Effectively Using Beta Readers in 2024

Reaching your novel's finish line calls for celebration. You've put in the work; created a new world, fascinating characters, and more; best of all: you have something to show for your efforts.

But you want more, right? You, like the overwhelming majority of the authors we know, want readers, fame, and, ideally, riches. This requires shifting from working by yourself to working with others as you move from writing to rewriting and marketing. Beta readers are critical to this transition.

Essentially, beta readers stand in for "real" readers. A real reader comes across your work organically and hopefully pays for it. In contrast, you must find your beta readers and directly ask them to provide feedback before they read.

Given the choice, we believe it's better to get feedback from real readers, if only because there's a profound difference in their relationship with you and how they approach your work. We rely on beta readers as a test audience when real readers aren't accessible.

This article focuses on how to compensate for the differences between beta and real readers to get the most from them in terms of identifying weaknesses in your manuscript and establishing a foundation for successful marketing.

There are three main categories beta readers fall into: paid, other authors, and friends and family. Ideally, they'll be familiar with your genre, though they can still offer valuable commentary if not.

Paid Beta Readers

You can hire individuals to read your book and provide you with feedback. When you use paid beta readers, you should expect more detailed feedback and better answers to the questions covered below. Recognize that this is their job, meaning they should be able to provide work samples to set and meet expectations. Further, their contribution depends on their knowledge of your potential readership. If anyone isn't comfortable, it's best to find someone else.

Other Authors

Many authors get feedback from other authors in exchange for reading their work. To the extent you can build a relationship based on mutual success, this is our preferred approach. Indeed, it's a key component of our facilitated workshop. There are also Facebook groups, GoodReads, and other forums devoted to helping authors swap beta reads. In these cases, it's best to set and meet expectations to nurture a relationship. Moreover, it's probably even more important to use the framework covered below to structure the writing feedback to regulate your relationship with fellow authors.

Friends and Family

The quickest and most inexpensive feedback comes from people you know. Think about individuals in your life who would be willing to read your book and discuss it. To get the most out of friends and family, you’ll need to give the right instructions and ask the right questions. You'll probably need to spend proportionately more time explaining what you need and working to get it. Remember, these people are doing it for love, and you may need to lower expectations even as you increase gratitude.

Naturally, when you ask others to read your book, most will see it as a kind of "homework" and try to do their best as they provide a quasi-literary critique of your work. Contrary to what they (and you) might think, that's the opposite of what you need.

Politely let your potential beta reader know that you're seeking the following:

For them to read naturally. Ask your beta reader to simply absorb the story the way they would any other book. No notes, no line editing, just enjoying the journey. Since the purpose of a beta reader is to simulate a “real reader,” you want them to behave as one.

The “why.” Beta readers rightfully tend to focus on global evaluations, such as “I liked this” or “I didn’t like that.” While feedback of this type is important, it needs more to be useful. Specifically, you need details as to why they liked or didn’t like a given aspect of your novel.

When and after they begin reading, your real work begins. Three things - streams of information from their reading of your novel - stand out as the most valuable writing feedback you can receive from a beta reader.

a) Through Observation

If you can, watch your beta reader, noting when they pick up the book and when they put it down. Pay attention to their facial expressions. Do they smile? Look concerned? At what points do they look confused or frustrated? If possible, invite them to ask questions, but don't answer without careful consideration.

Remember, even though you’re present, this should be a natural reading experience. If your beta reader has too many questions or becomes confused, you may want to stop the read and reevaluate your manuscript before continuing.

These sentence by sentence observations are undoubtedly time-consuming, not to mention intrusive, but they offer much better data than suggested line edits to take one example.

Try to approach this ideal with more remote readers. If you’re connecting with beta readers virtually, let your readers know you’d like them to log their reading time and page count. If they become confused, encourage them to stop and tell you where they lost the thread. The right beta reader can underline - not change - sentences they liked and question ones that are confusing. (Use this last technique sparingly, as it will distract from the naturalistic goal.)

b) Request a Chapter by Chapter Summary

Here at Bardsy, we love the MCS, or minimal complete story, which is essentially a 10,000-foot overview of your novel. It includes your main characters, world, inciting incident, peak, resolution, key themes, and conflicts.

The MCS isn’t just great for seeing the big picture of your story; you can use it chapter by chapter to help evaluate how each contributes to the whole. Ask your beta readers to recount, in their own words, the story in each chapter. They should repeat everything you want to convey and nothing else. The better they do, the more confident you can be in your novel's capacity to engage. Successful retelling also means your chapters are clear. Failures, of course, need to be addressed.

c) Ask Specific Performative Questions From Our Publishability Index

At its most basic level, Bardsy's Publishability Index ™, or PI, is a rubric for evaluating stories. Using the PI with your beta readers allows you to drill down into specific problems. The best way to do so is by giving them tasks; asking them specific questions to ascertain whether your story meets the standard.

For example: to determine if your novel satisfies the character backstory dimension to be considered "good" (main characters with pasts that inform their identities), ask your reader to tell you your protagonist’s backstory.

How readily readers find evidence meeting the PI's requirements for good and great is the best indicator that part of your novel is successful. It's safe to say only a great novel - and a dedicated beta reader - could prompt rattling off concrete answers to each of the 23 great questions.

Beta readers can help develop your marketing message.

How beta readers react to your story is the best way to predict how “real readers” will respond. Use their feedback to ensure your story is impacting readers how you intend it to, and to identify your book’s strengths for when it’s time to begin marketing.

In this vein, they can identify the “heart” or “core” of your novel by sharing what parts of the story resonated with them. This feedback is the closest you will ever get to crowd-sourcing “real” readers without publishing and is a major selling point.

To receive high-level feedback on your first chapter and see if it has what it takes to capture a reader's attention, enter our 2023 Winter Anthology Contest. This critique allows you to start strong and establish the momentum you need for an engaging story.