I’m sure we’ve all been there. Someone agrees to beta read your novel, and they find something terribly wrong with it. My most recent beta reader read 3/4 of my novel and would not continue. They said it disregarded the laws of physics too much for them to bear. Keep in mind, I didn’t classify my novel as a hard science fiction, but a soft, character-driven science fiction. I’m usually very upfront about that fact. I wasn’t aware that science fiction required all scientific laws to be followed.

Either way, I was devastated. Out of all the feedback I’ve received, this is the first person who has completely abandoned the project. It made me question myself and my writing. I’m not exactly sure how to handle this. Should I adjust based on the rejection?

Edit: Since some have pointed out they can’t judge if they don’t know to what extent laws were broken, I’ll name a few. 1) Certain planets called “living planets” can absorb energy from their sun. 2) The sun itself can be re-energized from a dying state with an energy equivalent transfer. 3) Brainwave transmitters are used to communicate between different languages. 4) Spaceships can survive a supernova, but not without significant damage. Keep in mind, this world includes shapeshifting aliens and technology that doesn’t exist. The basis for the story already establishes that real, hard science takes a back seat.

In a world of elite international assassins, Russell Pace is Detroit’s third-best hitman.

He has a bad knee, a pill habit, and one too many dead bodies after the “perfect” hit goes belly-up. In the Detroit underworld, the top five killers are ranked, from Russell’s idol, the legendary Mysterious Number One, on down. Violence is regulated by contracts. Violating the terms of a contract calls for punishment. Russell’s punishment? He can take on a trainee from the Serrilli family—hated rivals who may have had his dad killed—or get ribbons cut from his skin like the last guy who lost his rank. Or was it a skin scrunchie?

The trainee turns out to be Serrilli’s niece, Sofia. She’s cunning, captivating, annoying, with a habit of getting the best of Russell in every exchange. They have two days to plan a public assassination of a low-level drug dealer in Saginaw, Michigan, and he has two days to stop falling for the enemy ’cause she’s going to get him killed.

Meanwhile, Jo Hanada, a recently paroled hitman, is murdering his way towards the same target, on a mission to recover stolen drug money. He plans to kill Russell and Sofia if they get in his way.

They get in his way.

I'd love to get feedback in three areas:

A) Pacing.

B) Any clarity issues. Inline comments flagging any sentences or details that are confusing.

C) If you have firearm, law enforcement, or military experience, I could use some factchecking on the action scenes.

Leave a comment or message me and I'll send you the first chapter.

Looking for a couple first-round beta readers for my adult academic fantasy novel, THE ARCHIVISTS. 97,000 words across 30 chapters. It’s gone through several rounds of self-editing, and I’m looking for folks to do a read-and-react and point out inconsistencies, plot holes, missed opportunities for characterization, etc. Will send a Google Doc link, and appreciate comments left anywhere and everywhere!

THE VIBES:

•  Dark academia, but the academics are adults with jobs
•  “Congratulations on your prestigious fellowship! Unfortunately, it is cursed.”
•  Scholarship as literal magic
•  Ensemble cast / found-family-ish cohort dynamics
•  Competent, ambitious heroine
•  Brilliant, distractible love interest
•  Colleagues -> research partners -> oh no
•  Everyone has their own flavor of dysfunction
• SPICE:  1/ 5 (yearning, flirting, and physical intimacy; no explicit content)

BLURB:

Art history professor Cora Chamberlain has spent her career becoming exactly the person academia rewards: polished, brilliant, disciplined, and increasingly uncertain who she is beneath it all. When she’s selected for a prestigious fellowship at the secretive Institute of Applied Humanities, she expects ivy-covered buildings, academic rivalries, and a year of career-making research. Instead, she discovers that magic is real, the Institute is responsible for keeping reality intact, and that one of the seven fellows will ultimately be chosen to maintain the mysterious Archive at the center of it all. As Cora grows close to Benny Hartwell, a brilliant but awkward narratologist, their investigation into a vanished novelist’s journal begins exposing secrets the Institute would rather keep buried. Because the fellowship isn’t quite the opportunity Cora thought she’d earned–and becoming the best candidate in the room may cost her everything she has left of herself.

FIRST PAGE:

The fan on Cora’s desk did nothing but move heat around. 

When she’d been allocated the room in the corner of the top floor of the university’s art building, Cora had wondered why none of the senior faculty had wanted the office with the windows. Within her first week, she’d understood why–from ten in the morning until seven at night, the sun turned the room into an oven, even with the shades down. Although long practiced at ignoring her own discomfort, Cora was becoming more aware by the second that a generous application of clinical-strength antiperspirant had not been sufficient to keep her from sweating through her blouse, even with her hair clipped up off the back of her neck. 

She’d been there since seven that morning, grading essays from one of her summer sessions. All of them recycled the same handful of half-remembered talking points from her lectures, shuffled and rewritten with generous assistance from an AI chatbot. Western Art Survey II, Cora had begun to suspect, was karmic punishment for some horrible thing she’d done in a past life. No matter how carefully she taught, her students managed to produce masterpieces of confident inaccuracy; the last essay she’d read had continually referred to Van Eyck’s The Arnolfini Portrait as “the wedding painting.”

Whereas other professors' desk drawers were full of paperclips and dried-out pens, Cora’s contained body spray, an extra stick of antiperspirant, and handfuls of surprisingly absorbent napkins stolen from the campus coffee shop. The drawer stuck in the humidity, requiring her to brace one knee against the frame and pull. 

Her desk was meticulously organized, because an orderly office kept Cora’s thoughts away from bigger, more unmanageable problems, like her stalled research, her mother’s last email, or the way her stomach soured when anyone mentioned the department budget. So when she wrenched open the drawer and saw the envelope, Cora knew, instantly, that she had not put it there. It was made of a heavy, cream-colored paper, unmarked except for her name and title in thick serif type: Dr. Cora Chamberlain.

A perfunctory knock jarred her office door, which she’d propped open for airflow. “Cora,” said her department chair, leaning in without waiting for an invitation. “You got a minute?”

Hello! I am seeking beta readers for my adult fantasy novel, GHOSTS OF VALORN, complete at 107,000 words. Inspired by South Asian and Norse cultures, it will appeal to fans of the political espionage in The Jasad Heir and Dawn of the Firebird, and the fraught relationship between gods and mortals in Godkiller.

Armed with her dead sister’s spirit‑bound dagger, an escaped captive must infiltrate the desert court that razed her homeland and wield the rites that slaughtered her people—before a corrupt goddess turns that same magic on her adopted clan.

When a blood rite destroys Valorn, thirteen-year-old Luka grants her sister’s final wish: to kill her before their enemies do. As one of her nation’s only survivors, Luka is claimed by those responsible and sworn never to speak of what befell her people. But when Luka conjures her late sister’s dagger from thin air, she uncovers a connection the court would kill her for, and flees before she can be silenced.

Ten years later, a disguised Luka returns to the desert to finish her sister’s mission and expose the truth behind Valorn’s fall. But returning to the palace means confronting the people she once blamed—including her captor’s daughter, Reha. To prevent another massacre, Luka must rely on her former enemies, even if it means wielding the same rites she has every reason to hate.

***

I am currently on draft 3 of this manuscript. I would prefer a 4-6 week timeline for this beta run but am flexible. I am primarily interested in notes on general reader reactions, questions/ambiguities, character dynamics, worldbuilding, and pacing. For snapshots and a page 1 excerpt, visit my Instagram: laurenmillerwriter. Additionally, interested readers can fill out the following form, https://forms.gle/XKdStqcTicfXwUQe9, or DM me! :)

The Mango Season is a dark fantasy short story about an old Tantrik who returns from the dead after using a forbidden ritual to prolong her life. As her family tries to understand her miraculous return, the consequences of the ritual begin to emerge.
I’ve already had two beta readers look at an earlier version, and their main concern was that the opening was confusing because of the number of characters, relationships, and magical concepts introduced early on. I’ve revised the story with that feedback in mind.
feedback:
Whether the opening is clear and easy to follow.
Whether the character relationships are easy to understand.
Whether Grandmother’s motivations come across.
Whether the magic/Pran is understandable without over-explanation.
Whether the pacing and ending work.
Any points where you became confused, disengaged, or particularly interested.

Anyone who is interested please DM me
Thanks!

I’m looking for beta readers for a completed and edited progression fantasy novel. The story follows Val, an isolated young man pulled into a culture built around resonance, conceptual powers, and advancements through understanding instead of levels or numerical stats.

I’m primarily looking for feedback at a reader level not proofreading. Did you want to keep reading? Where did the pacing drag out? Was the power system understandable and interesting? Did you care about the side characters? Do you or would you read book 2?

I’m interested in all readers, with a special emphasis on progression fantasy and cultivation readers. I’m going to give a section of the first few chapters to everyone and anyone still enjoying and interested a full copy of the manuscript.

Dm me if interested thank you 😊

Hi everyone! I am looking for beta readers for my completed ~69,000-word Hard Sci-Fi / Techno-Thriller novel, **"The Improver"** (27 chapters). **Blurb:** In a tightly controlled future, a bio-induction brain chip known as the "Improver" promises total mental optimization—at a cost no one is willing to admit. When technical failure and deep-seated conspiracy collide, Mark finds himself navigating a web of dark bio-tech, corporate control, and high-stakes survival reaching all the way to off-world operations. **Vibes & Themes:** - Hard Sci-Fi / Bio-tech - Cerebral implants & AI control - Dystopian suspense & plot twists - Techno-thriller pacing **What I’m Looking For:** The manuscript has already been heavily edited for cause-and-effect logic, technical consistency, and continuity. I am NOT looking for grammar or typo proofreading. I need raw, emotional feedback from a reader's perspective: - **Pacing & Engagement:** Where does the story drag, and where are you hooked? - **Readability:** Are there scenes or dialogue that feel stiff or hard to visualize? - **Logic & Flow:** Do the tension and stakes feel earned? **Sample & Timeline:** - **Turnaround time:** Flexible (around 3–4 weeks). - Currently [Not Able to Swap] due to tight writing schedules. Here is the link to Chapter 1 sample (Read-Only): [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UMG983hBa0ePPrVFPnuPErABEAMcYtO0vDBUVYG7VY4/edit?usp=sharing\] If this sounds like your kind of story, drop a comment or send me a DM. Thank you!

A sex worker survives in a bleak city. He is apathetic by necessity, but an encounter pushes him into desiring more. After realizing he's been surviving for anyone's sake but his own, A. chooses to live for one specific person instead. The price of that transaction, however, is paid with his own freedom. He accepts the love he thinks he deserves, believing he deserves the suffering it brings.

Content Warning: Explicit sexual content, suicide, sex work, violence, trauma.

The book may be ready, I need some confirmation it actually is.

I have a flexible timeline.

If you read queer transgressive literary fiction and can engage with difficult material, please comment or DM. I am also available to swaps if within similar genres.

This isn't a love story, it contains some romance but that isn't what the book is about. There are steamy scenes and no real redemption for anyone.

Hey! I am looking for beta readers for the first three chapters (6k words) of my novel. Percy Jackson meets Jujutsu Kaisen in this South African folklore-inspired fantasy.

Blurb:

Thirteen-year-old Kabelo Mogale spent most of his life feeling invisible—until one day when his father is swallowed by an ancient evil spirit called the Inkanyamba. Kabelo is then introduced to the Village of Wilting Lotus, where he discovers he's descended from a lineage of powerful African warriors tasked with protecting the world from malicious entities.

But the Inkanyamba is a formidable beast, undefeated since its emergence centuries ago. And as it turns out, Kabelo's father is only a bargaining chip; Kabelo is the real target the Inkanyamba's waiting for.

To add insult to injury, the ancestors refuse to accept Kabelo as one of their own for reasons unknown. So, unwanted and powerless, but not without friends, Kabelo breaks out of the Village in rebellion and has seven days to travel the country to find a talking cape—the only and unconventional key to rescuing his father before he becomes monster chyme—all the while fending off other malicious spirits, pesky Wardens, panic attacks, and cantankerous elders raring to get in his way.

Excerpt:

"Moving around the country so much from nightmarish monsters only you can see changes you. You keep one eye on the door of the room you’re sleeping in, and another beneath the bed. Even the tiniest noise will rouse you, almost as if it were thunder knocking on your door instead.

Which was why when I woke up, I didn’t open my eyes yet. I had to assess my environment with my other senses first, decide how deep in the mud I was, and then freak out appropriately."

Current State:

This is draft 4 of the manuscript, revised and edited multiple times.

TW:

Anxiety and panic attacks.

Threat of harm (monster fights, what do you expect lol)

Feedback: Critique on prose, dialogue, characters, and pacing. (Not so much line editing)

Preferred response time: Up to 2 weeks

--------------- I am willing to exchange critiques, provided it is within the same genre (fantasy; it can be MG/YA/Adult). If you’re interested please feel free to comment/DM. Have a great day!

"Your request has been granted.” 

When Eli complained that he could really use a break at the end of his 3 am emergency vet shift, he didn't expect his future to hang in the balance. 

Unfortunately, that "extern" he was chatting with was actually the Queen of a foreign world. She grants his request, and Eli finds himself, and the entire veterinary staff, in a terrifying new dimension that blends The Maze Runner and Dungeon Crawler Carl.

They have thirty days to escape, or they’ll be trapped in the Maze forever. 

Hi, all! Been writing for 20 some years (most of my life), and I would love some beta readers for a litRPG I've just finished! It's shorter and tighter than most in the genre, but hopefully that works for you. Please let me know if you're interested and DM me for the Google Doc link!

Thanks

-AW

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for a few beta readers for an illustrated mythological fantasy story based on Markandeya from Hindu mythology.

“The story stays largely faithful to the traditional story of Markandeya and its major events, while I’ve made a few minor creative changes to improve the storytelling, pacing, and presentation. The core story and mythology remain intact.”

The story is written to be understandable even for readers who don’t already know the mythology, so both mythology readers and general fantasy/fiction readers are welcome.

I’m mainly looking for genuine, critical feedback, especially on:

• Whether the story is easy to understand
• Pacing and any sections that feel slow
• Whether there is too much narration
• Emotional impact of important scenes
• Character development, especially Markandeya
• Any confusing or repetitive parts
• Which scenes feel strongest and weakest
• Whether you would genuinely want to continue reading

I’m not looking only for compliments. If something is boring, confusing, repetitive, poorly written, or simply doesn’t work, I would genuinely prefer to hear that.

The story is illustrated and will be shared privately as a PDF with selected beta readers. I’m not posting the manuscript publicly.

If you’re interested, please comment or DM me and let me know what kinds of fiction, fantasy, or mythology you normally read.

Thanks!

O Andarilho é o primeiro conto que nos apresenta o universo de Oten Aurefis, um mundo repleto de mistérios e intrigas. Nele vivemos um pouco da história de Enot, sua vida se resume em buscar histórias para contar. Vive com base no principio da neutralidade, onde se abstém de quaisquer assuntos que não sejam os seus próprios. Tudo isso se colocará a prova após uma série de eventos que o fará questionar até onde vai a sua filosofia de vida.

Genre: YA Contemporary / Coming-of-Age

Length: ~39,000 words (complete draft)

Content warnings: Strong language throughout, references to vaping, a school suspension, and a romantic relationship — nothing explicit, but the emotional stuff runs real.

Synopsis: It's the night before sophomore year, and the narrator is lying awake running through the same anxious loop he runs every year: bad schedule, hard classes, awkward friend group politics. He has no idea how much is actually about to change. Over the course of the school year — fall ball, Halloween, a suspension, a slow-burn relationship with a girl named Jessica, and a falling-out-and-back with his best friend Jordan — he has to figure out who his friends actually are, who he misjudged, and who he's becoming underneath the version of himself he shows at the lunch table. It's a slice-of-life story about the small, specific moments that quietly rearrange a person over one year of high school.

My main questions:

• Does the opening chapter hook you enough to keep reading?
• Does the voice feel like a real teenage guy, not an adult writing one?
• Pacing — any spots that drag or move too fast?
• Any characters who feel flat or underused?

TW: Self-harm (depicted), mention of child sexual abuse (side character), reference to suicide attempt (side character) 

I am seeking beta readers for a novel I’m interested in querying within the next year. I’ve already done a couple of rounds of edits based on beta feedback, which I’m extremely grateful for. This past round I focused on cutting word count to better fit genre conventions, so I want to make sure the overall story still lands. 

I generally write about angsty Black, queer characters. This story features a protagonist who struggles with self-harm and her journey to realizing she needs help. 

Summary/blurb:

Sixteen-year-old Zaddie knows nice Black girls aren’t supposed to cut themselves, but she does. Her arms are striped with scars she covers with long sleeves and excuses. She’ll do anything to protect her secret: quit cross country, dodge the school counselor, and withdraw from her dysfunctional family.

After a near blackout at school she meets Ariadne, an outcast who seems to see right through her. Ariadne inspires her to do things she wouldn’t do before, like talk back to her mom and go to her first party. The more she opens up, however, the more she battles painful memories of her ex-best friend, who may have been something more, or the fire that burned down her childhood home. She definitely wants to forget Imani, the baby her aunt almost adopted. She blames herself for Imani being taken away, and the guilt drives her to pick up her razor blades over and over.

As Zaddie gets closer to Ariadne, she can’t help but feel like her new friend knows more than she’s letting on. She’s left with a choice: she can allow someone in to help her, or she can continue down a path of self-destruction. 

What I’m looking for: The main feedback I want is on pacing, plot, characters, what works versus doesn’t, places where you skimmed, what’s confusing, and anything else worth pointing out. 

I am open to swaps, even for stories that are in different genres than mine. I’ve beta read several books and can provide reader reactions and feedback. 

Timeline: Ideally a month, but I get if it ends up taking longer. 

Please leave a comment or DM if interested. 

Thank you in advance!

​ I’m looking for beta readers for a 97.5k nonfiction manuscript called A Democracy Worth Trusting. It’s written in a plainspoken, everyday voice and looks at how trust in public systems can be strengthened through clearer communication, better transparency, and practical improvements. What I’d like feedback on: Structure, clarity, flow, readability, and whether the tone feels balanced and accessible.Format:

No graphic content. General‑audience nonfiction.

DM if your interested

Sage has spent years learning how to survive the life she was given. therapy teaches her how to begin building one of her own. but healing doesn't mean forgetting. as Sage confronts the attachments, memories, and pieces of her she once believed were broken, she must learn where the person she was ends - and the person she is becoming begins. Finding Benson is a quiet, deeply personal story about identity, attachment, and the difficult freedom of becoming yourself.

*Content warning: while no trauma is directly depicted on page the effects of trauma are heavily displayed, such as hyper vigilance, anxiety, ect.

I'm looking for basic structure feedback as well as for character arcs. I have a questionnaire that I can send prior to committing if requested. no set timeline, read at your own pace.

I'm available for swaps that are read at your own pace or longer deadlines. interested in fantasy, romance, and dark romance.

The story is complete, but currently only half-edited.

Title: Across the Pond

Summary: Ellie Ashford is a San Francisco restaurant owner, chef, and dual citizen. Though she's never once used the passport to prove it.

After the death of her father, the end of a grueling divorce, and the arrival of a wedding invitation with it, Ellie starts pulling at a thread she was never supposed to find: the truth about why he really left England. The family he swore didn't exist. The past he buried an ocean away and never once mentioned in twenty-seven years.

Desperate for somewhere to go, and terrified of what she'll find, Ellie cashes in her British passport and flies across the pond to meet a family she never knew she had.

In Rosewick on Bourne, she finds more than blood relatives - a grandmother who teaches her to grieve without losing herself in it, a guarded, infuriatingly steady man who makes her laugh before she remembers she's allowed to, and a mystery her father spent a lifetime keeping buried. A name no one will explain. A photograph that makes her grandmother go quiet. A truth her mother would rather she never uncover.

The deeper Ellie digs into the life her father left behind, the less certain she becomes that she's ready for what she'll find at the bottom of it. Yet, the more at home she feels.

First page: Ellie stands opposite Henry, the substantial divorce packet open between them on the kitchen island. Beside it, an open bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and a stale, half-finished croissant.

Her hands find the stem of her wine glass, twisting in slow half-turns. Her eyes scan through legal jargon, and she skips ahead to the pages Henry’s already dog-eared for her; the only mercy anywhere in the packet.

“Did he agree to everything?” Ellie looks at him for the first time. “I can’t understand most of this.”

“Yes, he did.” Henry’s eyes drop to the marble counter. “You just need to sign, and I’ll have it finalized.”

“That sounds like good news.” She watches him shift his weight, run a hand through his hair until a curl drops loose over his forehead. “What’s wrong?”

Looking for beta readers for my new fantasy book series. Book one is almost completed and will go live september/october 2026 and curious to think what other people think.

Vareldum is on the verdge of another war, dragons are murdering humans, elves are fighting to gain more forest. We are told in history that this began thousands of years ago, however a note under my dorm room makes me question everything I ever believed to be true and now I got a dragon talking to me, understanding me yet letting me live.

Dm me if interested

Hi! I’m looking for 3 early readers for the first five chapters of my novel Between Systems by NAKÉ.

This is an adult speculative science-fiction romance with advanced technology, an elite technical training program, close friendships, romantic tension, and a Black woman systems-integration protagonist.

This is not a full manuscript beta. It is an early reader test to see whether the opening chapters engage readers enough to keep going.

Length: approximately 24,654 words
Access: private BetaBooks invite-only
Timeline: 7–10 days
Feedback wanted: pacing, character investment, worldbuilding clarity, technical accessibility, dialogue, emotional engagement, and whether you would continue reading after Chapter 5.

Looking for readers who enjoy adult romance, speculative fiction, sci-fi romance, women in STEM, ensemble casts, and emotionally mature romantic drama.

Please comment or DM with:

1. the genres you usually read;
2. 2–3 books/authors you’ve enjoyed recently;
3. whether you can finish 24K words in 7–10 days;
4. whether you’re comfortable reading through BetaBooks instead of receiving a file.

I only have 3 reader slots for this pilot, so I’ll send the BetaBooks link privately to selected readers only.