WANTED: Beta Readers

[kacir]

I am already on page 40/480 (reading in fbreader)
So far very interesting and unusual book.

[ASparrow]

Originally Posted by jaxx6166

Pretty neat for being shoddy. Keynote / iMovie?

Windows Movie Maker.

All images are personal point and shoot digital pictures,
taken in Ethiopia, Prince Edward Island, Acadia National Park, Sao Tome Island, The Catskills, Equatorial Guinea, Fruitlands and my backyard. Subtitles by Bannerfans.com.
Music by by Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - The Puppet Show.

[ASparrow]

Originally Posted by kacir

I am already on page 40/480 (reading in fbreader)
So far very interesting and unusual book.

Good to hear you made it that far in. Also glad to hear that it's interesting. I kind of sort of knew that it was unusual.

[kacir]

Originally Posted by ASparrow

Good to hear you made it that far in.

Well, I was very busy during the weekend and I had a book to finish before starting yours ;-)

Originally Posted by ASparrow

Also glad to hear that it's interesting.

The setting somehow resonates with my perception of how the afterlife might look if I believed in afterlife.
I remember seeing a movie where people went to an island after death and your status on island depended on how many people remembered you back here. If the last person forgot about you you simply disappeared, faded away. This movie left very deep impression on me.

Originally Posted by ASparrow

I kind of sort of knew that it was unusual.

Well, if you take into account that I normally read crime fiction, SfiFi (including hardcore military ones from Baen, space opera), some fantasy. My tastes are wide, but I would characterize my usual reading as "light stuff". I do not normally seek novels, or what is sometimes characterized as "serious prose".

[kacir]

I have just finished the book. Couldn't put it down.

... WOW! ...

Thank you very much for an opportunity to read such a nice and well written book.
It is been a long time since I read a book that I enjoyed THAT much. I finished the book yesterday evening and I am still smiling when I think about the (unexpected) ending.

I have found a few typos, and I found one (short ;-) ) chapter where I had to go back a few pages several times, but overall reading was very enjoyable experience.

I will PM longer review.

[ASparrow]

Great to hear!

Thanks for having a read. I'll look forward to your report.

[omk3]

I am one third in and enjoying it very much. I found it a little difficult to get into at first, put it gets more interesting with every page.

I found many tense and person inconsistencies throughout (I suddenly becomes they, present tense suddenly becomes past) but other than that it is very well written. I'm sending you details from what I've got till now by pm.

[ASparrow]

Originally Posted by omk3

I am one third in and enjoying it very much. I found it a little difficult to get into at first, put it gets more interesting with every page.

I found many tense and person inconsistencies throughout (I suddenly becomes they, present tense suddenly becomes past) but other than that it is very well written. I'm sending you details from what I've got till now by pm.

I was worried about the tense thing. I normally write in third person, past tense so I tended to lapse back into it as I wrote.

Thanks for the feedback.

[ASparrow]

FYI. Chapter 4 was particularly egregious, not only with regard to tense, but also due to clunky writing. I've gone in and taken care of some of it's problems.

[ASparrow]

LETHE is live again and available to all for free for the next 24 hours. I've fixed a formatting issue that put a space between paragraphs and I've also corrected dozens of typos in the first 1/3 of the book based on feedback from "omk3" (thanks!). I'll be taking it off-line again Friday night to prepare for the next round of revisions.

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

[SneakySnake]

yay its back. I downloaded it. Do you still need error reports? I may not be very good at that, but I will give it a go. I loved Xenolith, this should be good!

[ASparrow]

Originally Posted by SneakySnake

yay its back. I downloaded it. Do you still need error reports? I may not be very good at that, but I will give it a go. I loved Xenolith, this should be good!

I can always use more eyes, and you're quite good at it, actually. Every error caught makes the book better. It doesn't have to necessarily be proof editing, it could be pointing out logical inconsistencies, anachronisms, clunky dialogue, etc.

Thanks!

[ASparrow]

Yet another version is currently being uploaded, implementing some changes suggested by another kind reader.

[JamesMonaghan]

Hi,

My name is James, first time poster. I have started looking into indie writing recently for some of my own projects, and decided to take a look around here. When I saw your request, I thought I'd introduce myself and let you know that I have downloaded Lethe in order to help out, if that is okay? I've read the first chapter so far, some great writing, mixed with some less great writing, but the end of the chapter hooked me.

Anyway, I'll let you know what I think and what I pick up.

Thanks for the opportunity!

James

[ASparrow]

Originally Posted by JamesMonaghan

Hi,

My name is James, first time poster. I have started looking into indie writing recently for some of my own projects, and decided to take a look around here. When I saw your request, I thought I'd introduce myself and let you know that I have downloaded Lethe in order to help out, if that is okay? I've read the first chapter so far, some great writing, mixed with some less great writing, but the end of the chapter hooked me.

Anyway, I'll let you know what I think and what I pick up.

Thanks for the opportunity!

James

Thanks for picking up Lethe, James. Yeah, I just looked at that first chapter again with a fresh eye and there are some really crappy phrases. Expect a new version to show up on Smashwords shortly.

I would be glad to hear any critique you can offer. Lethe is a bit of an experiment for me, so I went places stylistically that I would not normally go, with mixed results.