Thursday, July 11, 2013

Beta Readers Alert!

Well, I've finished my round of editing, and now Children of a Legend is ready for some criticism. I'm calling on Beta readers, folks. 

If you're not totally sure what the whole deal of a Beta reader is, let me just give you a quick run-through of what I'll expect from you. Don't panic, it's basically a willingness to read and give me your honest thoughts, whether they be good, bad, or in-between. I don't want a simple, "That was a good book." or "I enjoyed it." I'm looking for something deeper. For example, "I really liked the way (insert name) did or said this." or "Chapter (insert number) didn't seem to fit in the general flow of the story." Please, please, please be specific with what you either liked or didn't like, and let me know if you come across any grammatical errors or typos. I think I may have cleaned up most of those in my first round of editing, but there may be some that escaped my notice. And don't be afraid to let the criticism go long! The more, the better!
Okay, now that I've briefed you in that, here's what I'm going to do. Anyone who wants to be a Beta reader for CoaL, please email me at liannetaimenlore(at)gmail(dot)com. I can send you the first half of the novel in PDF format (which I'm assuming is the easy and traditional way to go), or if you don't fancy staring at a computer screen to critic my work, I can give you a link that will take you to where you can purchase a tangible proof copy of the novel. 
So, why only half the novel in the PDF? Here's why: I know there are many people out there who want to read CoaL, and I have to say, based on the lovely comments you guys have left for me, I'm very highly flattered. And I want people to read it, but it just needs that last minute spit polish to make it shine before I present it to the world. However, I don't want to just go and give away the entire story to people who really don't want to help me give CoaL that spit-shine it needs. In the first round of emails I'll be sending out, I'll only be sending you half the story. If you show me that you are truly interested in CoaL, and provide the feedback I'm looking for (i.e. deeper thoughts rather than just a "I liked it."), then I will include you in the second round of emails in which you'll receive the second half of CoaL in a PDF. 
I realize that sounds really bad, but you'll have to excuse me. I'm a writer, I tend to be insane because I am one, and CoaL right now is what you would call my precious. I'm still tentative to have other people rip it apart, but I know it'll be good for me. But I'm only starting with one half, to let myself get used to it. 
So, please, please email me (look above for the address!). I'll be sending out the PDF hopefully sometime next week, so I'd like to get all the names in as soon as possible! If you want the physical proof copy, let me know in an email, and I'll send you the link to purchase it (yes, you will have to buy it yourself, I do apologize). 
God bless!

1 comment:

  1. You have a whole slew of Beta readers over here! Unfortunately, we may need some TTT, if you know what I mean. We are all in an uproar as we wrestle literally and figuratively over your novel!

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