MARCH 2025 Writing Update

Beta reader found! Additional beta readers being sought! I feel the most challenging part of this process (beyond accepting all shapes and sizes of criticism on the novel) will be coalescing every idea that each of my readers may have. Obviously, all responses are valid, but it’s just as important to understand the note behind each note as it is to be open to feedback in the first place. After all, the perspective of a reader is fundamentally different from that of a writer. Sure, maybe they felt something in Chapter 6 didn’t work, and maybe they offer an explanation as to why that might be. But, the important part is that Chapter 6 has something that doesn’t work for them. Is the item they point out what doesn’t work? Or is there maybe a disagreeable bit of the chapter just prior to this that actually caused my reader to feel this way about the segment they pointed out?

Or, maybe, they found one of my characters unlikable in a certain scene. Perhaps this was my intention, though. But, clearly if they are voicing this, my intention is not as clear as it should be. So I need to reconsider how I present and characterize this participant in my story to better communicate to the reader. This way, the reader’s issue is addressed, and they are able to get the emotional response I intended from the work in the first place.

So, it’s essential to consider each reader’s critiques with a fine-tooth comb. Not for the sake of dismissing them with a litany of well, actually…’s. But with the purpose of understanding the true driving force behind the comments they give to you. Because no two perspectives will be identical, so your best bet is to consider them all and make the most considerate adjustment possible, if necessary. And, well, that’s hard. And not super fun. But it is necessary.

So, to have more “fun”, I’ve begun planning out a new mystery novel. This one much darker and more sinister, a sort of Appalachian horror story set in a nearly-dead town. It’s certainly different from a whodunit, but the general rule remains the same: the devil is in the details. As such, I’ve learned a disturbing amount about the history of coal mining in West Virginia.

Well, back to it…