Selling beta reading/amateur editing services on Fiverr

[Fiender]

I was wondering what experiences or advice anyone had about this topic. I've been looking for a work-at-home source of income outside customer service (which was hell before the pandemic, but now? ) and Fiverr is something my friend group uses for various, non-writing things. I've never used it personally but I've been considering selling some basic editing/beta reading/querying help for a while.

I understand the traditional advice regarding not paying for these 'services', but not everyone has the time or interest in reading other people's work (which they would also learn from, sure, but life is life and time is money). I'm definitely not interested in getting paid to tell someone 'oh your book is majestic and so perfect as-is', especially considering how opinionated I am.

Has anyone used Fiverr for writing-related things? Are there other, similar websites/communities out there, like Fiverr, that might be more appropriate?
Also, one worry I have is, if someone (cough, agent or publisher, cough) googled my name and found that I had beta read/did editing for pay, would that be a red flag that could interfere with my pursuing trade publishing? (Assuming I don't have a bunch of negative reviews or writer beware articles written about me).

 

[Unimportant]

I was wondering what experiences or advice anyone had about this topic. I've been looking for a work-at-home source of income outside customer service (which was hell before the pandemic, but now? ) and Fiverr is something my friend group uses for various, non-writing things. I've never used it personally but I've been considering selling some basic editing/beta reading/querying help for a while.

I understand the traditional advice regarding not paying for these 'services', but not everyone has the time or interest in reading other people's work (which they would also learn from, sure, but life is life and time is money). I'm definitely not interested in getting paid to tell someone 'oh your book is majestic and so perfect as-is', especially considering how opinionated I am.

Has anyone used Fiverr for writing-related things? Are there other, similar websites/communities out there, like Fiverr, that might be more appropriate?
Also, one worry I have is, if someone (cough, agent or publisher, cough) googled my name and found that I had beta read/did editing for pay, would that be a red flag that could interfere with my pursuing trade publishing? (Assuming I don't have a bunch of negative reviews or writer beware articles written about me).

Writers as esteemed as Debra Doyle and Nicola Griffith have advertised editing-for-pay services, so I can't think that there is any stigma attached to it. As long as there is no conflict of interest (e.g. pay me enough and I will send your manuscript to my literary agent), and as long as you are up front about your abilities and credentials, it should be a simple business proposition and not something to be viewed negatively.

I don't even know what fivrr is, though, so I can't comment on that.

 

[stephenf]

There are some that actuly do make money by offering services on Fiver . What you are offering can be offered by anybody and is very time consuming . I believe your unlikely to earn much , if anything. But , it it is free to register , so give it a go .

 

[CWNitz]

I've talked to some writers who hired beta readers, and plan on hiring one myself at some point.

The thing is, there's no indication on whether a beta reader is good or not on Fiverr, since anyone can get good ratings easily. So it usually works more by word of mouth. You'll want to build a network of writers who trust you to deliver good feedback.

 

[Bing Z]

I personally have not been to Fiverr and do not know the pricing of beta for pay there, But...

A friend has used a couple of them (about the time when the pandemic first struck). I think he paid less than $100 for the two, with turnaround time of about 3 to 5 days. He was happy about their feedback, which was encouraging for him, which I was kind of reserved because I have read part of his MS and IMO he needed a lot of work.

Assuming what my friend had paid for is about the going rate, you probably need to be a horribly fast reader to make it worthwhile if you aim to provide the quality of betareading you do/get here. You may have to adjust how you read (& skip) and how you provide feedback. It needs to be a viable business style.

OTOH, if the going rate is $200+, that's a whole different ball game.

As for identity, you can use an alias for those jobs, no?

 

[mccardey]

If you look at Reedsy, they have a minimum-tradepublished-works requirement (can't remember what it is, but I think 5 or 6?) and that seemed fair to me. I'm published, but I'd feel a bit awks about charging for a beta read.

On the other hand, I feel about awks about most things - but if you don't, I guess, why not do it? Beta-reading, anyway. (I'd think for paid editing, you'd really need a background in editing. Because that's more of a professional thing.)

 

[Jazz Club]

A friend has used a couple of them (about the time when the pandemic first struck). I think he paid less than $100 for the two, with turnaround time of about 3 to 5 days.

Some on fiverr are offering to do it for $50 which seems very low to me, but they must think it's worth their while. I've heard several people say they can be quite good, and I think the advice about not paying for beta reading has been changing recently. A lot of people complain the non-paying ones flake out or take months to complete so they're turning to paid ones.

I'd be surprised if anyone thought any less of you for doing that type of work, but of course people can have their own weird prejudices.

 

[Al X.]

I actually found my editor on Fiverr, but she has since gone freelance. I've also used it for cover art as well. I lucked out with my editor in terms of quality and economy, but I've had mixed experiences with cover art, which can be had quite cheaply.

 

[gothicangel]

Personally, I would want to see your CV first before handing over any cash. Otherwise, I don't see how it's any different from hooking up with a Beta reader via SYW for free. I'm not against paying for editing services, but if I did I would want a solid track record with experience in the publishing industry from the likes of Cornerstones (https://cornerstones.co.uk/) even if it did cost more.