[ SECRET POST #3497 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #3497 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 40 secrets from Secret Submission Post #500.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[fscom]

02. http://i.imgur.com/6WX4KYw.jpg

[(Anonymous)]

*fistbump*

(I was the one who posted the sock puppet beta secret from last week, btw.)

[(Anonymous)]

I've never participated in a fic exchange that required a beta before, so I'm curious: do you actually have to cite an account? Could I just say my mom was my beta? Lol

[(Anonymous)]

Or "YOUR MOM was my beta."

[(Anonymous)]

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[(Anonymous)]

The ones I participated in you didn't have reference a certain account. And what you're proposing was exactly what I was going to do. I just credited my beta as "M". If anybody asked, I was going to say it was my Mom (which, she could probably do if what I write wasn't so smutty :p).

But the truth? I was my own beta, like the secret-writers. And nobody called me on it.

[(Anonymous)]

lol, I approve of this

[kallanda_lee]

I wish I could pull that off, but I'm terrible with typo's.

[elaminator]

I wasn't aware there were fic exchanges that required you to have a beta, but then again I don't write so I'm not too familiar with fic exchanges in the first place...

This seems like a weird rule to have. I agree that betas can be nice to have, but it isn't like having a beta is going to guarantee your fic is of higher quality.

[(Anonymous)]

That's what always tweaked me about exchanges having that rule.

I mean, I understand the moderators not wanting people to submit pure unedited garbage with mistakes galore. But on the other hand, some writers are decent enough at proofreading that when push comes to shove, a beta reader isn't absolutely required.

Besides, there are crappy betas just like there are crappy writers, so having a beta is no guarantee of a well-edited fic.

[elaminator]

some writers are decent enough at proofreading that when push comes to shove, a beta reader isn't absolutely required

I agree with that. Some might be more in need of one than others (as you said, if there are mistakes galore), but I don't see why it should be a rule.

Besides, there are crappy betas just like there are crappy writers, so having a beta is no guarantee of a well-edited fic.

Exactly! It's a complete toss up; just because you have a beta, doesn't mean you have a good one that's going to actually make the fic better.

[(Anonymous)]

As a mod who ran an exchange with a beta rule, I'd like to say that

1) We know there are writers who are diligent at proofreading their own work. The rule is for all the writers who aren't.

2) We also know that not having a beta is not a guarantee of a well edited or well written fic, but we feel that having that standard improves our chances just a teensy bit.

3) It means that when a fic comes in that is poorly edited or horrible, we're able to say, "Please run this past your beta again, because there are a lot of mistakes in it."

[(Anonymous)]

This. Fed up with the chorus in this thread of "I never use one, lol, good on you". Bet their work is dire.

[(Anonymous)]

Who hurt you?

[meridian_rose]

For an exchange (gift fic) it's nice if you can get a beta, and I try to for Yuletide. But sometimes you're writing for a small fandom or a rare pairing or both, and finding a decent beta willing to read a fic with those qualifiers often falls somewhere between difficult and impossible.

[(Anonymous)]

There was a beta offer thread I once saw where someone was bragging that they always "corrected" English to American English and fuck you kindly. I've read fic that's supposedly had one or more beta readers and it is appalling in terms of errors and long fic with no beta that's better edited/less typos than some mainstream works I've read. So definitely questionable quality when it comes to beta readers.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't have a beta ever, so I approve of this.

[(Anonymous)]

+1 Me too.

[(Anonymous)]

Same.

[(Anonymous)]

I enjoy being a beta but, yeah, I much prefer to go without one when I write my own fic

[(Anonymous)]

anything that requires a beta is ridiculous. they're nice additions, but not everyone needs or wants an editor, especially for something like fandom which is just a hobby...

[(Anonymous)]

The people who don't need editors aren't likely to be harmed by having one. And the people who don't want editors are likely the people who actually need one. They also have the choice of not participating in any exchanges which require a beta, which seems entirely fair to me. If you don't like a community or exchange's rules, then great, don't participate.

[(Anonymous)]

+1

It's a ridiculous rule in the first place. There are just as many shitty betas as there are shitty writers in fandom. And the amount of fics I've seen riddled with mistakes, typos and missing words in exchanges or fests that list three and more betas in their author's notes doesn't exactly induce me to change my mind.

I'm not saying getting a beta is a bad thing. Not at all. But assuming beta = improved fic quality is sadly not true either.