#just send me a dm and I’m sure we can figure something out♥️

[medievalraven]

Hello! I hope you’re having a glorious saturday!

I wanted ask (if it doesn’t bother you) how do I interact with my beta? I know it’s a weird question, but do I just send them my work and they check it for errors, or do we go back and forth with ideas and whatnot? I’ve never had someone beta my work for me before, so I’m kind off unsure on how to talk to them - especially since I’ve never had a convo with them before too, so I wanna make sure I don’t overstep any boundaries or anything!

Thank you!♥️

(honestly I’m sending you this ask because you seem like a very kind human and always open to help others)

Happy Saturday to you too!!  

And please - this isn’t a bother at all!!  Feel free to drop by here or by dm if you (or anyone really) ever have any questions or just want to yell at me about things ❤️

First off - congrats on your fic!  Even if it’s just an idea, there’s something so exciting about coming up with a scenario that works for these characters and wanting to explore it.  I can’t wait to see what you come up with!

Okay so the thing with betas is there’s really no right or wrong way to do it - the goal of a beta is to help you get your story to the place you want it to be and that looks different for each writer.  Personally I feel fairly confident about my grammar and syntax so I’ll specifically ask my beta to help me by looking at pacing and flow to make sure it all works overall. 

But other people will care more about grammar or they’ll care about characterization or they’ll care about dialogue - so really the first thing you’ll have to figure out is what do you feel less confident about in your writing (or just any items you’re questioning) and/or what do you want help with?  

Basically why did you want a beta in the first place?

This will become your guiding point then in your first conversations with your beta and this should set the boundaries for your creative relationship.  It’s kinda weird I know, but it’s truly almost like you’re making a business transaction and you’re setting up the terms of a contract haha.  

And it’s important to always remember that this is your story, it’s your fic, so your beta should respect whatever is you want and they should follow your lead in the entire process.  In my opinion a good beta is someone who is flexible and who at the end of the day is a cheerleader for you!

(This got a little long so I’m going to throw the rest under a cut to save everyone’s dashes :) )

As for how you actually interact with them - that’s again up to your comfort level and really how you answered the question above.  

If you really only care about grammar then it might be enough to just send them a link to your google doc and not much else.  If you need help with outlining or plotting then that will definitely require more conversations with your beta and more time spent going back and forth.  I would say if you’re interested in having someone help with things like plotting or characterization then you should be upfront about that in your early conversations - that definitely means a bigger time commitment for them and you want to make sure that (1) they realize what they’re getting themselves into and (2) that their ability to help meets your demand for assistance. 

Really the most important thing that I can stress with either having a beta or being a beta is communication - both communicating what you need (like the above or things like timelines, etc.) and if something isn’t working.  Not everyone works the same way and sometimes what helps one person doesn’t help another - so if you’re finding that whatever that person is doing isn’t working (or even if it’s overstepping your boundaries) then you should be upfront about it before it snowballs into a bigger problem.  And if you really feel uncomfortable or if it’s just not working then don’t feel bad about ending this relationship.  You’re not obligated to use anyone as your beta and sometimes these relationships just don’t work out.

(As a side note too - you’re also don’t have to use all their suggestions when they provide them.  Again it’s your fic and you know what’s best for it.)

And okay - I’ll be honest, it might be awkward and hard at first having these conversations especially if you’ve never talked to this person before and you’re building a rapport.  It’s going to be a process for both of you as you each figure out each other’s styles and needs and there might be growing pains.  But that doesn’t mean it’s not worth it and hey you could become friends - beta’ing is how I’ve met some of my fave fandom friends!

At the end of the day though it’s a very vulnerable thing you’re doing - sending someone something you worked hard on and asking for their honest feedback.  So always make sure you’re doing what’s best for you and what makes you feel comfortable.

#asks #fanfic #writing #thanks for the ask #i hope i answered the question haha #and also you're so sweet - i definitely don't deserve the compliments #i can't wait to see your fic! #and if you ever want to talk to anyone else or have any other questions feel free to come chat! #i had a nice saturday too! #i bought a new tv and it is definitely smart than me lol