Calling all beta readers! Calling all beta readers! The Medusa Coin is DONE.
Quite possibly the most difficult couple of months since launching the series but completely worth the time and aggravation. When I sat down with my initial outline everything appeared to be very straightforward with a clear path from beginning to end.
WRONG.
Quite a few additions and deletions have been made to this manuscript over the last two and a half months. At one point I thought the whole draft would need rewriting – not my best day. I’m glad to be out the other side of this one and happy to share it with a few select readers willing to offer their thoughts on the draft.
The importance of beta readers.
I’ve spoken to this before and I stand by my earlier statements on the subject. Beta readers are a crucial part of the editing process. Much as I love keeping all the secrets and holding back the surprises of a new novel until launch day, it doesn’t quite work if the final product doesn’t live up to the hype.
Suffice it say, I’d love to hear your thoughts on The Medusa Coin. This story has been with me for a LONG time and I have definitely felt the weight of my own expectations bearing down on me. I want this book to be top notch and you can help.
How to become a beta reader?
E-mail me at lou@loupaduano.com or through the oft-mentioned contact page. Or message me directly on social media. Let me know the best way to send you the file for your review.
What am I looking for exactly?
There are a number of areas actually but all feedback is welcome. Some specific areas of interest are:
- Pace – Does each chapter go at a good clip? Do you feel like you’re wading through a swamp or rushing through the rapids?
- Dialogue – Too much? Too little? Do you ever lose track of who is speaking?
- Story Logic – THE BIG ONE. Does the book make sense? Do connections come out of left field or is there enough information laid throughout to understand the chain of events that lead the main characters through the narrative?
- Flow – Not only chapter to chapter but paragraph to paragraph. Is a better transition needed?
- Perspective – Is there a random shift of perspective in the middle of the chapter that isn’t noted by a break? Do you ever feel like one character is lost in the mix at any time in the narrative?
- The villain – This was definitely an area I wanted to improve upon after Signs of Portents. Is the antagonist developed enough? Do they get enough time to shine?
- Repetition – Another area of concern from Signs. Character arcs are very important to me and background thoughts tend to string their main conflict along throughout the narrative. Does it ever become too repetitive in the story? Does it need to back off during certain scenes and allow the action to progress?
- Awkward sentences/descriptions – Are there points in the novel that tripped you up? Sentences you had to read several times over in order to understand an action occurring?
What am I not looking for?
- Grammar lessons. I suck at it, I know. It’s a fact of life. If you want to mark up the entire piece and save my wonderful editor the hassle later on, have at it. Telling me my grammar skills blow will not help and brings me to my final note –
- Vague assistance. Specifics are needed to improve the work. Telling me something doesn’t work in Chapter Forty-Three is great but I need to know what it is in detail. Not enough dialogue? A slow paragraph that didn’t add anything to the scene? Be as specific as you can, please!
Beta Readers Deadline – April 20th.
It’s not as far off as you think and it gives me ten days to work through everyone’s notes before I pass it off to my editor.
How to mark it up:
The easiest way to mark up the text is to highlight and make notes on your computer but typing up a separate document/e-mail with a list of your notes for me to go through when you are set also works.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask.
I greatly appreciate all of your help in this process. My goal is to make the best book possible and I can’t do that alone. Thanks to all of you in advance.
And thanks for reading!