I've mentioned before at great length how important it can
be to find yourself some decent beta readers to help you with your writing
process. Today I thought it might be nice to see this advice put to use by a
fellow writer and soon-to-be published author. It’s all very well to explore
these techniques in theory – but how effectively do they translate in practice? And
how can they put your writing a cut above the rest?
Caitlyn E. Mitchell (who stands in the ranks of a select
group I possessively call “MY Authors”) is a writer of young adult novels whose works I have been editing for the better part of a decade. In the
past few years she has been exploring the combination of re-told fairy tales
and historical fiction, casting the magical stories that we all know and love
into realistic and concrete sections of world history. Two books into the
process, Caitlyn has entered into contract with a literary agent and is well on
her way to seeing the finished pieces in print. You can read her bio and
access her own blog on my Authors page.
Tell us about your
writing process and where the beta readers come into it.
Well, my writing
process can be rather fluid. Generally, though, I come up with an idea and do
all of my research at the front. A lot of brainstorming happens during this
time with my editor. I’ll throw ideas around, we’ll discuss plausibility and
whether or not something is too far-fetched, and eventually I’ll have between
20 and 30 pages of strict resources and randomly generated thoughts. For the
most part I don’t outline extensively. I have a formula that I use for the number
and size of my chapters to help me reach and then stay within my page/word
counts. I jot down a paragraph or some bullet points of what needs to happen in
each chapter, if I know, and then I start writing.
I have two
beta-readers who read each chapter as it is finished in its full, messy, first
draft goodness. They don’t edit for style, grammar, or functionality, unless
there is something seriously egregious that I let slip by. Mostly they ask
questions, verify that they understand the story correctly, and provide
feedback, maybe a few thoughts if something isn’t very clear. They keep me
honest about my goals (where’s the next
chapter, eh?!) and they also help nudge me along if I seem to be straying
from the path.
After the book is written,
my editor will do a complete read of the raw draft. At this time the
grammatical and stylistic errors will be notated and corrected, and any last
tweaks to the flow of the story will be suggested. By this time, though, most
of the major story flaws have already been noticed by the chapter-by-chapter
beta readers. The goal is to send as clean and correct a manuscript to the
editor as possible; extensive rewrites should occur during the writing process
beforehand. If I did my job correctly, editing should always just be editing.
What are some concrete benefits that you have
experienced by having beta readers?
No one lives in a
vacuum. And even if you think it, you don’t always have the best ideas.
Sometimes you can stagnate with no real resources for how to get out of this
plot hole you’ve created. Sometimes you just don’t like a character, and a beta
reader can tell you that character is their favorite and you’d better not touch
anything—or their least favorite and yes, you do need to change it. Basically,
beta readers help get you out of your own skull and to see things from a fresh
perspective. Your readers are going to be forming opinions on your book
anyway—what author wouldn’t want to know what some of those thoughts might be
as they’re going along?
A beta reader may
have a good suggestion, or they may say just the right thing, turning on that
light bulb and getting you working again. Beta readers also, as I said before,
keep you honest. You can’t do much dithering if you know your readers are
waiting at the end of the line for that next chapter you promised them.
Procrastination is a writer’s worst enemy. In my own experience, writer’s
block, lack of inspiration, plot holes, anything that causes a delay in writing
has nothing at all to do with the book. It’s all a hidden form of
procrastination that then ends up in twenty games of lost Solitaire. Writers
may not write every day; they may not write every week. What they write may not
be good, it may be amazing. But writers do write, and beta readers help me get
that writing on the page, good or bad. Rough drafts are allowed to stink. But
you can’t finish a book if you don’t just giddy up and write it.
Another benefit is
that, personally, I have the tendency to over-rewrite. If I could, I’d edit forever
and end up getting nowhere. Beta readers have allowed me to throw that perfectionism
to the winds—and as a result, my production timeline has gone through the roof.
I wrote three books in the last two years and I have another planned to begin
later this summer. And it’s the best writing I’ve ever done.
When you have a beta
reader, there’s no time to agonize over perfecting the book the first time. Do
your job and let them do theirs. Once that chapter is finished, don’t reread
it, don’t edit it, don’t even look at it. Just send it along. They’ll let you
know what’s what, and then you can go back and make tweaks. But at the same
time, you have to keep pushing forward. They’re waiting for that next chapter.
Have you encountered any downsides to the
process?
The only downside
I’d say exists is less of a downside and more of a job hazard. Your beta
readers have opinions. That is, after all, what you’re asking them to give you.
They’re going to tell you what they like and don’t like.
It’s the author’s
job to read all of those edits and opinions openly and without any intention of
offense. Because in the end, you’re holding the pen. If you don’t agree with a
beta reader’s suggestion—then you’re free to disagree and move on. At the same
time, are you disagreeing because of some valid reason? Or just because you
feel like it? Because you say so and it has to be that way? You have to throw
aside all touchiness (and I know, it can be hard—this is your brain baby after
all) and evaluate each thought and suggestion as a crucial building block. What
are the merits, or the flaws in the idea, either yours or the reader’s? If they
made a comment, they made it for a reason—so if you don’t take their
suggestion, is there another way you could clarify it to reach a middle ground?
Your beta readers
aren’t going to have all the answers, but their role is to make you think and
work for your result, rather than coasting it in because you’re the writer and
you say so. You don’t have to take all their suggestions as gospel, but you
should take all their suggestions as flags to point out that something isn’t
quite right yet. That can be hard on an ego (and all authors have that in
quantities, whether it’s obvious or hidden—it’s what allows us to do our job,
because if we didn’t think our writing was worth reading, we wouldn’t do it).
But you have to put ego aside and work for your art.
How did you pick your beta readers?
I’d say there’s no
strict way to pick beta readers. Some people would want a blank honest opinion
from a forum or someone they don’t know. Some people would want friends and
family members they can trust to be honest. Both options have their flaws and
potential pitfalls (someone on a blank forum may not have the time to really
commit to you or may cause latent trust issues with where your content is
really going; whereas a family member might just tell you what you want to
hear, or they may be your worst nightmare, constantly dredging up every detail
at every social event or nitpicking you mercilessly with no real effort at
engaging in artful discussion).
I picked my beta
readers from people I knew I could trust, who would be utterly honest with me
while also staying within the realm of constructive criticism and who also
enjoy the genre in which I write. If I’m writing fantasy, I don’t need someone
saying I need more robots and laser beams (unless I’m trying to be like Piers
Anthony). If I’m writing romance, now is probably not the time for zombies
(Pride and Prejudice with Zombies already covered that).
You need people who
will push you to be your best, but who are also ultimately on your side. You
need people who are as invested in your work as you are. Because if they’re
just doing it as a one-off favor, you’ll probably get partial suggestions and
distracted reads. If they know nothing about your genre, they won’t really be
able to make insightful comments on the characters or the way the story is
going. Now, that last bit can be excepted if they’re just overall well read or
enthusiastic book lovers. You don’t necessarily have to be a huge fan of
historical fiction to make an honest and informed comment on it. But it does
help.
What do you have to say about the assertion
that friends and family do not make the best beta readers?
I think it really
depends on the friend or family member. Someone who is just going to gush over
you constantly is not who you need. Someone who is going to nitpick every
single word is also not who you need. Leave that to the editor.
You need someone who will praise you when you deserve it and push you when you do not deserve praise. In my experience, friends and family members have been the best beta readers because they’re invested in me, my work, and can also be brutally honest if necessary. They get what I’m going for, and if I’m feeling glum, they can remind me that what I’m doing is worthwhile. Beta readers are your cheerleaders, your first-draft editors, your firing squad, your drawing board, your crack-the-whip taskmasters. In the end, be they friend, family, or complete stranger, you need someone who is going to be by your side for the long haul.
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In other news, stay tuned next week for a potential post on my foray into the world of submissions! Final revisions to my current project continue to proceed at a slower pace than they started (crumbs!) but we'll get there sooner rather than later. And then the real fun begins.
Keep writing! Keep reading! We'll catch up next week.
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