the dos and don’ts of receiving critique
when and how to find betas, prepping a doc to send out, and digesting criticism
After writing about the dos and don’ts of giving critique, it’s time for a post about receiving critique. As authors, we need an outside perspective to point out issues we’re not seeing ourselves. But for critique to be helpful, we have to learn how to ask for it and how to receive it (I’ll go into formatting your document for betas, too). And to have long-term beta reader relationships, there are dos and don’ts to keep in mind.
(Disclaimer: this post is geared toward writer-beta relationships that are still growing, where you want to err on the side of politeness. If you’re close, do whatever makes y’all happy!)
part one: is this book ready for a beta reader?
The first question: are you ready to receive criticism?
If you’re feeling fragile and criticism might shatter your will to continue this story, I’d hold off and perhaps seek positivity readers first to boost morale.
If, in a secret inside place, you’re looking for confirmation the story is perfect and not criticism…you might not be ready for feedback. If you can’t fathom making changes to the story, betas would be spending time on feedback that won’t be utilized.
The second question: is the story itself ready?
There isn’t a right answer, but here are some pros and cons:
Sending out a rough draft: you can catch big problems early and could decrease the amount of drafts required—but betas might not be capable of seeing past problems you would’ve noticed on your own to discover more subtle issues.
Sending out a polished draft: you’ve resolved easily-fixable problems and a beta can engage in a more in-depth way—but you run the risk of having spent a lot of time polishing only to have to rewrite the whole story.
Whichever you prefer, the bottom line is to ensure your book is readable and coherent on a line level. It doesn’t have to be super clean, but if I’m struggling to understand the prose or grammar, I’ll struggle with assessing the story itself.
part two: finding beta readers?
Before discussing where to find them, here are some criteria a beta should fulfill:
Experience reading the genre and age range of your story: Sharing with someone who’s not your target audience is a recipe for frustration on both ends.
Experience reading with a critical eye: While readers can offer reactions, I find that writers are usually better at identifying why they have that reaction.
Trustworthiness: Plagiarism does happen, so I only ever share work with people I know personally and have established trust with.
Places to search for potential beta readers include social media (twitter, instagram, threads, bluesky, etc…), forums, or connecting via writing events (pitch parties or writing challenges). Writing mentorships are great opportunities and if you have the money to spare, freelance editors can be an option.
I recommend getting to know a potential beta reader and asking for feedback on something small—a query or opening pages—to test the waters before sharing a full-length novel.
Even outside of plagiarism worries, a critique style that doesn’t mesh with you can be traumatizing and demoralizing. And while readers not “connecting” can come down to craft level, you don’t want one who will never vibe with the story you’re trying to tell. Their feedback will be at best unhelpful and at worst misleading.
A hard truth: building a list of beta readers you’ll go back to again and again is a process of trial and error and building community.
As ideal as it would be to immediately find someone experienced to help out, many writers already have a set group of mutual beta readers. Someone refusing a beta read isn’t a slight, or clique behavior, or a sign your book is bad; it’s just that everyone has full schedules and prior obligations. In fact, my closest beta relationships began from trading subpar feedback, and growing together has been super fulfilling.
Here are some questions you might ask while seeking beta readers:
Is it possible to succeed without paying for feedback?
A trustworthy freelance editor can be super helpful. However, I don’t believe it’s essential—most of craft comes from experience and putting in the hard work.How many beta readers do I need?
There’s no right answer, but I’ve done 3 - 10 per round before, and won’t ever do more than 5 again because compiling that much feedback is an insane process. Two things to keep in mind:I usually shape my revisions around feedback from 1-2 incisive readers. But knowing who can be that reader requires trial and error.
Having more readers can help you gauge reader response, but can also tug you in too many directions—more betas =/= better. I’d suggest leaving questions in-text to guide the reader if you opt for a larger number of betas.
Return rates of 40-60% are normal especially if you don’t have a solid, mutual beta reading relationship yet, so account for that while asking people to read.
Should I set a deadline and how long should it be?
ABSOLUTELY DO set a deadline for readers to adhere to and to set expectations for yourself. I try to give readers at least six to eight weeks to read and usually engineer deadlines to fall just before an upcoming stretch of easier work, AKA when I’ll have the brainpower to face revisions.Should I send chapter by chapter, act by act, or the whole book at once?
This will depend on you and your reader’s preference, but as a reader, I need to receive at least an act at a time to formulate cohesive feedback. If the reading experience is drawn out over months, I’ll have forgotten the start by the end.How many rounds of readers do I need?
No right answer, but there’s a point where it’s time to let go—a story cannot be perfect for everyone, and betas will always find something to edit.
part three: before sending out your manuscript…
First, think about what feedback you’re seeking and what you’re not, and communicate this to guide your betas.
I usually insert a brief pitch, trigger warnings, feedback deadline, and notes on the feedback I’m looking for at the beginning of the document and add in-line questions for sections I especially want to collect feedback on.
The feedback I’m looking for depends on the story itself. In an early draft, line edits might be useless because lots will be rewritten. In a later draft, I might want betas to focus on details. Or there might be something I’m especially concerned about.
(However, even if I’ve written based on an approved outline, I still ask betas to tell me if something big-picture really sticks out. I’d rather face big revisions earlier than later.)
Also, DO set boundaries if it’s someone you haven’t worked with before, such as “please don’t text criticism; leave it in the doc” or “please don’t tell me when you start reading as it’ll make me super anxious.”
Second, confirm the type of doc your beta would like and format it.
I’ve sent out word docs, google docs files, and pdfs (on reader request), but word and gdoc are best for in-line comments. An easy way to format is Scrivener’s compile function, though it does take some trial and error to get it to export the way you want.
If you don’t have Scrivener that’s fine, but here are three necessary things to do:
A readable font in black—It’s best to not get too fancy and sacrifice readability. You can’t go wrong with Times New Roman, Garamond, and other standard fonts.
Paragraph indents—DON’T use “tab.” Use the ruler at the top of your doc to format your paragraphs, or there’s a risk it’ll all get messed up. I have read docs without indents, but had spaces between paragraphs. That’s readable, but trips me up since it’s not how books are usually formatted.
Page breaks between chapters—DON’T hit enter until the next page, since that often messes up. Instead, use the “insert page break” function.
Finally, as a beta reader, I find it super helpful when writers set up chapters in the navigation/outline panel. It makes it easier to refer to a particular section, and I don’t have to scroll endlessly after closing a doc and returning. Here’s how to do that:
On google docs: Format your first chapter title > highlight and go to “styles” in the editing bar > hover over the heading you’d like > “update” to match > go through the doc and highlight each chapter title and click the heading it needs, which will automatically add it to the document outline + format it for you. If you download the doc as a word file, it’ll retain all formatting for you.
On word: It’s fairly similar, and uploading the entire doc to google will retain the document outline—but copy pasting generally messes it up, so I prefer to just upload. The “styles” are under “home” on the editing panel, and after updating the heading and formatting all chapter titles, the document outline can be viewed by going to:
View (at the very very top, next to the file/edit buttons) > Sidebar > Navigation
View (in the editing panel) > clicking the navigation pane (nearby you can also turn on the “ruler” in order to format your paragraphs)
part four: the wait for feedback…
Keeping a polite distance between you and your reader:
It’s natural to want to know how much they’ve read and their thoughts, but hovering over them can make them feel self conscious and reluctant to give their feedback.
Suggestions to keep both you and your reader more comfortable:
Sending out a word doc is the best way to kill the urge to spy, but if that’s not possible, I suggest turning off google docs notifications from your email. Getting jump-scared by criticism when you’re not ready is a horrible feeling.
Wanting to check out comments is normal, but DO NOT lurk in the gdoc while your reader is there because they’ll feel self-conscious. Bumping in accidentally is unavoidable; your reader won’t mind as long as you exit quickly.
When met with feedback you disagree with, wanting to explain is natural—but unless they’re overstepping boundaries, DO NOT rebut them, even politely. By doing so, you risk scaring them from jotting down notes for fear of rebuke.
When is it acceptable to say: don’t comment this?
Despite the etiquette of letting your beta read in peace, DO let them know if they’ve encroached on your boundaries or are critiquing in an unhelpful way. Doing this is awkward and must be approached with care, but it’ll save you pain and them trouble.
Some instances where I might step in to head a beta off: if they’re DMing criticism, being cruel, giving bad-faith critique, making line edits I didn’t ask for (it clogs up the doc), or headed in the wrong direction, eg: I’m aiming for light romance but they keep asking for smut (this is a hypothetical).
However, before deciding someone’s critique is unsuited to your story, DO do some self-reflecting first to make certain this is the case—more on this in part five.
When and how should I check in on a slow reader?
It’s anxiety-inducing when a beta hasn’t started reading or is reading slowly or when they take a long break in the middle. The doubts surface: Did they lie when they said they wanted to read? Is the story boring and so they’re stopping?
My personal belief on whether to nudge in these situations is:
DON’T if there’s a while until the deadline. If they’re busy, they’ll be stressed; if they don’t vibe with the story, I don’t want them to only read out of obligation.
DO if the deadline is looming! It’s on them to meet the deadline, so don’t feel bad about nudging. (I usually wait until 1-2 weeks before the deadline if a reader hasn’t started, and later if they did begin but have stopped reading for a while.)
As for how to bring it up, obviously don’t be a dick. I think it’s okay to be direct: “Since the deadline is in x days, I’m wondering if that’s still achievable for you?”
If they’re reading but need more time, I let them know when I’m planning to start revisions, and ask for partial feedback close to that date.
If they haven’t started, I personally lean towards telling them it’s okay to skip this draft unless they’re very confident they’ll make the deadline.
What if someone doesn’t finish?
Another hard truth is that a good amount of beta readers won’t finish. It’s difficult to banish the feeling of “it must be because my book sucks,” but it’s important to remind yourself that beta-reading is very different from reading for fun, because engaging critically means constantly burning brain cells on analyzing a story.
A beta-reader not finishing doesn’t necessarily mean anything about the story itself—people get busy and overwhelmed! (Though, depending on circumstance, I might make a note to myself that maybe this one isn’t super dependable.)
What if I’m burning to start revisions?
It’s great to start brainstorming whenever, but my recommendation is DO NOT start revisions until after your deadline or collecting all feedback. Two main reasons:
You might start revising only to receive feedback that derails your entire plan.
On the reader side, this might be irrational, but it does makes me feel my feedback isn’t valued if a writer announces they’re revising when I’m still within deadline.
Of course, the best time for you to start revising might shift due to Life, or you simply really really can’t wait to begin. In that case, DO let betas know in advance.
part five: when feedback arrives…
The five stages of grief:
When feedback lands, a lot of the time my knee-jerk reaction is denial. Next, anger: they don’t get my story! But with time, I realize there is something wrong. Enter the bargaining stage: I’m sure with a bit of tweaking I’ll resolve this massive problem.
Sometimes it stops there. Often it snowballs into “shit I need to rewrite so much,” and “I never want to write again.” It’s a dark hour, but soon after comes the realization of how to solve everything—along with the acceptance that it’ll be a tough journey.
I’m not proud of needing to go through all this, but I think it’s normal to need time to process criticism that challenges a story you’ve put so much of yourself in.
My suggestions for dealing with crushing criticism:
DO NOT respond immediately. Take time to collect your thoughts. Replying with an indignant slew of you’re wrong! will ensure that beta never reads for you again.
DO step away and return after taking time to digest. Read once, then put it away for at least a few hours. Let it marinate in your subconscious.
DO NOT automatically write off what you disagree with. Not all feedback should be accepted. Some feedback will ruin your book. But always challenge yourself to contemplate: Will this difficult, unforeseen revision strengthen my story?
DO read through multiple times. With every read, I shed more and more of my preconceived notions of what my book is and see what it should be. My reaction to feedback shifts from knee-jerk denial to trustworthy instinct—if, even after accepting the possibility of it being right, I still find a particular criticism or suggestion abhorrent, then I know it’s truly wrong.
What if I don’t agree with a feedback?
Unless the reader is someone you must answer to (agent, editor, mentor), or someone you want to brainstorm more with, DO NOT tell them you disagree! Don’t do it as a knee-jerk reaction, and don’t do it even after deep contemplation—it doesn’t benefit you (because your decision is made) or them (it’s not their book).
However, if a beta’s feedback is cruel or made in bad faith, you’re absolutely in the right to call them out—or to simply never work with them again!
How do I organize feedback for revisions?
I talk about this in more detail in my post about how I approach revisions, but here’s something I didn’t mention in that post: I mentally catalogue feedback into groups based on level of difficulty and how much I agree with it. This helps me figure out what I need to contemplate more as I read and reread feedback.
Small issues I agree with and know how to solve: I set it aside until I’m ready to go into the actual revision planning.
Bigger issues I agree with that won’t affect the wider plot: I set it aside for now.
Bigger issues I agree with that will affect the wider plot: I’ll chew over the issue and my betas’ suggestions every read, since this has to be resolved before any minor problems can be dealt with.
Small issues I don’t agree with: I cast it aside. It exists no more.
Bigger issues I don’t agree with: I’ll reevaluate it until I’m very very certain it’s something to cast aside, especially if revising it would affect the wider plot, since hastily skipping it might mean setting myself for a huge revision down the road.
Wrapping up with a final reminder: Criticism is essential to improving a story, but there’s work to be done when seeking feedback and while digesting it, to ensure you receive helpful criticism and can implement it.
Next month’s post will be about Nanowrimo prep, so do subscribe if you’re interested!
This was such a helpful read and delightfully structured. Thank you for sharing!