Tag Archives: beta reading

Saturday night and we’re doing the beta bop (well, and reviews)

Posted on February 14, 2015 by epbeaumont

Today in Minneapolis we had brilliant sun that cast icy-blue shadows on the snowy roofs, and that pale blue sky that tells you it’s colder than cold outside. So I hung out on my couch, chatted with folks on Twitter, … Continue reading →

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NaNoFeed: With (more than) a little help from my friends, or beta-reading as reward

Posted on December 11, 2012 by epbeaumont

Last night I finished the last cleanup of the zero-draft manuscript of Cleopatra’s Ironclads and sent it off to its first three beta-readers, along with the super-basic beta reading questionnaire that Devin Harnois and I developed for reading each other’s work. … Continue reading →

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NaNoFeed: what kind of novel did I write?

Posted on December 7, 2012 by epbeaumont

This week is very high-intensity at my day job, but next week things start to ebb a bit. Last night I made some calendar notes so I wouldn’t forget what I’d promised; in particular, I’m doing beta-reading for my good … Continue reading →

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Doing the Beta Bop: Nothing better than a friend with a big knife

Posted on July 4, 2012 by epbeaumont

There is a rich literature on procrastination and writing… well, it’s simple. We put off writing, because it means abandoning that perfect vision in our heads, in favor of butt in chair,  fingers on keyboard, brain downloading, which produces something … Continue reading →

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Doing the Beta Bop (Beta Reader Interviews): TruantPony, part 3 (Sex and the Single Story)

Posted on June 28, 2012 by epbeaumont

The Beta Bop is a social dance, and in this week’s three-part series of interviews, I’ll be talking with one of my favorite dance partners, TruantPony. Part 1, How You Do What You Do (including brief bio) is here, and Part 2, … Continue reading →

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Doing the Beta Bop (Beta Reader Interviews): TruantPony, part 2 (The Art and Science of the Beta)

Posted on June 27, 2012 by epbeaumont

The Beta Bop is a social dance, and in this week’s three-part series of interviews, I’ll be talking with one of my favorite dance partners, TruantPony. Part 1, How You Do What You Do (including brief bio) is here. Truant has … Continue reading →

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Doing the Beta Bop (Beta Reader Interviews): TruantPony, part 1 (How You Do What You Do)

Posted on June 26, 2012 by epbeaumont

The Beta Bop is a social dance, and in this week’s three-part series of interviews, I’ll be talking with one of my favorite dance partners, TruantPony. While we haven’t yet met in person, we’ve spent many delightful hours on chat … Continue reading →

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Summer NaNo: Three magical moments

Posted on June 2, 2012 by epbeaumont

Writing is full of magical moments. I’m in the middle of several of them right now: the glamour of first draft, the rewards of beta-reading, and the lessons of prolific production. There’s the night before creation, when the story starts … Continue reading →

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Doing the Beta Bop: What I get out of being a beta reader

Posted on May 2, 2012 by epbeaumont

One of the great things about beta reading other writers’ work is that it gets me out of myself and lets me leave my own stuff alone for a while. Now let’s get down to cases: most writers have a … Continue reading →

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Doing the Beta Bop: what I get from my beta-readers

Posted on April 25, 2012 by epbeaumont

Doing the Beta Bop Since I’ve been both giving and receiving beta-reading this year, I’ve been thinking a lot about the benefits. I’m going to explore this over a series of posts, including meditations on the mutual benefit of trading … Continue reading →

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