WANTED: Beta Readers

ASparrow · 05-25-2010, 01:09 PM

I'm getting close to finishing revisions on my new novel LETHE, and was wondering if someone would be willing to read it and keep a log of errors?

I have 4 chapters more to revise (out of 68 total) and the novel will run between 85-90k works once complete. After this, I'll be making another pass of copy-edits, but I expect to finish by mid-June.

To make sure this might be your cup of tea, LETHE is a re-imagining of the afterlife, very loosely based on Dante's Purgatorio, all told in the first person, present tense perspective of a young man who is attempting to return to life.

This work will be posted on Smashwords for free when it's ready.

JSWolf · 05-25-2010, 01:16 PM

I'm not a beta reader. I know how to read very well. I'm well past beta stage into full release.

ASparrow · 05-25-2010, 01:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I'm not a beta reader. I know how to read very well. I'm well past beta stage into full release.

Yeah, but I hear you're a little buggy in certain browsers. Should I wait for the upgrade?

ASparrow · 05-26-2010, 08:01 PM

Anyone who wants a free preview of LETHE, it will be up on Smashwords for 24 Hours (Thursday, 27 May to Friday 28 May) to make it accessible to Beta readers, after which I will pull it off-line until its ready for full distribution.

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/15436

It's currently in the conversion queue (#383). Be warned that it may contain formatting errors, typos and missing or extra words at this stage.

Thanks to those who've contacted me privately to do Beta reading. There's always room for more. (We also accept alpha readers of all persuasions).

ASparrow · 05-27-2010, 04:52 PM

So it looks like the conversion worked okay. The Beta version of LETHE just went live on Smashwords.

You can find it for free for the next 24 hours at:

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/15436

jaxx6166 · 05-27-2010, 09:39 PM

Sparrow, I love it. I wouldn't have ever thought to use SW for a beta read download. I hope it works out and you get useful feedback. Let us know how your experiment works out. I'd help you out if I had more time. I feel bad I still haven't read Xenolith yet. It's sitting in my TBR pile gathering dust right now

ASparrow · 05-28-2010, 01:03 PM

No problem. I'm quite familiar with the reading backlog problem. I've solved mine by abandoning any pretense of reading complete books and concentrating all my effort on output (for now).

Perhaps by the time you get around to reading Xenolith, its sequel (Peregrin) will be ready. I'm aiming for three novel releases with zero attempted agent queries in one year. (I released Xenolith in October, 2009). I have 20 chapters out of sixty revised, but I just realized that story continuity will require a few new chapters to be written.

As for Lethe, I'm going to leave it accessible on Smashwords for the rest of today and then take it off-line for all of June. I'm hoping to release the final version by July 1. Thanks to those who've downloaded copies. I'd love to get your feedback even its only a few words.

(And I fully understand if some folks find themselves unable to read the whole book. Lethe's a very odd story, written in an odd style, with a foul-mouthed character and a tainted perspective on religion).

omk3 · 05-28-2010, 02:08 PM

You just got me intrigued

I haven't read Xenolith either, but I'll download Lethe and give it a try. I love how independent authors ask the help of their readers for error-spotting and I'll be glad to help.

Just a question, how come it's not free but "you set the price"?

ASparrow · 05-28-2010, 03:49 PM

I use "You Set the Price" because Smashwords won't distribute free books to outlets like Apple or Barnes and Noble (or more like these outlets won't accept free books). Thus, I can keep it free at SW and just assign a price for other places to use.

(More for visibility than for cash. I'm not in this for money. I write to feed my disease. I get nervous when I go too long without creating. There's probably a word for kind sort of disorder somewhere.)

omk3 · 05-28-2010, 04:05 PM

Oh, I only meant for the beta version

I understand the urge to create, but there's nothing wrong with making some money as well if you can. I wasn't criticizing you in any way.
Thanks for the explanation though.

ASparrow · 05-28-2010, 04:08 PM

No criticism taken. You couldn't tell by my body language?

But true. I should have just made it free. Silly me.

But, here today, it will be gone tomorrow.

kacir · 05-28-2010, 04:43 PM

I have downloaded the book.
Will report how I like it.

ASparrow · 05-28-2010, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kacir

I have downloaded the book.
Will report how I like it.

Thanks! And feel free to report how you don't like it. Even if it's just a visceral reaction. I learn lots that way, even if it's something general like an off-putting tone. It doesn't always mean that I'll change something but the range of reader reaction is always informative (and diverse).

Xenolith (another oddly structured story), for example, has two interwoven, almost independent plots. Most folks prefer the plot involving a character (Frank) from our world. A minority prefer the plot involving a character from the other world (Seor). I tried to bolster the second plot after initial reader comments to no avail. No matter what I did, people still preferred to hang out with Frank.

(Personally, I relate more to Seor, she's boring and diffident like me).

ASparrow · 05-28-2010, 07:54 PM

Lethe is now closed for business until July 1.

Thanks a lot y'all. I look forward to learning from your impressions.

In the meantime, here's a shoddy trailer I slapped together:

jaxx6166 · 05-29-2010, 08:44 PM

Pretty neat for being shoddy. Keynote / iMovie?

05-25-2010, 01:09 PM	#1
ASparrow Addict Posts: 355 Karma: 600000 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston Device: Palm TX	Lethe is now unavailable until July 1: Thanks Beta Readers! I'm getting close to finishing revisions on my new novel LETHE, and was wondering if someone would be willing to read it and keep a log of errors? I have 4 chapters more to revise (out of 68 total) and the novel will run between 85-90k works once complete. After this, I'll be making another pass of copy-edits, but I expect to finish by mid-June. To make sure this might be your cup of tea, LETHE is a re-imagining of the afterlife, very loosely based on Dante's Purgatorio, all told in the first person, present tense perspective of a young man who is attempting to return to life. This work will be posted on Smashwords for free when it's ready. Last edited by ASparrow; 05-28-2010 at 08:18 PM.

05-28-2010, 04:08 PM	#11
ASparrow Addict Posts: 355 Karma: 600000 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston Device: Palm TX	No criticism taken. You couldn't tell by my body language? But true. I should have just made it free. Silly me. But, here today, it will be gone tomorrow. Last edited by ASparrow; 05-28-2010 at 04:10 PM.

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05-25-2010, 01:16 PM	#2
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,897 Karma: 128597114 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	I'm not a beta reader. I know how to read very well. I'm well past beta stage into full release.

05-26-2010, 08:01 PM	#4
ASparrow Addict Posts: 355 Karma: 600000 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston Device: Palm TX	Anyone who wants a free preview of LETHE, it will be up on Smashwords for 24 Hours (Thursday, 27 May to Friday 28 May) to make it accessible to Beta readers, after which I will pull it off-line until its ready for full distribution. http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/15436 It's currently in the conversion queue (#383). Be warned that it may contain formatting errors, typos and missing or extra words at this stage. Thanks to those who've contacted me privately to do Beta reading. There's always room for more. (We also accept alpha readers of all persuasions).

05-27-2010, 04:52 PM	#5
ASparrow Addict Posts: 355 Karma: 600000 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston Device: Palm TX	So it looks like the conversion worked okay. The Beta version of LETHE just went live on Smashwords. You can find it for free for the next 24 hours at: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/15436

05-27-2010, 09:39 PM	#6
jaxx6166 Wizard Posts: 1,222 Karma: 769316 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Eternal summer Device: 350, iPad, PW	Sparrow, I love it. I wouldn't have ever thought to use SW for a beta read download. I hope it works out and you get useful feedback. Let us know how your experiment works out. I'd help you out if I had more time. I feel bad I still haven't read Xenolith yet. It's sitting in my TBR pile gathering dust right now

05-28-2010, 01:03 PM	#7
ASparrow Addict Posts: 355 Karma: 600000 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston Device: Palm TX	No problem. I'm quite familiar with the reading backlog problem. I've solved mine by abandoning any pretense of reading complete books and concentrating all my effort on output (for now). Perhaps by the time you get around to reading Xenolith, its sequel (Peregrin) will be ready. I'm aiming for three novel releases with zero attempted agent queries in one year. (I released Xenolith in October, 2009). I have 20 chapters out of sixty revised, but I just realized that story continuity will require a few new chapters to be written. As for Lethe, I'm going to leave it accessible on Smashwords for the rest of today and then take it off-line for all of June. I'm hoping to release the final version by July 1. Thanks to those who've downloaded copies. I'd love to get your feedback even its only a few words. (And I fully understand if some folks find themselves unable to read the whole book. Lethe's a very odd story, written in an odd style, with a foul-mouthed character and a tainted perspective on religion).

05-28-2010, 02:08 PM	#8
omk3 Wizard Posts: 1,454 Karma: 37243 Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Europe Device: pocketbook 360, kindle 4	You just got me intrigued I haven't read Xenolith either, but I'll download Lethe and give it a try. I love how independent authors ask the help of their readers for error-spotting and I'll be glad to help. Just a question, how come it's not free but "you set the price"?

05-28-2010, 03:49 PM	#9
ASparrow Addict Posts: 355 Karma: 600000 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston Device: Palm TX	I use "You Set the Price" because Smashwords won't distribute free books to outlets like Apple or Barnes and Noble (or more like these outlets won't accept free books). Thus, I can keep it free at SW and just assign a price for other places to use. (More for visibility than for cash. I'm not in this for money. I write to feed my disease. I get nervous when I go too long without creating. There's probably a word for kind sort of disorder somewhere.)

05-28-2010, 04:05 PM	#10
omk3 Wizard Posts: 1,454 Karma: 37243 Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Europe Device: pocketbook 360, kindle 4	Oh, I only meant for the beta version I understand the urge to create, but there's nothing wrong with making some money as well if you can. I wasn't criticizing you in any way. Thanks for the explanation though.

05-28-2010, 04:43 PM	#12
kacir Wizard Posts: 3,450 Karma: 10484861 Join Date: May 2006 Device: PocketBook 360, before it was Sony Reader, cassiopeia A-20	I have downloaded the book. Will report how I like it.

05-28-2010, 07:54 PM	#14
ASparrow Addict Posts: 355 Karma: 600000 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Boston Device: Palm TX	Lethe is now closed for business until July 1. Thanks a lot y'all. I look forward to learning from your impressions. In the meantime, here's a shoddy trailer I slapped together:

Advert

Advert

05-29-2010, 08:44 PM	#15
jaxx6166 Wizard Posts: 1,222 Karma: 769316 Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Eternal summer Device: 350, iPad, PW	Pretty neat for being shoddy. Keynote / iMovie?