Why Free Beta Readers Can Come at a Cost

New and unpublished authors will often hire beta readers to receive an insightful critique before submitting a manuscript to a publisher or self-publishing. The beta reader’s job is to read the manuscript as an actual reader would and present feedback on what works and what doesn’t, any styling or structural issues, plot holes or issues with characterisation, flow, grammar, pacing and so on.

Some authors who have multiple books under their belt or are writing a series of books have the ability to enlist existing readers of their books on social media, Goodreads or writing forums. This can be a valuable and free way to get feedback from fans who are familiar with the author’s writing style and know what to expect from that particular author.

First-time authors may not have the luxury of enthusiastic fans who are prepared to beta read their manuscripts for free. So invariably they fall back on family and friends to read their work. The major problem with enlisting family and friends is not that they are inexperienced when it comes to giving in-depth feedback but that they are reluctant to hurt the author’s feelings if the book has major flaws and requires substantial revision and may not even recognise this fact.

Aspiring writers are not always flush with cash so finding affordable beta readers to critique their work in a methodical way is essential. As experienced beta readers, we guarantee you a friendly and personalised service which will deliver valuable feedback in a report to assist your writing ambitions.

There is also the very real possibility that your manuscript will be ripped off in part or in its entirety by an unscrupulous operator who has claimed your work as their own and decided to sell it on Amazon, Apple iBooks or Smashwords under their own name. The following forum post on AbsoluteWrite claims that someone acting as a beta reader ‘borrowed’ some of the author’s work.

- Thomas M.

Hi Declan, I am, in a word, speechless. This is not at all what I expected from your beta read. Just to be clear, I'm thrilled! First, you pointed out a lot of things that got me thinking and realized I agree with you. I will make all or virtually all of your suggested changes in the next revision. You have made what I consider vital suggestions that will smooth out some of the rough edges still to be found in the book. Second, regarding your thoughtful commentary. I'm very happy that you found that the plot, characters, dialog, etc., worked well. As you know, the kind of praise in your evaluation is not something writers get to hear too often, if at all. - Thomas M.
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- Sonya S.

Thank you for your professional feedback. I really appreciate your advice and your ability to be direct. You have given me a lot to think about. I look forward to the challenge. Warm Regards, Sonya. - Sonya S.
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- Alan C.

Thanks very much for taking the time to read my story and for your kind comments, highlighting errors and raising points for further consideration. It's all very helpful and reassuring to know there's a story in it, from someone other than my girlfriend. Thanks again. Take care, Alan Corcoran. (Author of Marathon Man)
- Alan C.
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- Mark M.

Hi Declan, what can I say? I'm thrilled and flattered by your response to the book, and I can't thank you enough for your thoughtful commentary. The report was so well structured and insightful, extracting multiple examples and delving deep into the complexities of the characters and plot and themes and subject matter... I don't know how you were able to process everything so quickly but I'm beyond impressed. I almost wish I had more work for you! So please feel free to weigh in on the other aspects! 😉

As you know, I was hesitant to get into the report... partly because you turned it so quickly I assumed you had a miserable experience! but mainly because it's difficult for me to anticipate or accept any form of praise after so much rejection (even more difficult to actually feel authenticity from someone you *hire* for their feedback). That said, and at the risk of overusing superlatives myself, I am appreciative of your work and your in-depth attention to the story---for both what was on the page and not.

[...]

I digress.

In short, thank you for giving me a bit more confidence in what has so far been a soul-bruising journey.

Looking forward to your thoughts.

Cheers,
Mark

- Mark M.
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- Russell T.

Thank you for the assessment. I will make some of the changes you suggested and go forward. I don't know if the work is good enough for publishing, either by a commercial publisher or by self-publishing. Do you think I should try to publish it? Thanks for your input. RT - Russell T.
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- David R.

Hi Declan, First and foremost, thank you for the quick prompt service to my story collection, Human Being Human Doing. I will look at this over the next few days and email you with any explanation that may be required. Thanks once again; stay well and all the best.
- David R.
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- Jennifer B.

Thank you so much. This feedback was extremely helpful and I think it will be crucial in assisting me to tell the story I want. I greatly appreciate it! Sincerely,
Jennifer Byrd - Jennifer B.
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- Luke J.

Thanks for your time! I really appreciate the feedback and your willingness to slog through. I’m going to spend some time ruminating on your observations and hit it with an overhaul. Thanks again! - Luke J.
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- Lauren B.

Thank you very much for your critique, I appreciate it. This is exactly what I've been looking for! All the best, Lauren. - Lauren B.
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- Stephenos M.

I wanted to take a moment to thank you so much again for the meaningful and insightful feedback you left on the manuscript assessment. I really appreciate your work and the ways your feedback has led to the improvement of my writing. Sincerely, Stephenos. - Stephenos M.
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- Elizabeth S.

Thanks very much for this. I will work on the recommendations, especially to speed up/improve the beginning. I’m feeling a little more hopeful about the story overall. Best regards, Elizabeth. - Elizabeth S.
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- Anni T.

Thank you so much for the quick turnaround on your beta read! Your report was very insightful and will help a lot in understanding a reader's perspective. I am so glad the story came together for you - that alone is extremely helpful. Yes, the subject matter is dark, which is always difficult when trying to write a story that is entertaining! I have lines that I won't cross, esp. when it comes to writing about children. I think writing for shock value is a race to the bottom. I'll go back and work on the dialogue that is stilted/unrealistic - yes, it would be awful for the narrator to have to read stilted dialogue! Also, I have to thank you for ploughing through the story despite it being so messy! My editor is finding 100s of errors and many inconsistencies. I've been under pressure to make a deadline for my audio publisher and I've had issues caused by the border closure in Victoria (we were meant to be moving there). I agree with the border closure, but it's been a difficult time - as have these past months been for many, many people.
- Anni T.
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- Tina H.

Thanks Declan for your thorough breakdown of my book. Yours is the first feedback that is constructive. Friends and family are always a little too enthused and not always honest with their feedback. I will take your thoughts into consideration as I rework some of the chapters. Thanks so much for beta reading my book! Thanks, Tina.
- Tina H.
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- Maria G.

Thank you very much for this. I find it quite helpful, and instructive. Especially the bias, it was definitely not intended. I simply did not realise it. Neither my editors. So, I will work some more on the story, and will take on board all the other raised questions. - Maria G.
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- Jodi D.

Thank you for the report. Both readers finished commenting around page 200 - I understand one beta reader totally disliked the manuscript, hence not finishing it but was that the same for the second beta reader? I only ask, in case my Word document stopped displaying the comment boxes. Jodi. - Jodi D.
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- Margaret D.

To cut a long story short. Could you improve the story and if so what would it cost me to do so. I'm thinking that a bit of tweaking will help the story tremendously. Margaret - Margaret D.
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This type of thing is more common than you think and a major reason why you should hire only trustworthy beta readers rather than posting a request on a forum for free beta readers or using a Beta Reading Service which allows anyone to sign up and beta read an authors manuscript without passing any background checks or signing a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA).

There is nothing stopping someone you’ve made contact with on a forum or social media from uploading your manuscript to The Pirate Bay or another torrent website to give anyone the ability to be able to download your ebook for free. As you know, internet piracy is rampant which is why you need to be smart about whose hands your unpublished manuscript ends up in. The simple truth is that no publisher will consider signing a new author if their work has been illegally uploaded to a file-sharing website without the author’s knowledge.

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