Jennifer
Miriam says: So I understand beta reader to either be 1. A reader who is specifically looking for errors and inconsistencies -- in grammar, in characterization, in plotting -- like a copy editor or 2. Simply an early reader. Depending on how you’re looking to use a beta reader, I have two different answers.
In terms of needing an early copy editor, I’d say that depends on what sort of early writer you are. My first (and second and third) drafts used to be fraught with errors. I was sloppy and there were lots of rules I got wrong. I made it to grad school without knowing how to properly punctuate dialogue, which caused near-apoplectic fits in my faculty advisor. Add to that, I was terrible at proofreading. So I enlisted one of my exacting classmates as a beta reader. She proofread my work before I handed it in, which saved my skin more than once. I’ve since figured out strategies to better edit my drafts, but at the time, this sort of beta reader was essential. So, my answer: maybe, but not definitely.
If you’re asking if you need early readers, my answer is unequivocally yes. Yes, YES, hell yes! I think there’s nothing more important to the revision process than thoughtful, honest, uncompromising reader feedback. Early readers help me figure out if the story I ended up telling is even roughly the story I intended to tell. For years, I submitted my work to weekly critique groups. At the time, I needed the deadlines and the continual feedback. But at this point in my career, weekly feedback is overkill. I still, though, give completed book drafts to readers. I couldn’t move onto the next drafts without their insights. Or I could move on, but I’d be doing a lot more guesswork and thrashing around in the dark, figuring out what sort of revision I need.
I challenge anyone out there to find me a great book that didn’t have early readers. No, really. I challenge you. Find such a book and leave a note about it in the Comments section. If you find a great book that was written solely by the author without the aid of any early readers, I’ll send you an autographed copy of The Local News with a humbled, crow-eating inscription.
Randy adds: I don’t think there is anything I’ve written that hasn’t benefited from another pair of eyes, whether it be for copy-editing, line-editing, or offering structural and plot thoughts. We all tend to fall in love a bit too much with our own words and need the cold shower of other’s opinions. Like Miriam, for years I had weekly writer group meetings which offered an education in writing and revision.
As for where to find an early reader . . . there are a number of places to start. One can seek out a partner to work one-on-one on line at sites such as Backspace or Absolute Write. I prefer in-person, and have connected with writer’s groups (where often folks form critique duos) through local adult education groups and libraries. In
Finally, I’d check with any local universities, as they often offer night courses.
Miriam butts back in: Also, don’t underestimate the power of the internet to bring people together. Try posting an ad on Craigslist looking for readers or sending out a Tweet asking for someone to take a look at your work. I’ve seen writers do both. Also, some independent bookstores have bulletin boards where people post announcements looking to start or add to their critique groups.
Hi. I am twenty years old and have been writing since I was young. I really enjoy it and have been told time and again by teachers and other writers that I could do it professionally. However, I have no idea on where to begin and when it comes to being published, all I hear about is having to build credibility to your name. I don't seem to know how to accomplish that either. Do you have any information or suggestions?
Martine Breau
Susanna says: There’s a lot of talk out there about how to rise to the top of the slush pile and the necessity of building a brand, pre-publication, and I think it’s difficult to sort out the wheat from the chaff on this topic. In my opinion, there a few things you can -- and should -- do that will get your work the readers it deserves when the time comes.
I recommend 1) making sure your work is as strong as possible, and 2) publishing short stories.
Hone your skills
It might not need to be said, but when an agent or editor is faced with a pile of submissions, they are looking for any reason to put a piece down. Don’t give one. Make everything you submit, whether to agents or literary magazines, as strong as possible. This means that the piece is not only written well, but also succeeds in terms of structure and character. Most writers are really good at one or two aspects of writing -- language or structure or character -- but also have weak areas, which they can improve by practicing.
For the most part -- and there are exceptions, of course -- new writers don’t get the benefit of a lot of feedback or back-and-forth with agents or editors without a contract, so you’ll want your work to be polished, confident, and completely error-free (no typos! see Miriam’s answer, above!) from page one. Work from the assumption that this is the only draft Ms. Editor or Mr. Agent is going to read, ever.
You can give your work its best shot by running it through workshops or writing groups, or by working one-on-one with a qualified reader on multiple drafts. This is true of short stories, novels, or whatever else you decide to write. Don’t wring your hands forever about sending it out, but don’t send it out when it’s not ready, either.
Publishing short stories
When you submit your work, you’ll include a brief cover letter, and if it names the titles of two or three publications where your work has been printed, an agent or editor will notice. It’s a little like needing a job before you can get a house, but needing a house to get a job. It helps to be able to say you’ve been published when you’re looking to be published again. But a literary magazine editor is more likely to read a previously-unpublished writer than an agent is, so I’d start there.
Check Writer’s Digest or Poets and Writers for names of publications that are calling for submissions, and for contests. Make sure to follow submissions guidelines and only submit your work to publications that are suited to it. It’s helpful to read a few issues of a magazine to determine whether it’s right for your work. You can do this online or at the library.
Use these years to hone your skills and publish short stories (or essays, or poems, or whatever writing you choose). Maintaining a blog or web site before publication could make you a household name among the literati, but it could end up eating up your writing energy and time, with nothing publishable to show for it.
-- -- --
Members - Leave your questions or comments in the comment section below. Can’t see where to leave a comment? That means you’re not registered. Non-members, it only takes a minute to register -- and it is free! -- so click here to register and come back to leave your comments.
Send us your writing or publishing questions at askanewauthor@bookdivas.com. And to celebrate Susanna’s publication of Stiltsville (out 8/3), if we select your question for next month’s column, we will also send you a brand new copy of her book! Publishers Weekly calls it “exquisite” “beautifully told” and “moving.” So get working on those questions!
Jennifer
Miriam says: So I understand beta reader to either be 1. A reader who is specifically looking for errors and inconsistencies -- in grammar, in characterization, in plotting -- like a copy editor or 2. Simply an early reader. Depending on how you’re looking to use a beta reader, I have two different answers.
In terms of needing an early copy editor, I’d say that depends on what sort of early writer you are. My first (and second and third) drafts used to be fraught with errors. I was sloppy and there were lots of rules I got wrong. I made it to grad school without knowing how to properly punctuate dialogue, which caused near-apoplectic fits in my faculty advisor. Add to that, I was terrible at proofreading. So I enlisted one of my exacting classmates as a beta reader. She proofread my work before I handed it in, which saved my skin more than once. I’ve since figured out strategies to better edit my drafts, but at the time, this sort of beta reader was essential. So, my answer: maybe, but not definitely.
If you’re asking if you need early readers, my answer is unequivocally yes. Yes, YES, hell yes! I think there’s nothing more important to the revision process than thoughtful, honest, uncompromising reader feedback. Early readers help me figure out if the story I ended up telling is even roughly the story I intended to tell. For years, I submitted my work to weekly critique groups. At the time, I needed the deadlines and the continual feedback. But at this point in my career, weekly feedback is overkill. I still, though, give completed book drafts to readers. I couldn’t move onto the next drafts without their insights. Or I could move on, but I’d be doing a lot more guesswork and thrashing around in the dark, figuring out what sort of revision I need.
I challenge anyone out there to find me a great book that didn’t have early readers. No, really. I challenge you. Find such a book and leave a note about it in the Comments section. If you find a great book that was written solely by the author without the aid of any early readers, I’ll send you an autographed copy of The Local News with a humbled, crow-eating inscription.
Randy adds: I don’t think there is anything I’ve written that hasn’t benefited from another pair of eyes, whether it be for copy-editing, line-editing, or offering structural and plot thoughts. We all tend to fall in love a bit too much with our own words and need the cold shower of other’s opinions. Like Miriam, for years I had weekly writer group meetings which offered an education in writing and revision.
As for where to find an early reader . . . there are a number of places to start. One can seek out a partner to work one-on-one on line at sites such as Backspace or Absolute Write. I prefer in-person, and have connected with writer’s groups (where often folks form critique duos) through local adult education groups and libraries. In
Finally, I’d check with any local universities, as they often offer night courses.
Miriam butts back in: Also, don’t underestimate the power of the internet to bring people together. Try posting an ad on Craigslist looking for readers or sending out a Tweet asking for someone to take a look at your work. I’ve seen writers do both. Also, some independent bookstores have bulletin boards where people post announcements looking to start or add to their critique groups.
Hi. I am twenty years old and have been writing since I was young. I really enjoy it and have been told time and again by teachers and other writers that I could do it professionally. However, I have no idea on where to begin and when it comes to being published, all I hear about is having to build credibility to your name. I don't seem to know how to accomplish that either. Do you have any information or suggestions?
Martine Breau
Susanna says: There’s a lot of talk out there about how to rise to the top of the slush pile and the necessity of building a brand, pre-publication, and I think it’s difficult to sort out the wheat from the chaff on this topic. In my opinion, there a few things you can -- and should -- do that will get your work the readers it deserves when the time comes.
I recommend 1) making sure your work is as strong as possible, and 2) publishing short stories.
Hone your skills
It might not need to be said, but when an agent or editor is faced with a pile of submissions, they are looking for any reason to put a piece down. Don’t give one. Make everything you submit, whether to agents or literary magazines, as strong as possible. This means that the piece is not only written well, but also succeeds in terms of structure and character. Most writers are really good at one or two aspects of writing -- language or structure or character -- but also have weak areas, which they can improve by practicing.
For the most part -- and there are exceptions, of course -- new writers don’t get the benefit of a lot of feedback or back-and-forth with agents or editors without a contract, so you’ll want your work to be polished, confident, and completely error-free (no typos! see Miriam’s answer, above!) from page one. Work from the assumption that this is the only draft Ms. Editor or Mr. Agent is going to read, ever.
You can give your work its best shot by running it through workshops or writing groups, or by working one-on-one with a qualified reader on multiple drafts. This is true of short stories, novels, or whatever else you decide to write. Don’t wring your hands forever about sending it out, but don’t send it out when it’s not ready, either.
Publishing short stories
When you submit your work, you’ll include a brief cover letter, and if it names the titles of two or three publications where your work has been printed, an agent or editor will notice. It’s a little like needing a job before you can get a house, but needing a house to get a job. It helps to be able to say you’ve been published when you’re looking to be published again. But a literary magazine editor is more likely to read a previously-unpublished writer than an agent is, so I’d start there.
Check Writer’s Digest or Poets and Writers for names of publications that are calling for submissions, and for contests. Make sure to follow submissions guidelines and only submit your work to publications that are suited to it. It’s helpful to read a few issues of a magazine to determine whether it’s right for your work. You can do this online or at the library.
Use these years to hone your skills and publish short stories (or essays, or poems, or whatever writing you choose). Maintaining a blog or web site before publication could make you a household name among the literati, but it could end up eating up your writing energy and time, with nothing publishable to show for it.
-- -- --
Members - Leave your questions or comments in the comment section below. Can’t see where to leave a comment? That means you’re not registered. Non-members, it only takes a minute to register -- and it is free! -- so click here to register and come back to leave your comments.
Send us your writing or publishing questions at askanewauthor@bookdivas.com. And to celebrate Susanna’s publication of Stiltsville (out 8/3), if we select your question for next month’s column, we will also send you a brand new copy of her book! Publishers Weekly calls it “exquisite” “beautifully told” and “moving.” So get working on those questions!
