost money? Yes. But without it, your book could potentially fail.

3) Get beta readers! These are marvelous friends who love to read and are willing to point out the problems to you. If you have a friend who has issues with punctuation and grammar and goes nuts correcting the errors, for goodness sakes, hang on to them! They’re worth their weight in gold.

4) Get your book proofread! I have returned a lot of books to authors over this minor detail. When I take stars away for every 10 typos in a book, and I end up with a negative number, I have to wonder if you even read your own book. You may very well need to bring in someone who has never seen your book before in order to catch as many as possible. There are professionals out there who do this, but sometimes there’s that good friend who will help.

These are simple steps that easily take a book from mediocre and can polish it to a high shine. A lot of writers are unwilling to go through this process because it takes time. You want to see your book OUT THERE! But trust me. Going through these four little steps pays off in the long run. With everyone doing their part, we can show the world that ‘self-publish’ is not a bad word. And then maybe my “I’m sorry” letters can be purely based on the fact the story line was not my cup of tea. I’d like that.