An aye-write Guide to Beta-Reading and Feedback!
Beta reading and feedback is an important part of the writing process! Whether you’re looking to fix simple spelling and grammar errors in a short drabble, or a full examination of a 150k epic, it’s really valuable to you and your beta-reader to have a good grasp of how to give - and receive - feedback!
How to Ask for Feedback
One of the things that I will always suggest giving your beta-readers is a Beta Reading Worksheet. Simply put, the writer puts forward a list of questions, topics, or points they’d like the beta-reader to address. I did this when I sent my murder mystery out to betas:
As you can see above, the questions I chose gave me a great overall impression of how my betas felt about the novel and also I was able to address specific concerns that I had. Another great reason for giving beta-readers a list of questions is that it also helps them give you meaningful feedback, especially if the beta-reader is unsure of what you want from them or struggles to think of “good things to say”.
Be as specific as possible! Do you want your beta-readers to look out for spelling, punctuation, and grammar? Let them know! You don’t want them to comment on the overall story but more on the technical details? You need to tell them! The more you help them, the more help they will be able to give you!
Ideas for Questions for Getting Great Feedback
Here are some questions that I’ve either seen used or used when considering feedback for all sorts of pieces! Some may be of use to you, others not, so feel free to adapt any of them to suit you!
As a reader, what did you like about the story?
What makes you want to read on?
What makes you want to stop reading?
What questions did the story make you want to ask?
Did the story hook you in?
Was the prose easy to read?
Were the sentences too short or too long?
Were there too many adverbs or other writing quirks that stuck out?
How well is the prose written?
Is there too much description, too much dialogue? Not enough?
Does the text feel repetitive in places or are there descriptions missing?
Is the dialogue believable and easy to follow?
Can you tell who is speaking?
Are there too many distracting dialogue tags?
Does the dialogue seem boring or does it move the plot along?
Are the characters believable and interesting?
Do you know what their motivations are?
Were they described enough to picture them, or too much?
Do you know what the POV (point of view) is?
Does the story stay in the right POV or does it switch and become confusing?
Does the written tense stay consistent?
Does it change or come across as confusing?
SETTING AND WORLDBUILDING
What did you think of the setting?
Was there enough detail to set the scene, or too much detail that overpowered the story?
Could you tell where the story was set easily?
Does the setting/world building come across realistically?
Can you follow the plot of the story?
Does the plot seem too obvious or vague?
Does the story end satisfactorily or do you feel cheated/bored?
Are there any plot holes?
Does it move slow, drag on and bore you? Or does it move too fast and feel rushed?
Can you tell the theme of the story?
Does the plot and characters evoke any particular emotions?
Personally, I wouldn’t send everything on the above list to a beta-reader, you don’t want to overwhelm them after all, but you could pick and choose a couple!
Be Good to Your Betas
Whether they’re beta-ing a three page short or a 400 page novel, beta-reading is a huge commitment, and can be a tough, and sometimes thankless, job. Giving them guides for betaing like above can really help! Here are some more top tips to help out your lovely betas:
Give them an as polished a draft as you can! This will help both you and your beta-reader get the most out of the experience.
Give them plenty of time! My betas had three months to read my 104k novel. More time for more words and more detailed betaing.
Be flexible! Life happens and things do go wrong.
It’s fine to disagree with what a beta-reader has to say - they are only one opinion after all - but asking for clarification or more details will serve you better than getting annoyed!
What If I Don’t Like my Beta Feedback?
It’s definitely disappointing when you get some feedback that you don’t like. Especially if it’s a piece you’ve put a lot of heart and soul into. If you think there’s some problems with your beta feedback, consider the following points:
Get a second pair of eyes (or third… or fourth!)
It’s always better to have multiple eyes on a piece of work - even just to make sure nothing gets missed - but especially if there’s discrepancies between feedback. If four out of five beta-readers pick up on an issue, odds are it’s something you may have to address, even if not in the particular way the beta-readers suggest.
Is the feedback fit for purpose?
Does the beta-reader have an innate bias or dislike for a certain aspect of your work? So, if you’re told that your dialogue between two girlfriends is “cringe” and you discover your beta-reader dislikes romance, that feedback may not be fit for purpose. This is another reason why you should lay out your expectations and explain what your piece will explore before taking on a beta reader. A good beta-reader should be able to tell you how/why something works despite their own personal preferences.
Are you asking readers… or writers?
A lot of people think readers make the best betas. Others argue writers. Personally, I think there’s value in asking a mix of both. Reader feedback may be able to indicate where things don’t “feel right” but may not be able to articulate exactly why. But reader feedback can also be invaluable because they’re the target audience! Whereas writers can usually articulate the problems “under the hood” of the piece, as it were, and help you with more targeted support. Fellow writers are also fabulous for earlier drafts.
Trust your instincts!
At the end of the day, beta-feedback is just feedback! And your story is your story. You’re the one who knows it inside out, you’re the one who knows what you want to get out of it, and ultimately you’re the one who decides what goes into the piece. You don’t have to take every piece of advice as gospel.
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