Why you need a beta; all about betas
Nov. 3rd, 2019 11:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
verushka70 posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
ds_ssdiscussionGreetings all! Hopefully you're getting excited about your assignments --
we're looking forward to seeing what everyone makes!
If you have not yet emailed us to confirm your assignment and email
address, please do so! We're going to check in with you via email, so we
want to make sure we know the right address to use. Email the mods at
dsss.admin AT gmail DOT com with the following info: 1) your AO3 handle, 2)
your recipient's AO3 handle, 3) what email address the mods should use to
contact you.
TYK to all of you we've already heard from!
So let's talk about betas.
This post is a resource for those curious about the whys and hows of the
beta-ing process. Hopefully it will help you understand why we strongly
urge you to use a beta, and give you tips on how to get the most out of the
experience.
If you're not sure how/where to find a beta, check out the beta volunteer
posts on DW and Tumblr. (Sadly, our attempt to make a single master-list didn't quite work as planned, so please check both places!)
You can also keep checking back on our most recent call for betas and cheerleaders post, though give it some time (it hasn't been up very long).
Beta-readers (-listeners, -viewers, etc.) are a great way to support your creative work and help you take it to the next level. For good reason, editors are part of the professional publication process -- and we joke that famous authors whose later works seem flabby and self-indulgent compared to their early works have "fired their editors."
Whether you are highly experienced fanworks creator or a novice, a second person's perspective can reveal things about your work that you missed. It can also give you an idea of how your audience may react: what's confusing, unconvincing, jarring, or tedious, as well as what is especially evocative, funny, or beautiful.
In this fanworks exchange, we require everyone to use a beta, because it's
the best tool to ensure our traditionally high standard of quality. We want everyone to have fun, and we also want the gifts you give each other to represent your best, polished work.
So, even if you're someone who doesn't usually use a beta, we encourage you to take this opportunity to give it a try and get all the good you can out of the experience.
Every maker/beta relationship is different, specific to the two individuals involved. Your beta, whether they're your BFF or someone you've never met before that you found through the beta-volunteering post, is kind enough to take the time to help you make the best fanwork you can.
Some ways in which you can show respect for your beta (and get the most out of the experience):
* Recruit a beta who can help you with the specific things you're likely to need help with. For example, do you struggle with:
Plot?
Dialogue?
American slang?
Canadian culture?
Sentence structure?
Character voices?
Humor?
Verbosity?
Someone out there can help you with these things!
* Communicate clearly about expectations. Negotiate in advance how you both want the process to work. For example:
What kind of feedback will the beta provide?
Will they comment on the flow?
Look over a rough draft for characterization and pacing?
Review a close-to-final draft for spelling, grammar and word choice?
All of the above?
How gentle/ruthless do you want your beta to be?
How detailed should their commentary be?
Are there aspects of the fanwork you specifically don't want feedback on?
By when do they need your draft to have time to review it?
By when do you need their feedback to make corrections?
Will there be a single exchange of feedback, or multiple edit-and-review exchanges after corrections are made?
Can you contact your beta to ask clarifying questions?
* Remember: your beta has their own work and schedule constraints. Negotiate an arrangement that works for both of you.
Communicate if you
need to adjust the plan.
* Give your beta's feedback serious consideration, but don't feel obliged
to follow their advice if you disagree with it. At the end of the day, it's your fanwork and the final decisions are yours.
Have Fun -- and Don't Stress Out!
we're looking forward to seeing what everyone makes!
If you have not yet emailed us to confirm your assignment and email
address, please do so! We're going to check in with you via email, so we
want to make sure we know the right address to use. Email the mods at
dsss.admin AT gmail DOT com with the following info: 1) your AO3 handle, 2)
your recipient's AO3 handle, 3) what email address the mods should use to
contact you.
TYK to all of you we've already heard from!
So let's talk about betas.
This post is a resource for those curious about the whys and hows of the
beta-ing process. Hopefully it will help you understand why we strongly
urge you to use a beta, and give you tips on how to get the most out of the
experience.
If you're not sure how/where to find a beta, check out the beta volunteer
posts on DW and Tumblr. (Sadly, our attempt to make a single master-list didn't quite work as planned, so please check both places!)
You can also keep checking back on our most recent call for betas and cheerleaders post, though give it some time (it hasn't been up very long).
Beta-readers (-listeners, -viewers, etc.) are a great way to support your creative work and help you take it to the next level. For good reason, editors are part of the professional publication process -- and we joke that famous authors whose later works seem flabby and self-indulgent compared to their early works have "fired their editors."
Whether you are highly experienced fanworks creator or a novice, a second person's perspective can reveal things about your work that you missed. It can also give you an idea of how your audience may react: what's confusing, unconvincing, jarring, or tedious, as well as what is especially evocative, funny, or beautiful.
In this fanworks exchange, we require everyone to use a beta, because it's
the best tool to ensure our traditionally high standard of quality. We want everyone to have fun, and we also want the gifts you give each other to represent your best, polished work.
So, even if you're someone who doesn't usually use a beta, we encourage you to take this opportunity to give it a try and get all the good you can out of the experience.
Every maker/beta relationship is different, specific to the two individuals involved. Your beta, whether they're your BFF or someone you've never met before that you found through the beta-volunteering post, is kind enough to take the time to help you make the best fanwork you can.
Some ways in which you can show respect for your beta (and get the most out of the experience):
* Recruit a beta who can help you with the specific things you're likely to need help with. For example, do you struggle with:
Plot?
Dialogue?
American slang?
Canadian culture?
Sentence structure?
Character voices?
Humor?
Verbosity?
Someone out there can help you with these things!
* Communicate clearly about expectations. Negotiate in advance how you both want the process to work. For example:
What kind of feedback will the beta provide?
Will they comment on the flow?
Look over a rough draft for characterization and pacing?
Review a close-to-final draft for spelling, grammar and word choice?
All of the above?
How gentle/ruthless do you want your beta to be?
How detailed should their commentary be?
Are there aspects of the fanwork you specifically don't want feedback on?
By when do they need your draft to have time to review it?
By when do you need their feedback to make corrections?
Will there be a single exchange of feedback, or multiple edit-and-review exchanges after corrections are made?
Can you contact your beta to ask clarifying questions?
* Remember: your beta has their own work and schedule constraints. Negotiate an arrangement that works for both of you.
Communicate if you
need to adjust the plan.
* Give your beta's feedback serious consideration, but don't feel obliged
to follow their advice if you disagree with it. At the end of the day, it's your fanwork and the final decisions are yours.
Have Fun -- and Don't Stress Out!
