Post by myrabeth on Jun 9, 2018 7:47:45 GMT -8
I'm a reckless little trapeze artist of a writer, usually working without a net. My normal writing "process" (I'm not sure if what I do can qualify as a process) has no outline, few notes, and -worst of all- no beta. I've had in-fandom friends read over stuff before it's published a few times, but not often, and not as a formalized beta arrangement.
I spend a lot of time wondering if I should change that. Much of that time is when I'm cringing in horror on finding a typo or missing word in a published chapter, and scrambling to edit it before one more person sees my mistake. But that immediately triggers the thought that I can beta my own work. I need only slow down and be patient enough to look more closely over chapters before they are posted.
There's also my perfectionist streak, not wanting anything seen that isn't "ready for prime time" to contend with. But is a chapter ready to be seen without a second set of eyes looking over it? I know I've gotten better about catching my goofs since I began posting stories. The shabby, typo-ridden state of Echoes 1 when compared to its sequel makes that obvious. But I still don't catch every typo.
I also have some personal typing quirks that are incorrect, but I dislike the appearance of doing them correctly, so I intentionally opt out. I detest the look of the em dash, for example, and will use single or double en dashes instead. I've tried to shift my use of "ok" to the more widely accepted "OK" ("okay" is just a bridge too far for me), but it looks weird to me, so I've been shifting back of late. Those are just two examples of habits that would likely drive a decent beta around the bend.
I know some betas perform less mechanical tasks than typo-catching, looking for continuity errors, plot holes, etc. Those are things I usually catch myself. Again, a second set of eyes wouldn't hurt, but I don't feel they are absolutely necessary.
So what are your thoughts on having a beta? Under what circumstances is one necessary? Do you think every writer should have at least one? Do you think I should?
I spend a lot of time wondering if I should change that. Much of that time is when I'm cringing in horror on finding a typo or missing word in a published chapter, and scrambling to edit it before one more person sees my mistake. But that immediately triggers the thought that I can beta my own work. I need only slow down and be patient enough to look more closely over chapters before they are posted.
There's also my perfectionist streak, not wanting anything seen that isn't "ready for prime time" to contend with. But is a chapter ready to be seen without a second set of eyes looking over it? I know I've gotten better about catching my goofs since I began posting stories. The shabby, typo-ridden state of Echoes 1 when compared to its sequel makes that obvious. But I still don't catch every typo.
I also have some personal typing quirks that are incorrect, but I dislike the appearance of doing them correctly, so I intentionally opt out. I detest the look of the em dash, for example, and will use single or double en dashes instead. I've tried to shift my use of "ok" to the more widely accepted "OK" ("okay" is just a bridge too far for me), but it looks weird to me, so I've been shifting back of late. Those are just two examples of habits that would likely drive a decent beta around the bend.
I know some betas perform less mechanical tasks than typo-catching, looking for continuity errors, plot holes, etc. Those are things I usually catch myself. Again, a second set of eyes wouldn't hurt, but I don't feel they are absolutely necessary.
So what are your thoughts on having a beta? Under what circumstances is one necessary? Do you think every writer should have at least one? Do you think I should?
