Choosing The Wrong Beta Reader Almost Killed My Motivation

Описание: When people find out I'm writing a book, one of the first things they usually say is that they want to read it. And while this is coming from a supportive, curious place, the truth is that not everyone should read your work in the early stages of development.

Most people won't know how to give CONSTRUCTIVE or helpful feedback. Not everyone is going to be in the target audience of your work, so their feedback, while well intentioned, could be pointing you in the completely wrong direction. And in some cases, as with beta reader 5, their feedback could send you spiraling and damage your motivation as a writer.

We don't owe anyone a read-through of our Work In Progress, and that's not always an easy pill for our friends and family to swallow. But ultimately, we've got to protect our creative process.

Let in the people who you know will have RELEVANT feedback for your work. The people who are also writers, who know what the process of writing actually looks like, and how to give feedback that is helpful. The people who the book is aimed at, and can give you a sense of what the target audience is thinking and feeling in relation to your work.

Even at the best of times, receiving feedback on a manuscript that took years to write is not going to be comfortable. So choosing the right people to read your work is key to moving through that with effective momentum.

Tell me your experiences with beta readers, or if you have any tips for me!

00:00 Introduction
01:28 Beta Reader 1 & 2
04:30 Beta Reader 3 & 4
07:25 Beta Reader 5
14:30 Professional Beta Reader