Beta

[pez]

I really, really want betas like the ones Chrissie has: people who would question why something was written in a particular way rather than just put it down to style. The writer doesn't have to take on any of the comments, of course, but she should seriously think about each comment; sometimes a writer can get so immersed in her own style that she forgets the basic techniques of writing, if you know what I mean.

I also think such betas would be useful for many other writers. Sometimes I read something and I know it's because of the style that things are written the way they are but I also know it could be so much better or just less bad if they had someone look at it and question it.

Not many people can accept having their work beta-ed this way, though. Betas like this are hard to find, but writers who don't have the stick up their ass far enough to just say "ha, it's my style, if you don't like then don't read" are probably even harder to find.

It's the difference between the works that lots of people comment and say it's great, and the works that lots of people comment and say it's great, AND still refer fandom n00bs to it a few years later.

Comments

[arithion.livejournal.com]

Beta's who do that are amazing - because a lot of the time it was people who loved your story who would offer. My first beta (GW) sucked because of this. She never, ever pulled me up on anything. But then I met a group of friends who pulled me up on everything, and it made me a better writer for it.

In o-fiction it's the same. You don't need people looking at your work who'll just put what you've written down to style - you need people you trust who are willing to poke it/ spork it and say - uh - you there - safe in your style, question this. Anything that stops the flow of the reading, confuses the reader, or has a chance to sound out of character for your character is wrong.
And it's just as applicable in fan fiction.

It's nice when you can see the improvements you've made :)

I ramble lol *hugs*