I’ve arrived at a waypoint in writing my WIP, “Lives in Time”, and have a 45K word novella that I’d like to publish as an intro to the larger story. I’ve edited it until I’m exhausted. It’s not the best writing your going to find, but it’s certainly not the worst. Not much of a sales job, right? I need a beta reader to tell me whether or not I have a complete story; whether it’s worth reading; whether anyone will care. I realize that all these things are very subjective. And I’m not simply looking for validation. I can take criticism and work with it. I do, however, want to have some assurance that what I’m about to hold forth to the public is worthwhile. Scrivener tells me that the work will take about 3 1/2 hours to read. The premise is that a young privileged couple of the future, early in their relationship, find themselves thrown back in time and have to figure things out together. The larger story (parts Two and Three) will include more classic adventure novel elements.
I'm up for it. Mind you, I'm no professional by any stretch, but I can tell you if/what/don't I get. I can tell you if it's an easy or hard read, how I feel about the characters, the vibe of the story, if it's gripping or boring, etc. I can read between-the-lines somewhat to figure out what something is trying to say - that sort of thing. Happy to read and comment. Can you put a PDF on Google Drive and send me a link? I can't download anything.
Sounds like you are at the stage where you need a reader and not a writer. If you are happy to go ahead on that basis mail me and I will give you my email. You will get your feedback within a week.
Worth reading? I started last night and only put it down because I had to sleep. Picked it up this afternoon and read straight through! I was peeved when I realized I was at the end! It pulled me in! "Please, Sir. I'd like some more."
Ha! I finished it at 9.15am this morning. Yes we have had the privilege of reading this book and what a great read. Looks like everyone else will need to pay for it. Just writing his feedback now!
SG, being as you are a quick beta reader like me. Message me if you would like to do beta a swap. Sorry JD for hijacking your thread, but I did put a shift in for you.
Hey, JD and Rich, if you think I would learn something from your analysis, consider including me in the PM? And Rich, yes, I will PM you. *unsteal* OT Any guess as to what time they're in now?
Thanks. Let me dwell on that. I've gotten feedback from two people, waiting on a third, plus edits from my wife, which are the most important (she had the inspiration for the story).
Well, feel free to keep me waiting in the wings if you want a second draft read. I made the fatal error of using all my betas on draft one.
The feedback I've gotten from a couple sources is that a) my description of new places encountered needs development to better immerse the reader in the environment; and b) my character development is good in spots and poor in others. So, back to the mill I go. When I have another revision, I'll follow up with @Partridge and @Raven484 (apparently my WIP is for the birds ). Thank you everyone for your efforts.
Looking forwards to reading it! Just PM when the time comes. *tweets and flaps wings in anticipation*
I'm interested in genre and the kW? Let me know here, then post a Collab thread again so we don't hijack this one. Lol
I've been off the forum for a few months, so I'm out of the loop. How are we all doing? Anybody any closer to needing beta readers, here?
