Getting the Most from your Betas

I'm on a bit of a beta reader kick right now. Must be because my precious darling is in the hands of betas and so (unfortunately for you) this is all I can think about. I've decided to go with it and offer a little bit more advice on betas.

So now that you have the right readers for your story, it's important that you help guide them so you can get the right kind of feedback. While we'd all love to hear "It's perfect, don't change a thing" that is unlikely to be true or helpful.

Are you asking the right Beta questions?

I suggest giving your readers a list of questions to get the ball rolling. Below is the list I use. These questions are fairly general and are just a starting place to let your beta know the kind of feedback you are interested in.

1.      Did the beginning (first few paragraphs and pages) capture your interest and pull you into the story? If not, what was missing?

2.      Were you able to get into the story quickly?

3.      Were there any parts you wanted to stop reading or where you found yourself skimming or skipping over?

4.      Can you relate to the characters? Do their emotions and reactions feel real?

5.      Does the dialogue sound natural?

6.      Were you able to picture all the characters and scenes? Do any of them need more description? Do any of them have too much description?

7.      Were there any parts you found confusing?

8.      Are there any questions that aren’t answered by the end?

9.      Did the stakes/risks feel real?

10.  Was the ending satisfying?

11.  Was there any scene or character you just didn’t like?

I also use a cover letter for my questions. Some beta readers are going to be old hands or even writers themselves, so they know the drill. However, some of your readers might be unsure how this all works. I use the letter below to fill them in on the importance of their role.

Dear Reader,

            Thank you for agreeing to be a beta reader for my novel. I appreciate the time you are willing to give to read my book and provide feedback. This is an important step on the road to publication which makes you important to the success of my work. So thanks again.

            I have provided a short list of questions to get you started thinking about the book. Please read through them before you start reading so you can have them in the back of your head while you read. Feel free to provide additional comments on any other topic you feel is relevant. All of your feedback is valuable. Also, feel free to make comments directly on the manuscript.

            Please know that I do not consider this a finished work and I anticipate you will have lots of suggestions to make it better. I understand fully that my novel has flaws, and I am grateful that you are willing to help me find them. There is no comment or observation you can make that will hurt my feelings. I am genuinely looking for your honest feedback. If you hate it, I still want to know.

            Last, I ask only that you do not share this work with anyone unless you have first checked with me. It is my intent to publish this novel, and any public distribution of this work prior to that time could jeopardize my chances of publication. If you have a friend who you think would enjoy the book and could provide helpful feedback, I am open to additional readers. I only ask that you check with me first.

            So, again, thank you for your help. I look forward to getting your feedback and making a better novel.

The last full paragraph may seem like a bit of overkill, but since I use teen betas I thought this was important.

What questions do you ask your readers? Have you found a method for getting the best feedback? Share your tips below so we can all learn from our collective greatness!

3 Beta Readers you Must Have

There are tons of articles out there about the benefits of using Beta readers. This is another one. Honestly, I can't imagine sending my work to anyone in any kind of professional manner without letting a few good betas look at it first. So you know you need them, and I've mentioned previously how great they are. But now I want to talk about what to look for in a beta reader.



In general, you need to find someone who can communicate well and who isn't afraid to give you their honest opinion. You also want to find a beta who is willing to open up a conversation with you. I've found that sometimes a beta reader needs to be prompted into giving critical feedback. You should also look for someone who likes to read. That ones a bit of a deal breaker.

Those are general guidelines, but here are three specific folks you'll want to find right away when you start your beta reader search.

1. The Genre Fan
This beta reader is a huge fan of the genre you write (romance, YA, SciFi, etc.). They know all the latest trends and are familiar with the big names of your genre.

Why do you want them?
They've read so much fantasy they can spot a weak magic system from 50 yards away. They know all the overused euphemisms found in romance sex scenes. In short, they know what works and what doesn't when it comes to your genre.

What to watch out for?
This beta has read moreNora Roberts novels than Nora Roberts. As a genre lover, your beta is bound to have favorites and will find it hard to avoid comparing you to them. Watch out for comments that suggest your writing should sound more like (fill in the blank author).

2. The Genre Doubter
This person never reads your genre. They don't know the rules and have no idea what's the 'right' way to do it.

Why do you want them?
This beta doesn't know what a Horcrux is and doesn't want to know what BDSM stands for. This beta is unlikely to get caught up in the story when they read your work. Because of this they'll be able to focus more on the style of your writing. Plus, a positive comment from someone not in your target audience feels extra sweet.

What to watch out for?
This beta is not going to flip for your work so be prepared for a less glowing review than you'll probably get from your Genre fan. That doesn't mean their comments aren't valid. But as the author you need to remember you're starting at a disadvantage.

3. The Character Twin
Unless you wrote a book about a group of characters who are all exactly like you, you used a bit of creative license when you developed them. Now's the time to find someone who can relate to your characters on a closer level. Sometimes this will be obvious. YA writers should find a teen beta reader. But I don't know any wizards! you say. Look beyond the initial description of your characters to pinpoint your beta reader. What else is your wizard? A servant to the king, a mentor for the next generation. Did he go through a long apprenticeship? These are the folks you're looking for.

Why do you want them?
This should be a no-brainer. This is the beta who will tell you if your characters are realistic. Would a farmer really leave the ranch in the hands of his young son? If you aren't a farmer, the only way to know is to ask one.

What to watch out for?
It's important to remember that while this beta is representative of your character, they are not The representative. Their opinion is only their own and could be vastly different of someone else with the same background. Be cautious of taking their advice as the gospel.

In general, it's important to remember that all Beta readers are only individual people, with individual goals, opinions and backgrounds. They are there to help us make our work spectacular, not to re-write it for us. At the end of the day, your work is still your own and needs to be a reflection of you.

The downfall of Ctrl+F

Editing this novel has become a bit of a writerly journey for me. Since this is the first time I've considered something I wrote good enough to bother editing, each step has been a new journey. I've worked through lots of steps and re-written the first chapter dozens of times.

This week will be my last week of editing for this piece which is way ahead of schedule for my May 15th deadline to start querying. I've done all the structural changes that I think need to be made and now I'm just down to fixing words.



I recently wrote about the joys of Ctrl+F to seek and destroy words that bogged down my writing. However, I think I may have taken my joy too far. As I slash words with glee, I'm noticing a trend. Sure, my writing is getting tighter (read better) in a lot of places, but in some spots the change in wording is altering my voice.

Gasp in horror! The voice is often considered a crucially important consideration for a potential agent/editor. Dozens of agent wishlists specify things like 'an adult romance with a cynical voice' or 'a fantasy with a strong female driven voice'. Voice is something that is unique to each writer and can't be duplicated.

So if the changes I'm making distort my voice, is it ok to leave 163 instances of the word 'like' in my manuscript?

For now, I'm going to say 'yes'. I could be wrong and my betas might rip this thing to shreds. But right now, every word I change feels like I'm tearing the soul out of my story. Maybe this is what it feels like when a writer reaches the end of editing.

So that's it. No more. I offer up my work to the betas and then I'll make one more sweep to fix anything they find that needs fixing.

I guess it's time to get serious about that agent list cause this ship is about to sail.

Novel Super Glue

There are those that will tell you that the key to any great novel is a wonderful plot, others will preach character arcs, and still more will say its convincing prose.

I am here to tell you that none of those things are worth a can of beans without consistency!

I want to talk about two kinds of consistency because they are the offenders I am seeing most often in my reading these days. Let me preface this by saying, this is not rocket science.  A trustworthy beta reader can be a huge help in finding these lapses.

The first is detail consistency. Some of this seems pretty straight forward.  If your character goes to the gym on Tuesdays and Thursdays, then you can't give her a gym scene on Friday without explaining why she's there on her off day.  Makes sense right?

So why are so many authors leaving out the why?

Here's an example, in an unnamed book I am reading the opening scene is a doctor trying to stitch up a man's ankle in the emergency room.  This is made difficult because a storm has knocked out power and there are no lights (yes, I know there would be a back-up generator at a hospital, but apparently the author does not).  The author spends a lot (a lot) of time describing the difficulty of putting in these stitches using only the occasional lightning strike to see. We have a crystal clear picture. And then...

Another critical patient comes in and we see a whirl of activity while doctors and nurses hook up central lines, examine wounds, apply bandages and use the shock cart.  During this entire scene no one has any trouble seeing anything.

Now maybe this patient was taken to an area of the hospital where the lights were on. Or maybe they were having a hard time seeing.  The point is, I don't know, because the author didn't tell us.  All the sudden, this detail that was hammered in our head for fifteen pages is just gone.  The glue holding the scene together has dissolved.

The second area I want to touch on is character consistency.  This is a biggie for me.  Failure to keep your characters consistent is an epic fail. I'm not saying your character's can't grow, but I need to see that growth, not assume it.

Here's another nameless example to bring home the point.  Character A has been ordered by his boss to get a valuable object from character B.  Here's what we know about character A: he is shy, always follows the rules (due to his personality and his cultural upbringing), is excessively polite, does not have any home invasion skills (like lock picking) and, most importantly is afraid of character B. Character B is a highly armed, very skilled professional body guard. So what does character A do? Obviously, he breaks into character B's apartment and steals the object.  What? No, why would he do that? The character A we've come to know would simple ask character B for the object, using please as many times as possible.

In this case, the author made a character do something because the plot line called for it, not because it was a probable action for the character. This is a cardinal rule, character trumps plot every time. There are few rules in writing, but this is one of them. If your character is going to do something out of character there must be adequate motivation. 

Failure to be consistent in your writing is like taking the binding off a book.  Pages start falling apart and very shortly you'll find yourself with little more than a hot mess. Or a can of beans. Your choice.

A Letter to Betas

Dear Wonderful Beta Reader,


At some point in time, a manuscript was placed in your hands and you heard the begging words, "Can you please be a beta reader for my latest novel/short story/etc.?"  Being the wonderful person that you are, you agreed, even if you didn't know exactly what it meant to be a beta reader.


The author of the gem you now have in your possession probably said something like this:


"Just read it over and be completely honest.  Feel free to rip it to shreds if you hate it."


You should know that this is what all writers say.  It is the worst lie we tell ourselves and others. While we say we want you to let us have it with a red pen, what we really want is for you to finish the book and tell us it's a masterpiece.  We love to hear the words "Don't change a word.  I love it just the way you have it."


And because that is the deep, down desire for all of us, we will never question you if your feedback consists of gold stars and gushing admiration.  We will see this as validation of our genius.


So why am I telling you this?


Lately, I've been reading a lot of self-published work. Some of the authors are well known folks in the writing community on Twitter, FB, and others.  So, since these folks must know a thing or two about writing I have to assume they went through the normal editing process which usually includes beta readers. And this is where our problem starts.


I can't help but read some of these books and think to myself "where was this author's beta reader?"  As the writer we tend to be too close to our story to see some of its flaws.  That's why we need critique partners and beta readers to show us these things. Fluffy praise feels good, but it doesn't make our story any better.


So, dear fabulous, kind-hearted, brave beta reader, if something doesn't make sense, please tell us.  If all our detailed descriptions slow down the action, point it out.  And if a character is completely unlikeable, trust me, we need to know.


The truth is we may take your notes, fling them on the ground and storm around for the next few days in a fit of self-righteous rage.  But when the storm is passed, we will look at your notes, make changes and thank you for helping us write a better story.


**A note to authors** The above is a perfect example of why selecting friends and family members as your beta readers is a really bad idea.  Unless you have a second cousin who hates you for giving him bunny ears in last year's reunion photo, stay clear.  Strangers make good betas and there are plenty of websites out there where writers can trade projects with each other.