So, in an effort to improve my critical reading skills I have been beta reading some people's works and giving feedback on them. I joined a Facebook group for this exact purpose and so far it has been a very interesting experience. Mostly it has just been people wanting feedback on one or two chapters, or people wanting feedback about a concept or book blurb.
I have read a few very interesting and well-written stories and chapters so far. Some I found so interesting I requested to be kept in mind if the author ever wanted more of the work beta read. Others were less interesting to me but I still tried to give any feedback I could.
There was one, and I'm not giving any specifics, that had a good premise but was nowhere near the beta reading stage. It needed at least one more run-through by the author (calling Z) before anyone else should have been looking at it. It was just over 100,000 words and complete. I ended up going through the first six chapters before I recommended the author make some changes and edit it a bit more. I tried to make sure I complimented things I liked and gave Z some suggestions on what to be looking for as she edited and went back through the book.
Her response shocked and angered me. She was incredibly apologetic and upset because as it turns out, some of the other people who had offered to beta read were a lot less polite than I was. They were apparently quite harsh that she was wasting people's time and was unprofessional because something that unpolished shouldn't have been seen by anyone else. She was also quite grateful (and surprised) that I was polite and helpful in my feedback as opposed to some of the others who had seen the work.
Here's the thing. Was she too early to send to beta readers? Yes. Does it make her some kind of bad person who is wasting people's time? No. First off, this is a Facebook group where zero money changes hands and you have zero obligation to read or comment on anything sent to you if it's just not resonating or you feel too much work needs to be done. These people didn't owe her their time or eyeballs, but they did owe her basic manners.
Second, it takes a lot of courage to share something as personal as writing with people. The last thing anyone should be doing is tearing another person down for being brave. This community, as far as I'm aware, it supposed to be about helping each other and as writers we do not help when we tear another person down.
Third, it is often said by different writers that the first things they wrote were horrible. I can attest to the truth of this. No one will ever read the first things I wrote, even if I can't stomach deleting them from my computer. Z's story wasn't horrible. It was unpolished and her first full-length work she'd ever tried to show someone. The story ideas were good, her understanding of English grammar was great, and her word choice was quite evocative. But it was unpolished and messy. And that is okay, because no one writes a perfect first draft and, for all my love of my favorite books, I'd argue no one has ever written a perfect book that will satisfy everyone (also I think the idea of a "perfect book" is subjective in itself).
This has been bugging me for the last week because it is frustrating for me to see someone who should be praised for accomplishing what many writers don't (finishing a full length work and being willing to share it with people) being torn down instead of given a helping hand and just a little bit of guidance. To me it is unacceptable that anybody in this community would treat another person the way Z was treated.
Okay, I'm done ranting now. I think I have a story drabble that I'll be sharing tomorrow but it depends on how my Monday goes.