writing assistants
- Thread starter serapheus
- Start date
Eh, that pretty much goes against the purpose of the forum, which is to allow authors to show works-in-progress fics/chapters as they are written, BEFORE THEY ARE READY FOR POSTING. This forum isn't supposed to be an archive for completed work, at least not according to Hawk, who happens to be the admin.
Pardon my confusion, NDF, but how exactly would a beta section be against the purpose of the forum? I get the sense that he's thinking about perhaps a section where only those who have volunteered for beta reading and those who wish to be beta read have the password to get in...or something like that.
That being said, I really don't think it would require a whole new section. Just make a topic in the General fanfiction section, asking for volunteers for beta reading, and then those who wish to be beta read can post there. They can PM each other from there, if the author really wants it to be private.
That being said, I really don't think it would require a whole new section. Just make a topic in the General fanfiction section, asking for volunteers for beta reading, and then those who wish to be beta read can post there. They can PM each other from there, if the author really wants it to be private.
I believe that the point NDF is trying to make is that the forum itself is supposed to act as a beta read of sorts. We post our work on the forum, in hopes of feedback on improvement and correction of errors. Granted, a lot of the time these days, response is little more then "I like it, write more" but in theory, the boards should be acting as a beta read.
I see...well, the thing is, for the most part, no one seems to do dedicated betaing around here anymore, for the most part. That's why I think someone should at least start a thread, and see if there is anyone actually interested in doing it.
And the reason I was confused is because NDF mentions how the forum isn't an archive for completed works. Which it isn't, true, but that doesn't seem to have anything to do with betaing. Obviously, if you think it needs to be beta-read, it's not finished.
And the reason I was confused is because NDF mentions how the forum isn't an archive for completed works. Which it isn't, true, but that doesn't seem to have anything to do with betaing. Obviously, if you think it needs to be beta-read, it's not finished.
I can't speak for others, so I can't really say, but I believe that his point was that having your work beta'd is a step towards the end of writing a finished product.
Frequently, once someones work is beta'd, they are ready to post it as a finished product. The initial request asks for a beta process to have work checked before it is posted to the forum, and in the sense of considering it a finished product after it is beta'd, that would mean that one is working to post a finished product on TFF, thus making it act like an archive.
Frequently, once someones work is beta'd, they are ready to post it as a finished product. The initial request asks for a beta process to have work checked before it is posted to the forum, and in the sense of considering it a finished product after it is beta'd, that would mean that one is working to post a finished product on TFF, thus making it act like an archive.
From my own interpretation of the suggestion... it's a bit of a grey area, isn't it?
About the only reason why it would be useful is that it gives a dedicated place where people can ask 'insignificant' questions (or at least gives details of a group of people willing to be asked) - like how to plan a certain scene or work out issues with a plot line.
Personally, I don't feel that there's a place for this right now. To me, the forum seems to lean more towards general proofing, like spelling, grammar and plot issues. Of course, these are important, but the issues in creating those scenes/plots can make or break ideas, really.
About the only reason why it would be useful is that it gives a dedicated place where people can ask 'insignificant' questions (or at least gives details of a group of people willing to be asked) - like how to plan a certain scene or work out issues with a plot line.
Personally, I don't feel that there's a place for this right now. To me, the forum seems to lean more towards general proofing, like spelling, grammar and plot issues. Of course, these are important, but the issues in creating those scenes/plots can make or break ideas, really.
Eh? When I post snippets or stories, I usually ask about scenes or plot-points that I think could use improvement and I usually get feedback.
I think the problem is not that people here are too lazy to suggest changes, it's just that authors are afraid to ask or not specific enough in their request for help.
Edit: There's no reason to be embarrassed about posting your stuff here. If it's really bad, people will tell you so and usually make suggestions on how to improve it. Of course, there are always those specialists who only write 'U FAIL' and nothing else, but you should be able to ignore them.
I think the problem is not that people here are too lazy to suggest changes, it's just that authors are afraid to ask or not specific enough in their request for help.
Edit: There's no reason to be embarrassed about posting your stuff here. If it's really bad, people will tell you so and usually make suggestions on how to improve it. Of course, there are always those specialists who only write 'U FAIL' and nothing else, but you should be able to ignore them.
Well, I was more talking about how to go about writing/planning those plot items/scenes before they actually even get to a snippet section for people to read, when they only have an idea about what they want to do, but not sure how to go about doing it.
Those problems can pop up often when you're writing, particularly when you're beginning. I guess you can ask them in Ideas/Previews threads, but I dunno, to each their own.
Those problems can pop up often when you're writing, particularly when you're beginning. I guess you can ask them in Ideas/Previews threads, but I dunno, to each their own.
Siggy reads my intentions correctly. This is supposed to be a place for pre-released works only, according to the admin. Getting help before an article is posted to the forum so as to clean the work up enough to avoid embarrassment IMO runs contrary to the purpose of the forum, which is to allow authors to receive comments and criticism that are helpful in polishing a work so that it can be released.
Unfortunately a lot of comments amount to little more than "Great stuff! Moar!" I regret to say that I have made more than a few such comments myself.
Unfortunately a lot of comments amount to little more than "Great stuff! Moar!" I regret to say that I have made more than a few such comments myself.
Instead of being contrary, I think that it's more of the same thing actually. A beta-Reading section isn't necessarily needed but Preview isn't a section for beta-reading to tell the truth. Also, I don't believe asking for help like that goes against Hawk's rule. S/He's not asking to save his stories here or anything. Just wondering if there's a section or something s/he could use to get better as a writer in general.
I always believed Preview worked as a way to present a work in progress and get opinions on it before it became an actual story. If I used Preview more, I'd like to think of it as a process like this: Idea -> Writing -> Proofreading -> Preview -> Uploading it somewhere. The thing about that is that I'd believe a story should be proofread before being showed to other people even if it is a preview. Even though I say all that, I honestly see nothing wrong with posting something in Preview and asking for some help but I feel you'll have more luck with FFN's new Beta-Reader system.
To sum it up, I'd say feel free to try until someone lays down some law but I think you'll find more dedicated help via FFN's system.
I always believed Preview worked as a way to present a work in progress and get opinions on it before it became an actual story. If I used Preview more, I'd like to think of it as a process like this: Idea -> Writing -> Proofreading -> Preview -> Uploading it somewhere. The thing about that is that I'd believe a story should be proofread before being showed to other people even if it is a preview. Even though I say all that, I honestly see nothing wrong with posting something in Preview and asking for some help but I feel you'll have more luck with FFN's new Beta-Reader system.
To sum it up, I'd say feel free to try until someone lays down some law but I think you'll find more dedicated help via FFN's system.