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Beta Test


Monte Carlo

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Hello Way Off-Topic community.

 

I'm about twenty thousand-or-so words into a fantasy novel.

 

I usually write military thrillers but always wanted to do fantasy, inspired by Michael Moorc0c k initially (darn language filter) but latterly by the likes of Joe Abercrombie. So imagine grimdark science-fantasy with a twist. Black humour, low-magic sort of thing.

 

I'll probably publish via a small indie outfit.

 

I'm looking for some discerning fantasy fans to beta the initial work I've done in case I've gone horribly wrong. The peer reviewers I'm into write the same sort of stuff as me and possibly aren't best to comment.

 

I'd prefer to use people I 'know' on here and who won't splurge my r/w ID everywhere, as this forum is my off-duty hangout and I don't pimp my writing here (I doubt any of you would have heard of me anyhow, I am small fry. Paid-for-writing small fry, though :)  ).

 

PM me if interested and if you want to pitch in on the process / pitfalls / **** you like about fantasy novels let me know.

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How many bitcoins are you paying?

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"Akiva Goldsman and Alex Kurtzman run the 21st century version of MK ULTRA." - majestic

"you're a damned filthy lying robot and you deserve to die and burn in hell." - Bartimaeus

"Without individual thinking you can't notice the plot holes." - InsaneCommander

"Just feed off the suffering of gamers." - Malcador

"You are calling my taste crap." -Hurlshort

"thankfully it seems like the creators like Hungary less this time around." - Sarex

"Don't forget the wakame, dumbass" -Keyrock

"Are you trolling or just being inadvertently nonsensical?' -Pidesco

"we have already been forced to admit you are at least human" - uuuhhii

"I refuse to buy from non-woke businesses" - HoonDing

"feral camels are now considered a pest" - Gorth

"Melkathi is known to be an overly critical grumpy person" - Melkathi

"Oddly enough Sanderson was a lot more direct despite being a Mormon" - Zoraptor

"I found it greatly disturbing to scroll through my cartoon's halfing selection of genitalias." - Wormerine

"I love cheese despite the pain and carnage." - ShadySands

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Can we nominate others?

 

If so I nominate Tale (since I believe he also writes) and Guard Dog (since fantasy is his favorite  :shifty: )

 

 

I have questionable taste in books but it's my lot in life, I suppose

 

I'd be interested in buying it if/when it comes out.. totally not related to my questionable taste

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Free games updated 3/4/21

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I nominate Volorun, Gromnir, and oby.

 

I would do it, but I'm already supposed to beta Bryy's game.

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"Akiva Goldsman and Alex Kurtzman run the 21st century version of MK ULTRA." - majestic

"you're a damned filthy lying robot and you deserve to die and burn in hell." - Bartimaeus

"Without individual thinking you can't notice the plot holes." - InsaneCommander

"Just feed off the suffering of gamers." - Malcador

"You are calling my taste crap." -Hurlshort

"thankfully it seems like the creators like Hungary less this time around." - Sarex

"Don't forget the wakame, dumbass" -Keyrock

"Are you trolling or just being inadvertently nonsensical?' -Pidesco

"we have already been forced to admit you are at least human" - uuuhhii

"I refuse to buy from non-woke businesses" - HoonDing

"feral camels are now considered a pest" - Gorth

"Melkathi is known to be an overly critical grumpy person" - Melkathi

"Oddly enough Sanderson was a lot more direct despite being a Mormon" - Zoraptor

"I found it greatly disturbing to scroll through my cartoon's halfing selection of genitalias." - Wormerine

"I love cheese despite the pain and carnage." - ShadySands

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Bit of a shameless bump. Have had a couple of PMs (thanks) but want more before I dish scripts out. It's only 20-odd thousand words, a quick read.

 

I'll gladly read it but I'll be brutally honest as you are in your views :)

"Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is and saw Virtue in her shape how lovely: and pined his loss”

John Milton 

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” -  George Bernard Shaw

"What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead" - Nelson Mandela

 

 

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^ If it ain't brutally honest then the exercise is pointless.

 

Beta testers you don't know are the best beta testers. They have to like the genre and understand it, and they need to understand the difference between a trope and a cliche. They need to know they are half meta-reading it but they also need to read it like a paying customer too.

 

But yes, they need to be brutally honest.

 

Sometimes you get people who just don't like the style and can't move past it. For example, "I like epic fantasy + this isn't epic fantasy = it sucks. As opposed to, "I prefer epic fantasy to be honest, which colours my view. Having said that, my reservations about character 'A' and their role in plot 'B' is tempered by the coolness of character 'C' and the idea of plot 'D.'"

 

I beta for a couple of people, including one ridiculously best-selling, uber-successful author who a lot of folks here might have heard of.

 

He loves decent criticism, it makes the finished product better. This is why I will provide a signed hard copy or a free download to people who take a few hours of their spare time to help.

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