In today’s article I’m going to talk about beta readers.

A beta reader is someone who reads your manuscript before it’s sent off for editing. Most likely after you’re happy with the structural and developmental edits but before you go for the final copy/line edits and certainly before you start submitting to agents or publishers.

The idea is they’ll provide feedback from a reader’s point of view on the plot, pacing, and consistency of your manuscript.

They are not proofreaders or editors although some of these professionals will offer this service from a critique partner point of view, so don’t expect them to pick up, or even look for, any mishaps in terms of grammar, punctuation, or spelling.

Beta readers are an excellent resource to authors and when they are used properly, can provide invaluable feedback to strengthen and improve your manuscript.
But what makes a good beta reader? And…