Agent, Beta, Gamma

This week an agent asked us for the first three chapters of our now 80,000 word completed manuscript Will Steal for Shoes. It will be awhile before we know if we move on to the next round of judging, so to speak, but it’s a welcome affirmation of our hard work and a step in the right direction. As my dear ole Dad would say, “Beats a kick in the head.” Still, no matter how long it takes we’re confident of the ultimate outcome: we will succeed and you will want to stick around for the grand finale. We’re thinking fireworks of questionable legality and cotton candy. No clowns. Clowns are creepy.

Next to pi, (any flavor), a writer’s favorite Greek-type character is her beta, as in beta reader. Not to be confused with betta fish, which although beautiful, are mostly useless. Call them Siamese fighting fish and they certainly sound exciting, but really, not so much.  Beta readers, on the other hand provide invaluable feedback; sometimes positive, often critical, but always necessary. Wikipedia has a neat, concise entry for beta reader. We especially like the part where the author is considered the alpha reader, because really, who doesn’t enjoy being top dog? *In co-authordom top billing protocol demands either: a duel to the death or a coin toss. We haven’t made up our minds yet.

We owe a debt of gratitude to our various beta readers for making us all we can be. Now we’re actively looking for critique partners. If you take writing seriously or know someone who does, send them our way. We’d love the opportunity to shred them to pieces. Just kidding. Or are we?