My Beta Readers experience!
Ever wondered what it would be like if someone were to judge your manuscript?! Well, here is how it turned out for me.
As Steven Bartlett quotes in his book: The Diary of a CEO, "Feedback equals knowledge." From a business aspect, I figured It would be best to follow the same principle in my work-in-progress book drafting process.
As a result, I sent a couple of requests to people who are either writers or avid readers. I was requesting them to be Beta Readers for Chapter One of my book as a start. Then maybe proceed from there if interested.
It’s only right I confess that I might have been a little bit delusional seeing that I somehow had the balls to DM Colleen Hoover best-selling author of a couple if not a lot of books_requesting her to be part of my Beta Readers squad!
I’m pleased to report back that she has neither confirmed nor denied my request. I’m yet to find out. Fingers crossed!
What’s also right is that I fully tell the truth by also confessing that she-Colleen Hoover wasn’t the only author I DM-ed. Madhuri Banerjee also made the list. "But why them?" you might be wondering. Well, first and foremost; I’m a bit delusional, followed closely by the fact that I’m a fan of their books, and then lastly, my book draft is similar to some of their already published books. Particularly: It Ends With Us and Losing My Virginity and other dumb ideas.
Note: I’m also yet to hear back from Madhuri Banerjee.
All the same, from the pool of potential Beta Readers I had in mind and sent requests to, only one of them responded (rather nonchalantly) but responded nonetheless. Her name was Vanessa. An avid reader.
I was more than jazzed when I got the confirmation message from her. So I immediately sent her the chapter except and then waited eagerly to hear what she thought about it.
A day later, here is what she said:
"The story is captivating. I would read a second chapter however the read is a bit inconsistent in narrative but I get it’s a rough draft without much editing."
"Also, your writing is witty, it’s a story that brings sad emotions but with jokes here and there. I like that touch."
What a wholesome review! I thought.
However, I must confess that a few minutes after reading it, I was tempted to ignore the criticism part and only acknowledge the ego-stroking part of the feedback. Luckily, I ended up resisting falling into the self-serving trap and decided to take it all in with an objective stand rather than a subjective one.
As previously intended: "Feedback is knowledge." I went back and edited the chapter heeding the knowledge I gathered from Vanessa’s Feedback and I believe I edited what became a better version of my chapter one section. After all, that’s why Beta Readers are important to have in any book writing project.
Dedication.
For Vanessa, the first Beta Reader who accepted my request.
Request: If you happen to be a writer, comment down below what your experience has been asking and receiving feedback for your work. Whether it was a book, article, short story, etc.
As usual, all other comments are welcome!
