Posting this on a request (and also as a four hundred word warmup): ~~~Regarding FIRST DRAFTS and ALPHA READERS~~~ For the vast majority of nanowrimo participants, the product of these thirty days will be a first draft. And if we want feedback, the writer will hand these raw, first drafts to someone to read. That someone is who well call an alpha reader. An alpha reader reading a first draft will see the occasional spelling error/typo, the random repeated word, grammar errors, inconsistent sentence structures, and inefficient organization of sentences in paragraphs. And guess what? Writers dont need to know this! We know our first drafts are filled with bits of awfulness. The best writers in the world, including Neil Gaiman, Brandon Sanderson, and G.R.R. Martin, all have firsts drafts that are just as terrible as everyone elses. Fixing things like spelling and grammar are one of the final things you should be worried about. So what do writers need from an alpha reader? Sometimes a writer needs to know one very specific thing (ex. Tell me what you think of the romantic tension between the two protagonists.), and if so, tell your alpha reader what youre looking for so they dont waste your time giving you feedback you dont want. If a writer isnt looking for an alpha reader to answer something specific, what feedback can the alpha reader provide that is useful? Ignore grammar, spelling, sentence structure, unless the mistakes are glaring and inconsistent (ex. the book is about sheep, and the writer spells them as shpee each and every time). Instead, tell the writer this [thing] works for me, but this [other thing] doesnt. The writer can ask more questions if they desire. Do NOT tell the writer HOW to fix the perceived problem, again, unless the writer asks. Also, writers, find an alpha reader you know appreciates the kind of topic or idea or genre youre writing about. Unless youre specifically looking for conflicted opinion, you need an alpha reader who gets what youre writing and why youre doing it. Asking a fantasy/scifi genre fiction reader to alpha read your modern business drama probably isnt going to end well. One last thing about first drafts. Another novelist once said: First drafts are for what you want to say. Subsequent drafts are for how you want to say it. Or in other words: Plots and characters, before the polish and charm.
Posted on: Sun, 16 Nov 2014 10:23:46 +0000
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