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Looking for Beta Readers for a 49k YA Fantasy!

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Adaeze

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Hello, my name is Adaeze Osuala. This is my first time using the 'water cooler' and I am looking for some writing buddies/beta readers. I understand for those who are beta readers invest a lot of time even hours of going through someones work, so I do want to appreciate your hard work and time. I don't have anything to offer but my work and I hope those who are interested in looking over my work can see value in it. Here is a synopsis:

Riddlis Denevell lived seventeen years of his life knowing who he was but wasn't aware of what he was going to become. When he is revealed about the truth of his murdered parents and who he truly is, he knows that a new path has been made for him. Almost in an instant, terrified yet thrilled he is thrust into dangerous situations along with his loyal protector Beaky and his lover Sapphire with the haunting reality that he must make deadly decisions. With the ability to control natural elements of the earth, he vows to take out the ones who threaten the safety and freedom of Ariebeth that not only belongs to the creatures who hold extraordinary powers but to him.

If you are at all interested in seeing just a couple of chapters to get a taste of the manuscript please do not hesitate to contact me!
Thank you for your time.:)
 
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DanielaTorre

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Just dropping in to say that 49K seems a very low in terms of word count for YA, and extremely low in terms for YA fantasy. Without even looking at it I can say that it probably lacks world building which is very important in fantasy. I hope you find an excellent beta reader that'll help you out! :)
 

Maryn

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Adaeze, I strongly urge you to edit your post to remove your email address. People who want to contact you can use AbsoluteWrite's private messages to get in touch, and from there you can swap emails.

AbsoluteWrite (and every other site) is beset with "spiders" who crawl it, harvesting emails which may be sold to spammers and worse. You don't want yours out there.
 

Adaeze

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Thank you for replying, since you say 49k is too low in YA Fantasy what is the average word count in YA Fantasy that is considered acceptable. And can you please further explain when you say 'world building'.

Thank you.
 

DanielaTorre

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Thank you for replying, since you say 49k is too low in YA Fantasy what is the average word count in YA Fantasy that is considered acceptable. And can you please further explain when you say 'world building'.

Thank you.

Hi Adaeze. Here's a link with average word count for different markets. You'll see that the sweet spot for YA Fantasy is between 65-85K. There are other resources you can google, but they are basically the same, give or take.

World building is a term used in fantasy and science fiction writing that basically means "building" the imaginary world by giving the reader a fleshed out glimpse into how that world works, its people, history, etc. For example, in "The Lord of the Rings" a lot of the world building come in by introducing the different races like hobbits and elves, and the surrounding world of Middle Earth with its cities and customs.

Taking from your synopsis, world building would entail filling the reader in on how Riddlis' powers work, where they came from, what his world and its people are like, some politics, a fleshing out of the land of Ariebeth and its creatures, etc.

Hope that helps.
 

Adaeze

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Thank you very much and indeed I found your advice very helpful. I am a young writer and I am learning everything I can so I can be better at what I love doing. I hope we can talk again.
 

Magnificent Bastard

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Hey there, and welcome aboard ;)

I'd be interested in checking this out, though I must warn you that I can be a somewhat harsh critic (I'll do my best to be nice, though). Character- and world-bulding are the things that I love, so if you need any help with that I can definitely find holes and ask tons of questions for you xD
Feel free to message me on here or just reply in this topic if you want.
 

Adaeze

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I would definitely want you to look over my work and find things that are lacking or things that need more work. And although you are a harsh critic, I think you would fit my needs perfectly and honesty won't be restrained.

Contact me how you would want to go further on this topic.:)
Thank you.
 
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