Quote:
Originally Posted by Rbneader
Try offering to beta read (i.e., edit) fanfiction. I know that some fanfic boards have groups you can join to beta.
|
Or you could offer beta reading to authors, indie or otherwise. Ilona Andrews had a call out with one of her recent books for beta readers. I can't remember how many she chose, but she sent it out to get some opinions. I work with a couple of authors on beta reads (outside of my editing business) some trad, some not.
If you read any indie authors (and like their overall work) you could offer to be a beta reader. Sometimes we have a work that needs a fresh set of eyes. Example: I recently wrote two short stories, one for the Moon Shadow Series and one for the Sedona Series. I needed a beta reader who hadn't read either series to see if the shorts held up without all the background info. Every beta reader I had at the time had already read the series. I found a guy to read the Moon Shadow series pretty easily to check a few points for me.
I am considering writing a cook book with recipes to help alleviate dry eye (this means recipes with a lot of walnuts, walnut oil, flax seeds, avocado, etc). If I decide to do the project, I'll be looking for beta readers AND beta cooks to test the recipes.
So there's opportunity out there. One of the ladies I use as a beta reader did quite a bit of it here and there (for me, two or three trad writers and some other indies) and now she runs a small side business doing some of it for about 20 dollars a manuscript. She doesn't consider herself a pro and isn't promising to catch every typo, but she gives it a good reading and lets you know what pops out at her.
So there's various avenues. You could also work with an editor and get some training there if one was willing to mentor you.