Writing Update: I’ve Just Finished the Developmental Draft of Repressed! A Call for Beta Readers

Happy Day, everyone!

Just a few moments ago, I finished the developmental draft of Repressed, my Novella featuring Kaitlyn from Caught. If you’re curious, a developmental draft is when Sara (my editor) makes her comments and I apply them during revision. This is more about plot wholes and character, structure, and arc.  I’m proud to say Sara was pretty happy with this one.  She did give me some insight about procedural things and the workings of a teenage girl’s mind.  This draft felt like it went quickly for me, but I’m still proud of how the story turned out.

Now I need opinions of those who read the genre, so I’m calling out for Beta Readers. What I look for from Beta Readers are responses to surveys I send them.  This is really me measuring the progression of character, description, dialogue, exposition, and world building. If that looks familiar, it’s because it’s how I review books. They can feel free to add whatever they want, but I’m most invested in what they think of those aspects of the book. I also need Betas to tell me how they like the story.  So, if you’re a fan of YA paranormal dramas, I’d appreciate it if you took the time to read the story and tell me what you think.  Here’s a summary:

BEGIN SUMMARY

My name is Kaitlyn, and I have superpowers. No really, I’m an empath. About three years ago, I met some people, and well all have powers now. The five of us who survived the day we met, not all of us made it, live together. The thing is, they think that because I’m a teenager, I’m not ready to help them save the world.

* * *

When Kaitlyn decides to protect a new girl from bullies, she gets a taste for using her abilities and secret training like the heroes of the comics that she loves to read. But as she starts to do more, she learns her powers don’t work exactly the way she thought they did.  Things get even worse when she learns that hero work isn’t as easy as the comics make it seem. When hatred and ignorance come to a boil, Kaitlyn has to decide what it really means to be a hero, and her decision puts the lives of three other classmates at risk.

END SUMMARY

I’d appreciate it if Betas could commit to getting their comments back to me by Feb. 12. Email me if you’re interested. This will be the last draft where I look for issues and development. Essentially, it’s this next draft (what I call the Beta Draft) and the Proofreading Draft. Then, It’ll go onto the release calendar for early (I’m hoping for January) 2019.

What’s next for me? Well, I owe T.W. Iain one more pass on his story for The Power of Words anthology, and I also have to apply the feedback Alpha Readers gave me for that. So I hope to do both before Beta Readers get feedback on Repressed back to me.

There’s a lot of news fixing to come down the pipe. I’m going to be busy! First up, I have Animorecon! I’ll be there selling and signing books, and it’d be great to see you all there. However, I meant what I said about lots of news coming. Stay tuned, and, as always…

Thanks for reading,

Matt