Beta readers may do a lot of things for authors, but aside from pointing out confusion in a manuscript and revealing aspects that are lacking in the story, the most important task they perform is to bolster the writer’s self-confidence. 
  
If you’re not using beta readers as part of your writing process, the reasons you should are many. I can’t imagine surviving the road to publication without them. But before I get to that, let’s talk a little bit about these people and where they fit in the editorial process. 
 
At their most basic, beta readers are the first responders to your manuscript. After you’ve toiled over your novel-in-progress for weeks or months or years, and you’ve deemed it ready for another reader’s eyes, betas step up to the plate. 
  
Anyone who likes to read and vows to be gently honest—emphasis on gently—about how they feel about your work will do: friend, relative, complete stranger. Writers in general make better betas than nonwriters do because they usually have a greater level of understanding of story structure. The more detailed a beta reader can be when giving feedback, the better.  

I have beta readers who provide very few in-line notes and instead respond to the book as a whole in an overview, and I have other betas who give me notes all the way through the manuscript. There is value in both methods, though I feel it’s imperative to obtain at least one detailed reading with many in-line notes. In my “pool” of beta readers (I use at least six per book), I make sure I have two who will provide comprehensive feedback.  

The best betas are amateur developmental editors in that they concentrate their suggestions on the larger parts of the story: the content and characters, and not the commas. They comment on plot, pacing, characterization, and setting, letting you know where you’ve gone astray. They tell you where a scene falls flat and where they’re confused.  

Why are they crucial to your process? 

As writers, we all do things in our writing that we think are just fine but that don’t, for whatever reason, work for readers. If no one points out these blunders for us, they remain in the story, potentially rubbing readers the wrong way. These may be small issues or large ones. 
  
The problem with self-editing is that our brain glides right over most of what we’ve written because it understands what we’ve meant to say (even if what we mean to say doesn’t exactly appear on the page). 
 
Our mind can visualize our characters and what they’re doing, so it may not think to raise an alarm and shout, “Hey, this isn’t working,” or “Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”  

The beta reader can guide our focus to these problem areas so that we can fix them before we spend a lot of money on a developmental editor (the next step in the editorial process), who will help fine-tune the deeper, harder-to-grasp issues that may linger below the surface—those a beta reader doesn’t likely have the skills to pick up.  

Beta readers clear away the lower-hanging fruit so the pro can more easily reach, and comment on, a deeper level.  

How do betas create self-confidence? 

If you ask your beta readers to, they will also tell you when you’ve impressed them with your storytelling or wordsmithing—and who doesn’t love that? The brain is equally oblivious to the “good” that we’ve done as it is to the bad.  

Pointing out the impressive parts of our novel—the lines that sing, the twists that blow them away, the delightful quirks you’ve given your character and how they bring those characters to life—may actually be the betas’ most valuable role. No one will comment more precisely on your book than those you enlist in the beta-reading task. In other words, it’s likely that you’ll never hear more from readers than you will during this phase.  
 
It’s gratifying to learn that what we’ve written moved a beta reader emotionally or made them stop and highlight our painterly turn of phrase. Of course, we want to know all that’s missing or wrong with our story—we rely on others to point out our missteps—but our beta readers’ happy or intrigued or thrilled notes build us up and remind us that we’ve made a lot of solid choices in our story in addition to making a few mistakes.  

Seeing what we’ve done right reminds us that we are good writers. That we have what it takes to impress a reader with our skills. That plenty of the scenes we wrote do work, and that the climax is both brutal and amazing.  
  
Betas are the first to let us know they’ve understood our jokes and humorous circumstances (which either made them LOL or grimace), our tragic love stories (which either made them cringe or cry), and our tender moments of reflection (which hit the nail on the head or missed the mark). 
  
The comments and compliments they provide are the gold that keeps us going through each manuscript revision, through every edit, through countless rounds of proofreading and fixes. Yes, we’ve made mistakes, and the manuscript has its weaknesses that we aim to work out, but the writing is worthy, moving, has potential. There is strong work here, and because you’re in the beta-reading phase there’s time to transform what needs help into something wonderful (or at least better).  

Your betas have reassured you of that.  

Down the road, when a reviewer leaves a few words about how disappointed they were with the story (every book gets a few of these), when they sum up your hard work with a couple of thoughtlessly scrawled phrases, they probably won’t add, “But, wow, this metaphor she wrote made my head spin in the best of ways!” There won’t be any specifics at all. The wonderful details that make up your book will not enter their critique.  

But thanks to the gold your beta readers gave you, you can remind yourself that you know your work is of value. Even if it didn’t resonate with this particular reader, it did resonate with others.  

No one can take that from you. Whenever you need it, it will be there, bolstering you up, protecting you from the damage those inevitable harsh words that come flying out of the blue can do to a writer. 

When you send your manuscript to your beta pool, give them a short list of tasks to keep in mind.  

1. Focus on the content: the story, not the commas.
2. Point out any confusion.
3. Make a note in any place that moves too slowly or any detail that seems wrong or off.
4. Feel free to mention anything you particularly like! 

With their “here’s what works, here’s what doesn’t” critique, betas are on your side. Think of them as the light—and the confidence—that shines a way to a better novel than the one you’ve written all by yourself.  

Where can I find beta readers? 

The best way to find a good beta reader is old-fashioned word of mouth. Aside from that, you can reach out and take your chances. All feedback that you receive has the potential to be valuable. It also has the potential to be damaging. If the comments are harsh or overwhelming, feel free to set them aside. What you want is helpful, constructive criticism that makes sense to you. If it doesn’t resonate, do not feel obligated to follow through.  

The post Beyond Feedback: Beta Readers Give Us Gold appeared first on Writer's Digest.

(9 Ways Self-Publishing Changed My Life and Will Change Yours Too.)

The key to benefitting from this list (and any advice you receive from experienced authors) is NOT to assume you’re the exception to the rule. If you are doing (or not doing) one of the things listed below, you may be in danger of sabotaging your self-pub career.

Here are the items and the logic behind the advice given. DO NOT do the following:

1. Create your own cover.

Leave it to the professionals, please. I’m amazed by how many homemade covers I still see in 2024. A cover you make yourself is fine if you don’t want to be taken seriously. It’s not fine if you want a career writing books. Good covers don’t just happen. Find a worthy professional!

2. Edit your own book.

You could be the best editor known to man, but that doesn’t mean you’ll do an A+ job on your own book. The brain works in mysterious ways, and when it edits its own work, it tells itself that work is perfect. In other words, when you self-edit, you are sure to miss mistakes—even the glaring ones. I’m an author and a professional editor, and, yes, I rely on other editors.

3. Skip the proofreading pool.

As a self-publisher, you need a TEAM of proofreaders. Why a team? Because every reader will potentially notice different errors. With each proofreader, you’ll weed out more and more mistakes until hopefully there are none left for the public to find. I recommend six proofers per team (three for a first round and three more for a second).

4. Forgo the professional reviews.

A good prepublication review written by a well-known entity (Kirkus, BlueInk, Foreword, to name a few) will provide your book with much-needed clout. If it’s your first book, no one knows you. Why should they take a chance on buying/reading your book when they can get the latest Taylor Jenkins Reid? A good review will assure readers, “This one is worth it.” Depending on which review company you use, your review could end up in the magazines that librarians and bookstore owners read. That’s the kind of advertisement self-publishers need.

5. Fail to put together a Street Team.

Who’s going to toot your horn if you don’t have a Street Team? Who’s going to read the ARC and write those early reviews you desperately need on Amazon? The Street Team is your grassroots organization. Together, they make up the seed that’s going to grow your fan base via word of mouth. Even if you only have a handful of people on your Street Team, it’s much better than having no Street Team at all.

(How to Develop a Street Team for Your Book.)

6. Say No to an author website/email subscribers list.

Those who are interested in you and your book are going to look for you online. An author website gives them a place to land and gives you a place to control what they see. It is an opportunity for interested parties to learn more about you—and when your next book is coming out. If they really like you, they’ll want to follow your author journey by subscribing to your email list.

7. Spend a lot of money on marketing when you only have just one or two books.

I’ve been guilty of this one, and so have many of my author friends. We want our books to do well, so we buy adverts and promos to help them along. The problem is, when you spend money on advertising or the promos that drive readers to a discounted or free book sale, you’re not going to recoup the money you spent if you only have one or two books. The hope is to make it back (and more) in the long run, but doing so is no gimme.

When you have a backlist of titles five or 10 books long, on the other hand, the promo dollars you invest during your launch or sale help to sell all of the books you have made available. When you have a backlist, a book promo for one of your books is advertisement for all of your books.

8. Get frustrated over low numbers of followers on social media.

Don’t worry, they’ll come to you as your popularity grows. Not all the social media apps are good at “selling” books. What they are good at is providing a place for you to express yourself and offer quality content. That’s all you need them to be. So, find a social media app that you somewhat enjoy, and start interacting there. A few minutes a day (or even every other day) will be enough.

Check out Kim Catanzarite’s The Moon Children here:

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(WD uses affiliate links)

There you have it. Eight negative circumstances you can easily avoid. Your book is important to you. If it wasn’t you wouldn’t have taken the time to publish it. So don’t go the route of saying, “This is good enough” or “My book’s so good, I really don’t have to do that.” It’s not and you actually do. Follow the basic, proven guidelines, and you’ll give your book its best chance at success. 

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Are you thinking about publishing that thriller, self-help book, or short story collection you’ve housed all safe and sound in your computer for years? Congratulations! That said, this is to warn you that once that book sees the light of day, your “normal” will hit the ground running and never look back. Your work as a publisher is about to ooze into all the nooks and crannies in your life until the breathing room you once enjoyed is occupied with things to do.

I’m sure you’ve prepared yourself by reading, researching, and attending various webinars, but until you press that magic button, it’s like becoming a parent for the first time: you have some idea of what life will be like, but you won’t fully grasp the reality until you’re living it.

(3 Things I Learned From the Best Self-Published Books This Past Year)

Consider this an opportunity to gird your loins. Publishing isn’t going to be easy. You’ll need to produce content, discover your best marketing devices, head up a local strategy, and be present (not to mention, pleasant) on social media on a regular basis. Here’s a snapshot of your life after publishing:

1. Free time no longer exists.

Even when you’re pouring detergent into the washing machine on Sunday afternoon, you’ll be thinking things like, Did I remember to post on Instagram this morning? When was the last time I took a selfie? Do I need to shower/get dressed/put makeup on today? What am I going to blog about this week? By the time the wash cycle begins, you’ll be in the backyard photographing your book.

2. Your new hobbies include building and maintaining a website.

I’m constantly revising mine. The welcome on my home page remains the same, but whatever excitement is currently happening must appear as well. For instance, giveaways you’re hosting, a review you’ve received, the announcement of your book cover reveal. Other new “hobbies” include setting up book promotions, writing captions for social media, and shipping books to … everyone in the world.

3. Checking reviews and ranking may become an obsession.

It requires that you virtually head over to Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes and Noble, and/or other bookish websites. Prepare for the question “What is my current ranking?” to tread a furrow through your mind. If you’re doing a promotion of any kind, you’ll check the ranking a lot more than once a day. Be sure to take time away from your phone or computer to unclench your teeth and just breathe (learn more about climbing the ranks here).

4. Reading for pleasure is a thing of the past.

Or, not entirely, I should say. Reading is now part of your job. You need to read in your genre (as you’ve been told countless times) so you’re aware of what the competition is doing and what the readership is buying. You’ll also want to read in your genre so you can write reviews of those books and post them on platforms like Goodreads and Bookbub. Readers of your genre will notice these reviews and hopefully, in turn, they’ll take notice of you and your book.

5. Frequenting bookstores is a must.

Put some money aside to buy books at independent bookstores. The relationships you develop with bookshop owners will be reciprocal. You will be a shopper at first, and hopefully one day the store will host your book signing and carry a few copies of your paperback. Spend some time nurturing these friendships. Then go to the library, introduce yourself to the librarians, and donate a copy of your book.

6. Engaging with your readership happens regularly.

Many writers don’t want to blog, but if you don’t, what reason will you have to check in with your “fans” on a regular basis? What will you do to get Google’s help in sending potential subscribers to your website? A once-a-month newsletter is a start, but, if you’re like me when I began, you have a low number (50) of subscribers made up of friends, family, and a few writing acquaintances. Only 30 percent (or so) will open your email, which means once a month you’ll reach about 15 people. If you write a blog or start a podcast or vlog (video blog), on the other hand, your content will show up in searches, and interested parties will visit your website, learn about your book, and get to know you. Some of them will become subscribers, and you know how important that list is. You also might offer a course of some kind. Consider what type of content you can give the world and start producing it regularly.

7. Walking is your exercise of choice.

Because all you have to do is walk out the door. What I mean is it requires very little planning and can be done in half an hour. That’s the perfect exercise program for an independent author. Also, walking inspires creativity. Virginia Woolf loved her long walks for this reason.

8. Educating yourself becomes mandatory.

We all know there’s a lot to learn about marketing and promotion. Keep your eyes open for webinars that explain the skills you lack or need to brush up on. Practice what you learn, and little by little, you’ll get better at these skills.

9. The planner is your friend.

The word leisurely is not one many would use to describe the life of a self-publisher. However, you can and should schedule some leisure time into your calendar. Whether it’s time for working in the yard every day because that’s your happy place, or a week in Aruba because you’re motivated by the prospect of a vacation, pencil it in. Time away from your desk is more important now than ever before. Be sure to schedule opportunities to refresh.

With all you have to do as an independent author, you’re sure to feel like you need more hours in the day. Not only are you a publisher of books, you are also the one and only writer of the books. Publishing tasks can eat up the workday, so when will you write? Don’t forget that your love of writing brought you into this new business. Writing another book is not only what you need to do as a creator, but it’s also the best marketing tool around. Protect your writing time like it’s the most important thing—because it is.

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