Okay. You've written and revised. And revised some more. You're pleased. It sounds good. That manuscript is done!
Ah, not quite. Now you need to find some beta readers. Three or four should be plenty. They should be people who enjoy a good story. They should also be people you trust to tell you the truth. Their job will be to read your entire manuscript and track their thoughts in the margins. If they have a question, they should write it down. If they are shocked or surprised, they should write it down. They should have a conversation with you and the text in writing in the margins.
Set a date when they should have completed their task and returned the manuscript to you. Then sit down and re-read your story and read their comments. My habit is to spread out at a large table with all the copies in front of me and page through them all at the same pace. I read all the page one comments, then all the page two comments. You get the idea. I also have my writing up on my computer and make suggested changes along the way. Sometimes the beta readers' comments won't help, but if a reader has a question about something they should have the answer to, that is either their fault as a reader or your fault as a writer. You need to figure it out. Having several eyes on the text will help you do that.
If they laugh when you wrote something funny or are shocked when you wrote something surprising, your writing is working. Beta readers can be reaffirming in this way, and they can also help you discover holes in your plot or flaws in your characters.
So what do you do when you have digested all your beta readers' comments? Revise again!
Next Up: Are We There Yet?
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