#betabooks

[moonshinemagpie]

I'm thinking I don't like betabooks as a beta reader, and this feels worth mentioning since I just found out that apparently authors have to pay for it if they want more than 3 beta readers.

I don't like it because it breaks the manuscript into chapters, which isn't helpful at the beta reading stage. Writers need big picture critiques, which means books at this stage are not supposed to be evaluated on a chapter-by-chapter basis. (Often authors haven't even put the chapter breaks in the right places yet.)

Big picture problems exist across chapters, but when the manuscript isn't all in one window, it's hard to critique these long-running weak threads. When I'm trying to catch inconsistencies, refresh myself on small details that happened 30,000 words before, etc, it is REALLY difficult to do without being able to conduct a sweeping ctrl + find for a whole manuscript quickly.

Ex: I might remember that a little brother's name changed between the start of the manuscript and the middle, but I might not remember whether he was mentioned in chapter 3, 4, 5, or 6. I have to click on each of these tabs, open a new window, ctrl+ find each chapter............................ and at this point I'm just dying.

(If there is a way to see the entire manuscript in one window on BetaBooks, please let me know.)

If you're an author who feels pressured to use it, know there there is nothing wrong with other, free platforms. Google docs and google forms are free and can accomplish the same thing. Word remains the industry standard. Etc.

[kjscottwrites]

Something I've been wondering about betabooks but can't find the answer to: Can other readers on Beta Books see one another's inline comments feedback, or can only the author see all the readers' feedback? (I've been looking at using it, but i know from past experience that some beta readers don't like their feedback being public to others)

So there's actually a setting that allows you to choose either way, which is super nice. When you set up your book it defaults to readers being unable to see other reader's feedback, but you can go into settings and change it so they can if you want to.

tbh I've been super impressed with betabooks so far and would highly recommend!

[kjscottwrites]

So process wise, I think once my 2.0 draft of cavernous is complete, I might move it to betabooks and open it up for some folks to read and maybe manage a newsletter through that platform.

Does anyone else on here use this platform? As either a reader or a writer? What are your thoughts/gripes/things you love about it?

[ieppiq]

"After war, The Protecters go back in the "field" in search for the dear ones had gone missing in the past. Hopeful, they try to reunite the team once again. That including, Sean. Seemingly changed, the others see a side of him they've never figured before. How did such growth happen? We'll see, through The Sides."

▪︎ Updates every two-three days.

[grim-faux]

I’ve been thinking about the betabooks subscription and checking my budget, and I can spare the $16.00 USD for the some readers and extra book space.

I do use BetaBooks as an alternative storage space for my intangible properties, it has allowed me to collect feedback for my current manuscript The Etiquette of Survival. But it would be nice to have a new book available - I have a second book finished - for readers.

Foremost, I don’t want to subscribe and just burn that money. TES needs some heavy revision work to get the story out I want to tell, and though it is an initiating series volume, it needs more to it.

Thus far I’ve done some revamp on the world building, I added materials to my Publishing Portfolio for the book - needs to go with the first 4 chapters of a book for publishing inquires - and I have more depth to the characters, more material for later books/chapters. 

The synopsis for this book goes something like this -  A Forensic Coroner is dragged into a world of political and supernatural strife, upon perceiving inconsistencies surrounding John and Jane Doe cadavers processed by her department. In this reconceived world Allegra Terrel has unwittingly stumbled into, she must rely on the agency of an inhuman chaperon, and the deadly commissions he is charged with. If she hopes to achieve some semblance of normality, let alone survive, she must keep allies close and enemies closer.

Except I want to rewrite this. It doesn’t convey enough, it’s not strong enough aside from being cliché. 

I want to build this up better, decide what will make this book and its subsequent series engaging to readers invested in this genre. When the reader gives the book their time, what will they gain back? That sort of thing. This goes for the whole of the book - the conflict, the plot, and fixing the pacing.

[hellbenderr]

Betabooks is truly helping me live the present I want to. rn I'm reading a sci-fi/speculative fiction sexual comedy. It's weird as fuck and my opinions are going to straight to the author >:)

[grim-faux]

Thinking about buying that subscription for BetaBooks so I can actually do stuff and not use it as a storage unit for my book.

Ah, did I mention I wrote a whole damn book? I have mentioned a few times. But for my new followers, if you’re interested, I have written a whole damn book that is part of a series I am working on.

This year I plan to get the manuscript and elements sent off for publishing inquiries. For those of you who don’t know, when you market your work for publishing you have to make up a whole portfolio before you can think about sending off completed manuscripts. 

The book itself needs revision work, and I know what I want to change more or less. But I need more feedback on what of the book works and what doesn’t. Such as, the story doesn’t have a huge-massive climax peak and fall. It has a peak, but the descent is sort of mellow. Considering the story primarily follows a protag who has tepid connection to the world she is in.

I work from this angle of she’s being subjected to a sort of H.P. Lovecraftian horror footnote, she experiences violent events as a spectator and tries to interpret them for the reader. The big HOWEVER is that she is absolutely NOT a reliable narrator, and certain biases and other pieces of her persona get in the way of her judgment. That’s is an factor of her character flaws.

All of this sort of information I have to include with the package portfolio before I can start inquiring to publishers if they want to buy this work. If the publisher is interested, they want to know everything and they’ll judge the work hard if it’s not well thought out or planned to its fullest.

Basically the same way you would apply for a job you want. Know everything about the field of work, market yourself as appropriate for the role and the best candidate.

If you plan to ever write and work to publish a work, really think about the material you are writing and the story you want to tell. And if working this portfolio seems like a lot of work to put into something a publisher might not take interest in, remind yourself this is essentially you putting your time into the job you want to do. Especially if you are still in middle school or high school, and you want to pursue the creative writing or path of literature - part of the process is writing your book, the other portion (arguably most important) is the content you want to showcase as the material you put into the work. 

[devildoll]

i don't think betabooks is affiliated with google! i think the original post was just saying to google the website/app called betabooks

Oh, good to know! I was probably predisposed to think it was a Google product because for some reason there’s a lot of stuff about Google as a company on my dash lately. Mostly negative.

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