Looking for a beta reader/writing buddy

It's important that we all be on the same wavelength about terms when we look for readers to help us out with their feedback.

The term "beta reader" comes from the computer industry's beta testers, who'd use a program or play a game its creators thought was ready to market, seeking anything which might still be wrong with it so it could be fixed before going public.

For writers, a beta reader is the very last reader before a work is submitted to agents or publishers or is self-published. The work a beta reader goes over is complete. It has been edited for content and grammar, copy edited, proofread, spell checked, and polished to a tasteful gleam. It's totally ready to go.

It sounds like what you seek is critique. Which is fine, of course, and can be quite useful. With luck, using the right terms to ask for what you actually want will help you get it. Be aware, though, that new arrivals who have yet to make themselves a part of the community often don't get critique or beta reads when they ask. Both take time and expertise, not a gift bestowed on strangers.

I urge you to participate, including critique of other people's writing, and in no time you'll have the 50 posts required to post a part of your work at the appropriate Share Your Work board, all the while making yourself somebody we've seen around, like well enough, and who we might do a big favor for if time permits.

Maryn, pleased to meet you