The Hot Mess of Beta Readers

Hey Boos,

Welcome back, have a seat, and relax.

You got coffee? Tea? Water? You good?

You wrote a book!

Congrats on this journey so far. A ton of people talk about how they always wanted to write a book (believe me, every time I reveal I’m a writer I hear about everyones writing passion but that they never have time to sit down and write anything), so pat yourself on the back and take a double shot of whatever liquor you have on hand.

Okay, now that you are mildly buzzed from excitement and booze ask yourself…is this the best version of this story that is inside of me? When I read it back (I promise you you’ll read your book a million times before you publish it. You’re gonna know that shit inside and out), are there things that I would change?

Does it make sense?

If you’ve done your best and there is absolutely nothing that you would change, then it’s time for Beta readers.

A beta reader is someone who reads your work before it’s published and gives a perspective from the view of an average reader.

Beta readers are amazing!

These are the people who tell you, “Miss ma’am, this does not make sense.”

The point is to get constructive feedback, maybe point things out that you didn’t notice because you read the damn thing a million times and your eyes skip over entire pieces of dialogue because you assume that part is fine…trust me, it happens.

Beta readers should make your books better.

The first and only time I’ve used beta readers was when I finished a second draft of LOVE ME AGAIN. Before I sent out the call on IG, I googled search beta readers. What was the protocol, did I just send them a copy of the book and hope for the best? I’m gonna tell you now, google is your friend. You use it to research the most ridiculous, scandalous things for your book, why not use it to research “normal” things?

What did my search bring up? First of all, EVERY ONE AND EVERY WEBSITE HAD A DIFFERENT ANSWER.

There is no protocol. People just be out here stumbling, throwing shit out into the world and trying to see what sticks.

So, I read a lot of resources and pick and chose what I thought would worked best.

  1. HAVE A QUESTIONNAIRE READY.

    Along with the book I sent a list of questions that I wanted them to consider in addition to whatever feedback that they had to offer. This cut down the feedback that I probably wouldn’t use.

    First, my questioning surrounded around the pace of the story: Where did they think the story pick up? Were there scenes that were unnecessary? Were there scenes that might be seen as problematic? Was the ending satisfying? What parts did they love? What took them by surprise in a good or bad way.

    Have a general idea of what you want to know and what they should be looking for. Obviously you can add or subtract whatever questions you want…it’s your questionnaire, I’m just here to set you in the right direction.

    Here’s the link to my quesitonnaire BETA READER QUESTIONNAIRE

  2. BEWARE OF THE BULLSHIT READERS

    Let’s be honest, there are going to be beta readers who agree to read your book just to tell you it’s trash.

    It’s happened to me.

    My immediate reaction was to break the third wall and talk to the agent who’s in charge of my google searches and get them to join forces with me to make that readers life miserable. Then I realized that, even if I had that power, it was just chaos waiting to happen.

    But, after my initial shock, I read the rest of the review and immediately knew that this reader would give THE GIVING TREE a bad review. Out of the two pages of feedback, I literally took out the one thing they offered that was constructive.

    Would I offer this reader another chance to read my other work? Maybe? Honestly, I’m not even sure. Maybe they didn’t connect with this work and they’ll connect with the next one…who’s to say?

  3. DON’T LET THE SHITTY READERS GET TO YOU

    As creatives, we want the world to love our creations and connect with them and we want to be the best thing that they’ve ever read.

    So, when we get those sour patches, wallow for a second but move on. How were the other reviews? Did they love it? Did they give constructive feedback?

    It’s easier to say move on but you have to…you got a masterpiece to edit!

  4. DON’T USE YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS

    This should have been number one.

    Unless your family and friends are genuine fans and readers and will give you honest feedback that will elevate your work…then go a head and use them.

    But I’ve noticed that most family and friends do not want to to be the bad guy and tell you negative things. Your mom is most likely going to say, “This was amazing!” just like she said about your kindergarten art projects that she hung on the fridge for two weeks and then threw away when you weren’t looking.

    How did I find beta readers? I used my socials; IG, facebook and twitter.

    I sent out a blast on my stories and all the walls. I had a brief description of the book with it’s genre and what I expected.

    Only five people answered my call but that’s fine, as your career advances the more people will jump to read your work.

  5. Last but not least…DO NOT INCORPORATE EVERY PIECE OF FEEDBACK

    You’re gonna get feedback to last a lifetime for this one book. People have a lot to say when it’s someone else’s work. It’s your book! YOU need to comb through and figure out what will work for your story.

    If you try to incorporate everything to make everyone happy, I promise you, that’s not going to happen. There are going to be people who still have problems with it. You can’t make everyone happy.

    And in some instances, it’ll take away from the brilliant story you had originally.

    You are the writer, the creator of this story and you know what will work and what won’t.

Okay, Boos, I think we covered the basics for now. If you have anything to add about Alpha or Beta readers (Alpha is the first person to read your draft), leave it in the comments. Again, we are all learning and any information will be valuable to me and the next person.

Also, I am not an expert but I have experienced a thing or two that I thought would be helpful.

Love Always,

J.L.

*Please, if you like any of the blogs or flash fiction, don’t be afraid to share it! I promise you, I’ll love it and thrive off of the love…I’m a Leo!