Getting Opinions

If you've been writing for a fair amount of time, you've probably heard the term "beta reader" before.

What is a beta reader?

A beta reader is like a test reader.

Writers will send their unpublished book to them before they go about publishing and they get their opinion.

It sounds scary, right?

But it's actually really helpful.

Getting another person's opinion is one of the best ways to edit.

What about the term "alpha reader"? Have you ever heard people talk about them?

What is an alpha reader?

This is the reader or readers that get to see your WIP at the worst state you're willing to share it at.

They're the people you send your rough draft, or a draft rougher than what you send to your beta reader to.

They give you advice, help you figure things out, and basically are the first people besides yourself to ever lay eyes on your work. And usually, at this stage, your work is far from finished.

They help you begin the editing process.

Not everyone uses alpha readers, but I'd recommend, if you're going to have beta readers, to at least have one person who reads your book before you send it off to beta readers.

Why are alpha readers and beta readers or just getting others opinions on your writing helpful?

You can never read your writing like a first time reader.

This is true.

Even if you go into reading it with that mindset, you've created it. You know everything about what happens and everything about the characters. There is no build up or character developement. No surprises. No plot twists.

A lot of things that probably make your book so interesting and fun are things you can never experience because you know everything about the story. This is true especially when you have been working on the book a lot. You can get something close to a first time reader experience if you take a step back and don't work on it for around a month, but it will never be the same.

When you share your work with someone else, even though it's nerve-wracking, you get the opinion of a first time reader—of someone who has never read your book.

I find this really helpful for both suspenseful writing and romance.

With suspense, you need tension and build-up. But when you know everything that's going to happen, it's almost impossible to figure out if you have that. The best way to figure out if you have it is to ask someone else.

This same thing goes for romance, and I believe I've talked about this before in the Sea of Genres post for romance.

With romance, you have to have tension as well, and your characters need chemistry. It's always hard as a writer to figure out if they have that. But if you get the opinion of an outside source who has never read the book before, you can figure out if they do have tension and chemistry.

Getting another's opinion and getting constructive criticism is an important part of getting ready to send your book out into the world.

Choose someone you trust.

Sharing your writing for the first time can be daunting.

So when choosing your first alpha or beta reader, you want to choose someone you trust. You need to know they will be honest, but not harsh, and trust them to be able to share your writing.

Your book is your creation that you've been pouring your heart into for months, maybe years. When you first share it, it's going to be scary. But if you share it with someone you trust, you will benefit from it more and it will be less scary.

For an alpha reader especially, definitely make sure they're going to give you their honest opinion and not just say "I love it all," when they really don't or tear your work apart without being constructive. Neither of those things help anyone.

After choosing whoever your alpha or beta readers are, make sure to let them know what being a beta or alpha reader entails. They're not reading this book solely for enjoyment. They're reading it to edit it and give you feedback.

Don't let fear keep you from sharing your work.

In the writing world, you will have to learn to accept criticism and learn from it instead of taking it personally.

Don't let the fear of criticism keep you from sharing your work and learning about things to do better. None of us are perfect writers and we always have stuff to learn. So getting advice and getting others' opinions is just one more way to make your book even better.

Editing is a long process, and part of that process is sharing your work. I know it's scary, but you can do it!

And of course, above all, it is your opinion that matters the most.

If someone thinks you should change something in your book that you don't want to change, you don't have to change it.

It is your writing. It's your book.

Above all, you need to do what you want to do and what makes you proud of your work. Your happiness with it is what matters most.

So don't change anything you don't want to change.

You have the right to disregard others' advice, but it doesn't hurt to have it.

I hope you all found this blog post helpful! Be brave and share your work my lovely writers! You can do it!

I love you all and wish you the best of luck on your beta-reader-finding/alpha-reader-finding/getting-others'-opinions endeavors!

Happy writing!

-Jocelyn