How to Find a Great Reader and What to Ask Them

The 2015 “Now What?” Months are here! Throughout January and February, we’ll be bringing you editing, revision, and publishing advice from all corners of the publishing world. Today, Cal Armistead, author of Being Henry David, shares how you can find great readers:

So you finished the first draft of your novel during NaNoWrimo; now you have your glorious, gorgeous lump of clay. Hooray for the lump of clay! Before you started, there was nothing. Now, there is something. No, it’s not ready yet for the world to see, but you have the raw materials to mold it into something spectacular.

The first thing to do, is edit. Make it the best you know you can do. Then, you need somebody to read it. This is critical. Even big-deal authors need feedback, to offer outside-of-one’s-own-brain perspective.

How do you find these readers? The best readers are often other writers. Many libraries or bookstores offer critique groups. Or, take a writing class and see if anyone would be interested in exchanging manuscripts. (Your feedback is valuable to them as well.)

Just as an aside, it’s not a good idea to ask friends or relatives to read your manuscript. They love you, and therefore, will soften their critique to spare your feelings. This is sweet, this is lovely, but it won’t help you. You need someone who will be honest. If they are honest about the not-so-great bits, you can trust them about the fabulous bits, too.

Another way to go is to hire an editor. There are a ton of editing services listed online. Some are good, some not so much, so be careful. I can personally offer two excellent recommendations, people with whom I have personally worked:

Facets Fiction Editing is operated by Gina Hilse, a top-notch editor who knows her stuff. 
If you’d like to work with a mentor who will guide you through the entire process, I highly recommend Leslea Newman, an award-winning author of over 65 books. 

As for questions to ask your readers, here are a few suggestions:

What did you really like about my story? (Make sure they start with good stuff—we writers need encouragement before hearing the negatives.)
Is there anything that doesn’t work, or doesn’t ring true?
Are the characters believable?
Does the plot hold together?
Do you have any suggestions on how I might make the manuscript stronger?

Now, go to it—mold that lump of clay into a spectacular work of art, as only you can do. Good luck!

Cal Armistead is the author of the award-winning young adult novel, Being Henry David . Cal holds an MFA in creative writing from the Stonecoast program at the University of Southern Maine. In addition to writing, Cal is a voice-over actress and sings semi-professionally. She lives in a Boston suburb with her amazing husband and a dog named Layla, where one of her favorite pastimes is hiking around Walden Pond thinking deep(ish) thoughts.

Top photo by Flickr user diana robinson.