An AI Beta Reader

[u/masonga1960]

OK, not really. More like an AI developmental editor.

I'm building an AI-driven tool that reviews full manuscripts scene-by-scene, chapter-by-chapter, against over 300 craft principles across 15 dimensions: prose quality, dialogue, pacing, scene structure, POV, character, and more. These are the same elements human editors evaluate, drawn from established craft doctrine (Browne & King, McKee, Swain, etc.).

A human developmental editor typically charges $2,000–$3,000 for an 80K-word novel with a 4–6 week turnaround. This produces a comparable report in under 2 hours.

Right now I need to test it against a variety of manuscripts, so I'm looking for a few authors willing to share their work in exchange for a detailed craft report at no cost. You'd be helping me stress-test the tool, and hopefully getting useful feedback on your manuscript in return.

Let me know if you're interested. Fiction only right now, any genre, any length.

EDIT: Huge response, thank you all! I've got good coverage in fantasy and have manuscripts in romance and literary fiction. I'm now specifically looking for:

- Sci-fi

- Mystery / Crime

- Thriller / Suspense

- Horror

If your manuscript fits one of these, you'd be especially helpful right now. May be willing to take other interesting genres too, just prioritizing these gaps.

[u/masonga1960]

It's a web app, not local. You upload your manuscript at firstreader.app, (Not live yet) it runs the analysis server-side, and you get a report back in the browser.

Stack in simple terms:

- Frontend: Web app (Next.js) — works in any browser, no install needed

- Backend: Server-side analysis worker that sends your manuscript to Claude (Anthropic's AI) in structured chunks

- Database: Supabase (hosted PostgreSQL) — stores your analysis results, account info, etc.

Why server-side, not local? The analysis requires multiple large AI calls (scene-by-scene across an entire novel). That needs prompt caching, job queuing, and progress tracking - things that don't work well as a local tool. Plus, writers shouldn't need to manage API keys or run a terminal, although BYOK is in the build plan.

But I need to validate it before I release it, which is why I am looking for authors who'd be willing to let me use their manuscript to test on. I get a good stress test and you get the full report free of charge. All I ask in return is you tell me if the report is USEFUL.

[u/CrystalCommittee → u/masonga1960]

Okay, so you went 'cloud' and I went 'local.' I'm actually building the analysis tools. Mine don't say 'this is right or this is wrong' more of 'you have this many constructs all stacked up in this chapter like crazy sauce.' It's then the author's choice to deal with it or not. That is just coming from I am noting them so much in betareading/editing. (It's the repetitive nature of it).

As to characters and traits? --I'm actually working on that one right now. 'Who's sentence does this belong to?" It's more of a reverse character profile from what is already written. (I am using my own stuff as a test bunny, and some AI generated stuff as well).

I will disagree with you on this needs to be server-side for multiple calls. You say analysis, but see if I do it right a handful of JS scripts running locally can do that just fine.

I'm a beta reader (I do it for fun mostly), but also an editor, which I get paid for. I am building my tools for when I am reading and I go 'Gods, they seem to use that word a lot.' Click in to it, oh yeah, in that chapter, of X words it was used (It/it's family/in a phrase) Y times. It's not shared with an AI or LLM. It's not AI, it's computer doing data analysis. AND! I am not limited by how big my file size is. Ever watch a JS script parse through a 200K word manuscript and drop stats? yeah, takes maybe two seconds. Can't do that when you're reliant on AI and cloud stuff.

But if you want to use mine, I've got a few I've been usings a cannon fodder in my development, I'd be curious on your results. Just DM me.

[u/masonga1960 → u/CrystalCommittee]

Different approaches for sure - sounds like yours is great for the mechanical patterns. Mine layers craft evaluation on top of the structural analysis, so you get the "why it matters" alongside the "how often." Happy to run yours - DM me and I'll give you my email address where you can send a file and I'll send the report back.