Beta Swap: First three chapters - Contemporary

Klazart · Jun 26, 2011

Hey all,

I'm looking for people who enjoy reading mainstream/contemporary/literary fiction to swap reads with. If you enjoy Ian McEwan, Ian Banks (The Wasp factory) (Ian M Banks) or loved Catcher in the Rye, you would be my ideal reader.

I enjoy reading all sorts and Sci-fi is my favorite genre, but for this swap I'd like to focus on people who are also writing literary/mainstream/contemporary fiction.

I've already had some great advice on the full manuscript from a Beta reader and have incorporated it into the MS. But she agrees that the first three chapters need a bit more feedback and range of opinions to get them to the level where an agent will want to request the full.

I'm looking more for a 'what works, what doesn't work, what makes you want to keep reading or makes you want to not read on,' approach rather than a detailed line by line polish/grammar edit.

Synopsis:

When his life and the lives of his friends are turned upside down by a series of catastrophic events, Jamie Finch, a young University student in Dublin, begins to suspect that he is a fictional character in a novel being written by an increasingly callous narrator.

Opening paragraph:

The first time I tried to kill myself? Hold on... give me a second... It's not that I don't exactly remember, it's just, when you're talking about something like that, you know, killing yourself, it's pretty heavy stuff, you want to make sure you get the details right. Most people, when they ask me about it, they don't really care about the details. Most people want to know why. You know, why would any sane person want to end their own life? It's just something that people find so damn unfathomable. Because after all, life is fucking precious, and a gift, and you only live once, and someone gave birth to you once, and they held you in their arms, and they looked in your eyes, and they had these hopes and dreams for you, and thought about where you would go and what you would be, and if you told them then, when they'd just spent nine months with you inside of them, and when they we're looking at you like that, like you were the world. If you told them then, that you we're going to kill yourself someday, long before your time; well, that would just break their god damn heart. So why would you want to do that? I'll get to the why later, because like I said before, it's the details that are really important.

Thanks and look forward to swapping with you.

Sentosa · Jun 26, 2011

Not sure I qualify.

My first name's not Ian :tongue

Klazart · Jun 26, 2011

Well Ian Banks and Ian M banks are the same person. He adds the M for his sci-fi.

Those two just happen to be my favorite writers. But I'll read anything maintstream/contemp/lit as long as it isn't chick lit.

bananamelissa · Jun 27, 2011

I read the full on this and I really enjoyed it! The story is very unique and has a very smooth and personal narrative voice to it. I hope somebody jumps in and helps out on this one because it's really a great story and in its final stages.

Klazart · Jun 28, 2011

bananamelissa said:
I read the full on this and I really enjoyed it! The story is very unique and has a very smooth and personal narrative voice to it. I hope somebody jumps in and helps out on this one because it's really a great story and in its final stages.

Thanks bananamelissa! You have been so helpful and supportive. I'm really lucky to have snagged such a great beta reader.

Endless gratitude.

Beta Swap: First three chapters - Contemporary

Klazart

Sentosa

Klazart

bananamelissa

Climbing the mountain of life

Klazart