Beta Readers, CPs and Self-Editing

I open my file, glance with trepidation at the myriad red marks and comment bubbles throughout, and promptly close it again.  I just can’t.  Not right now.



Under no circumstance should you attempt to single-handedly edit your story.  There are several glaring reasons why, as the author, you are uniquely UNqualified to do so.  For one thing, if you have tendencies toward a certain grammatical error, you aren’t going to notice it as you’re reading through.  I, for one, use entirely too many commas when I’m writing quickly.  Oh, great.  Now you’re looking back through this post and nodding to yourself.  “She’s right,” you’re thinking.  “That’s a lot of commas.”

You’ve also got much too much invested in the story to be a credible source of information.  You know the characters and the environments too well to be able to immediately spot problems.  Perhaps you’ve failed to describe a relationship between two characters, and your readers are left wondering how the two have anything to do with one another.  You know, in your head, how they are related.  You may not see the lack of written evidence of said relationship when you’re reading through.

There are dozens more reasons why editing on your own is simply a bad idea.  Certainly, you should go over your work.  You want to write, and rewrite, until you have as polished a draft as you can possibly create.  You want to take some time away from it, so it isn’t so fresh, and then return to rewrite some more.  Ask yourself hard questions about what any given passage adds to the story—if anything.  And, when it feels complete, hand it off to someone else.  Critique Partners or Beta Readers are both great for this, and although your mom might help you find some of your spelling mistakes, you can’t entirely trust her judgement as she’s likely inherently biased in your favor.

I guarantee that you’ll be shocked when it gets back to you, all marked up with red.  You’ll read through the comments and think to yourself, “How could this be?  How could I have missed so much?  Maybe I should give up on writing all together!”  You agonize over each change, contemplating them as you painstakingly work your way through.  Satisfied at last, you hand it off to someone else—

Who has discovered an entirely different set of issues.

Don’t worry, my friend.  You aren’t alone.  Everyone needs the invaluable input of others in order to craft a finished product that they can be proud of.  Don’t rush the process.  Instead, try to enjoy it!  Be thankful for all those willing to take the time and effort to help, whether they are an objective acquaintance, a paid professional, or both.  Preferably both. 🙂


Published by R. F. Hurteau

The point at which reality blurs with imagination is usually where I am to be found. I'm already on my fifth cup of coffee.

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1 Comment

  1. Reblogged this on Ann Malley and commented:
    Don’t walk away, Renée–that Left Banke ’60’s classic–was a memorable song from my growing up. Why? I was almost named Renée–far more exotic than Ann, but there you go. My mom cooked plain food, too.

    As fate would have it, though, I’m not able to walk away.

    Good thing or else I’d be missing out! So here I am with another insightful Renée–aspiring author Renée Hurteau–whose on point advice for writers is absolutely golden.

    Write on!


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