Escape Artists
The Lounge at the End of the Universe => The Writing Forum => Topic started by: Leon Kensington on October 05, 2007, 04:44:09 AM
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Hi Everyone:
If anyone needs a beta reader I'm always willing. Just give me a PM and I'll get in contact with you.
--Leon
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Hi Everyone:
If anyone needs a beta reader I'm always willing. Just give me a PM and I'll get in contact with you.
--Leon
I don't mean this in a mean, sarcastic, or snarky way at all: what are your qualifications?
(My beta reader dropped out.)
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None really. I catch alot of typos in books and stuff (NEVER tell a teacher her textbook misspelled monarchy) and I'm in school to be a journalist. But, other than those not much.
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I would be willing to help someone out if they need a reader
I am a 19 y/o College student
my qualifications are I love to read
and I was reading at post college level by the time I was in 4th or 5th grade if memory serves
the one down side is that I dont have time for imediate turn around so it would be a few days as school is more of a priority for me than reading ( I have not been able to read much of anything this semester b/c I dont have anything at the times I have time to read but ya )
anyhow let me know if you need help and I can be of assistance
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This sounds interesting but could someone please explain what exactly a beta reader is? Like some who just looks for errors, an editor basically?
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As I understand it, a "beta reader" is someone who edits for things like continuity, voice, plot and pacing rather than a proofreader who edits for spelling and grammar.
Generally speaking, a writer likes to find a beta reader who is attentive, frank, and knowledgeable about the issues listed above.
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Nobilis pretty much hit it, although if a beta-reader finds some copy-edit errors, that's nice, too. Also, usually when I send something out to my beta-readers, they're part of the target audience. In other words, they tend to be part of the people I'm writing for, and they can tell me if the story was entertaining, etc., and if not, when and where it fell apart.
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Sent you a PM lord kensington!
For everyone else, is it acceptable to post portions of works in progress in this forum?
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Sent you a PM lord kensington!
For everyone else, is it acceptable to post portions of works in progress in this forum?
Go to the "Progress Reports" child board and start a thread titled "Whiskey and Nutmeg's writing adventures" or something like that. Post whatever you want as long as it's appropriate.
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is it acceptable to post portions of works in progress in this forum?
Bear in mind that posting in a google searchable forum will count to many markets as publication, and so it's probably advisable to keep excerpts short.
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is it acceptable to post portions of works in progress in this forum?
Bear in mind that posting in a google searchable forum will count to many markets as publication, and so it's probably advisable to keep excerpts short.
(Mods: this may need to be split.)
This really upsets me a lot. Back in the day (which is to say, 2005), I used to post my stories on my own website, not for profit, just so people could read them. Now I can't do that. I've since recruited beta readers -- they just finished with my underwater story, and they gave me exactly what Nobilis mentioned earlier -- and I think they're very good at helping me iron out tough points in my stories. (one of them gave me a three-page review on my pillow story, and that one needs a major rewrite now because she hit so many awesome points)
But having public betas is, IMO, unbeatable. I am a member of a fan fiction website/community (don't laugh...) and I post some of my original erotica there, including "Shell Game". I would love to take 10 of the 20 or so people who read and comment on my erotica and give them free reign to talk about my other work without having to start an email list or other community, but now I can't.
It's just frustrating, I guess.
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Livejournal friends lists -- password protected, safe, good for gathering beta readers and for the fan fic community, I'm told.
(By the by, the criteria isn't actually "google searchable" -- it's just whether or not the forum is public. When you were posting your work on your website in 2005, that still counted as publication in a public forum. I think there's just more awareness of the rules now.)
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Also, last March, there was discussion of a password protected writer's forum being added to this website so that people could share work for feedback. I support that idea. I'll poke Steve sometime to ask if he's thought about it recently.