Beta Above and Beyond

[LunaStellaCat]

So, as a beta myself, I look and search for betas who I hold in a high regard. I do.  Sometimes, there are betas who are legitimate editors who need to be recognized.  I'm the person who will "marry" myself to a beta for doing the work of a bonafide, honest to God editor.  I never expected this on HPFT.

 

It's not just nitpicking.  It's connecting, getting down to the dirty, and meeting an author on a level.   Really working with them.  

 

I had such an experience and got proven wrong.  

 

Forever_dreaming has edited a piece for me, responded professionally and in a good time around time, and is bluntly honest. She saves me as a writer. There isn't enough that I can say about her.  I expect a lot as myself as a beta (not yet on this site) and from my betas.  I do. Straight up. Forever_dreaming not only adjusted her style, she broke a piece apart and pieced it back.  She relates and stands out on a level I never expected with fanfiction. She cares, and she gets why a writer writes.  She helps you write well. 

 

Is there a beta who has gone above and beyond?  Give them props. 

[sibilant]

I only just saw this but thank you so much for the kind words! 

On 8/10/2017 at 1:43 PM, LunaStellaCat said:

Straight up. Forever_dreaming not only adjusted her style, she broke a piece apart and pieced it back.  She relates and stands out on a level I never expected with fanfiction. She cares, and she gets why a writer writes.  She helps you write well.

^ That right there absolutely made my day.  

My beta is usually my sister who isn't on here but who I cannot express enough appreciation for, even when she leaves all kinds of snarky comments on my writing. She keeps me grounded and prevents melodrama and makes sure to give me a confidence boost whenever I need it—but isn't afraid to kick me in the butt if I'm being plain silly. She's just fantastic  She even tolerates me waking her up at 3AM to ask her what she thinks of an idea... haha.  

[Alexis Black]

Writing is a labor of love. So, too, is beta’ing. As a writer, you have to be willing to give your story up to someone who might return it bruised and battered, but hopefully, better. It’s kind of like a leap of faith because the relationship between writer and beta can be a tricky one to navigate. Once you find a great beta, you want to hang onto them forever. 

I’ve only experienced a great beta a handful of times since I originally started writing fanfic back in 2007. The most recent was with narcissablack, who I initially met back in 2008 at and reconnected with in 2015 (I actually dragged her from MNFF to HPFF). She was fearless with her beta’ing quill, taking apart each of my chapters thoroughly. We’re talking a legitimate editor-level beta that was willing to get down on my level and listen to me ramble about how several of my stories interconnected. She not only fixed my grammar and crossed-check canon when necessary, but she’d also go the extra mile and occasionally surprise me with a little unexpected research, too, like local myths and legends in the northeast region around Boston and Salem. There was both a feeling of excitement and near-dread when she’d send me back my chapter - almost like I had been called to stand front and center to take an oral exam for finals. She’d push me to put forth my best and I swear she nearly loved my tales almost more than I did. Unfortunately, RL stole narcissablack away from me right before HPFF’s forums closed down and dang it, if it doesn’t still hurt.

While I’m talking about betas, I’d like to point out that back in the day (2007-2008) there used to be a beta directory called Perfect Imagination (now defunct). You had to pass a test to be ‘certified’. That meant not only did you have to catch all the grammatical errors, but you also had to know the fandom in question inside and out. So knowledge of the HP books and characterization was critical. Was Remus Lupin a pureblood wizard? Does JKR refer to Snape’s position as potions master, Potions Master or Potions master, and is it the same both UK and US editions of the books? Once certified, you’d be given your official number and graphic, listed in the directory and could call yourself a PI Certified Beta. 

Nowadays, Perfect Imagination has been relegated to an entry on Fanlore and a few pages on the WayBackMachine Internet Archive. Things are not quite that regimented, at least not at the archives that I frequent, which is a good thing. There are also tools like Grammarly readily available (and free!) to help catch basic grammar problems. 

Ah, but nothing beats a good beta. Nothing.