The Value of Beta Readers: How They Help You as a Writer and Reader

I've had the privilege of beta reading a lot of YA and MG novels lately. If someone had asked me to read their manuscript two years ago, I would have stunk at it. BIG TIME. But I've grown as a writer, and as a reader. I think it happens naturally. The more you write (and read), the better you become. And the better you spot when something is askew. In others' writing. Not necessarily your own (my critique group can attest to that).

When reading other’s work, see if you notice:

1. The use of stronger verbs to replace adverbs/adjectives.

He put the piece of paper in his pocket forcefully.

OR, He stuffed the paper in his pocket.

2. Whether the story flows.

Did the author follow-up on what they said in another chapter?

Does the story drag b/c the MC does nothing to further the plot--he wakes up, stares out the window, and eats breakfast (with no internal or external dialogue related to the story)?

3. Are the speech and voice age-appropriate?

A fine line exists there (in YA and MG) and it's sometimes hard to know where to land.

For example (from my own first draft mess), would a teen boy say, "With time and persistence I started feeling something..."

OR, "After awhile I sorta started feeling something...I guess."

4. Is the writer showing, not telling?

Another tough one. I still struggle with this (until someone points it out).
I was disappointed.

OR, My shoulders sagged. OR, My face fell.

5. Do they use cliffhanger scenes/sentences at chapter endings?

This makes the reader want to turn the page.

For example, after a spooky scenario took place with one of my MC’s cars, she asks: Can ghosts flatten tires? Hopefully the reader will want to read on, to see if in fact, they can.

6. Is the book's opening sentences/paragraphs provocative enough for the reader to turn the page?

Did the author make a compelling promise to the reader (about the story's conflict/message) that they want to see fulfilled?

This is one of the hardest tasks for a writer, and I struggle with it myself.

HERE ARE SOME
GREAT OPENINGS:

"Daddy said, 'Let Mom go first.' Mom wanted me to go first. I think it was because she was afraid that after they were contained and frozen, I’d walk away, return to life rather than consign myself to that cold, clear box."
- Across the Universe, by Beth Revis

"I remember lying in the snow, a small red spot of warm growing cold, surrounded by wolves. They were licking me, biting me, worrying at my body, pressing in."
- Shiver, by Maggie Stievater

"First the colors. Then the humans. That's usually how I see things. Or at least, how I try. Here is a small fact. You are going to die."
- The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

Click to continue.