Seeking Beta Readers for "Trip the Light Scholastic" · 5:59pm May 28th, 2020
Howdy, y'all.
With the next chapter of Trip the Light Scholastic nearing completion, I've decided that I want to take this project a bit more seriously. It originally started as a side project while I worked on other stories in the same universe, but it has come to take up the majority of my time and attention. I'm really happy with how it's turned out so far, but I want to make it the best it can be.
To that end, and as per the title, I'm looking for beta readers. Right now I'm working entirely on my own, and while I'd like to believe that I'm immune to the effects of an echo chamber, I recognize that it would probably help the story to get a few different perspectives before any given chapter goes live. Can't hurt, at least!
If you think this is something that might interest you, please continue reading past the break to get more details on what exactly I'm looking for.
I'm generally pretty confident in my writing from a mechanical standpoint, so I'm not necessarily looking for someone to point out spelling and grammar flubs. By all means point them out if you see them, but that's not the primary feedback I'm hoping for. What I need is feedback on story structure, pacing, and conveyance. Specifically, here are a few things I would want you to call out:
Word Choice: Does one word appear too frequently, or in too close succession? Does a word feel out of place, and do you think a different word would work better? Do the words fit the characters (specifically Sunset Shimmer, in terms of the narration)?
Sentence & Paragraph Structure: Am I using one kind of sentence structure too much? Are my sentences and/or paragraphs too long? Should I combine certain sentences/paragraphs? Split them up? Does the layout of a sentence/paragraph make sense?
Dialogue: Does the dialogue sound natural? Do the characters sound like themselves? Are they consistent in their dialogue throughout the story? Am I adding too much narration in dialogue-heavy scenes? Too little?
Plot Conveyance: Do the events of the story make sense to you? Are they conveyed clearly without being too blunt (show, don't tell)? Is there adequate foreshadowing, or do you think certain things come out of nowhere?
Pacing: How does the chapter feel overall? Too fast? Too slow? Are there certain scenes that should be longer? Shorter? Does this scene need to be here? Does it feel like there's a scene missing? Is there a reasonable balance of action and dialogue?
Thematic Relevance: Are the story's themes clear to you? Do all of the events tie in clearly to a certain theme? Does the writing reflect these themes? Are they being handled with the appropriate care and nuance? Should a certain theme be explored more in-depth? (If you would like to be a beta reader, I will share the exact themes I'm gunning for through PM.)
Now, obviously this is a lot. And I'm not expecting anyone to touch on all of these for every single chapter. Any feedback you can provide will be helpful, even just a sentence or two regarding your overall feelings with the chapter. For me, the main point of having beta readers is just to get a few different perspectives so that I'm not only basing my decisions on my own thoughts and preferences. Also, you don't have to commit to being a beta reader for the whole story. If you'd just like to help with one chapter, that's totally fine.
If you think this is something you'd be interested in, please either PM me or leave a comment below stating as much. From there I'll contact you and answer any questions, comments, or concerns you may have. Then, once the next chapter is ready, I'll send you a link to it in Google Docs where you'll be free to add comments to your heart's content.
Thank you in advance to anyone who reaches out! As for the story itself, I'll hopefully have the next chapter ready to go within a week or so. Apologies for the long waits in between updates—real life is eating up the bulk of my time, and I'm a slow writer to begin with. Bear with me!
Keep on keeping on,
–Argon
I know fuck all about paragraph or sentence structure, but I can try to help with the rest.
I've done Beta Reading and proof reading before, but it was several years ago. Regardless, I'm willing to help out.
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Thank you both for offering to help! I'll be contacting you with a link to the next chapter in short order, once this most recent draft is finished. Should be within the next couple of days.
I can definitely try and help out. I've only done a tiny bit of beta reading in the past, but I promise I'll try my best!
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I appreciate it! Once I finish up the last draft of the next chapter, I'll contact you with more information and a link.