BETA READING ISN'T DRUGS: There Is No Free First Hit, Please Stop DMing Me

Beta readers are a trip. I’m not a complete dunce. Well. I might be. But I like to think I saw at least some of this coming. A couple weeks ago I put out a call for beta readers for Closer on Paper and got one or two people who signed up — which was perfect, exactly what I wanted. Then I posted about it on Instagram, and let’s just say it became my most-commented post of all time. Career milestone! Sort of. Here’s the thing. I understand that beta reading takes time. You have to read the book, write down your thoughts, organize them into something useful, and hand that feedback back. That’s real work. If you want to get paid for it — fantastic. Genuinely. But be upfront about that. Don’t slide into my DMs, ask for a bunch of info, sign up to read, return two chapters, and then ask for money for the rest. Beta reading isn’t drugs. There’s no “first one’s free” to get me hooked. I’m not going to read your two-chapter sample, feel the shakes set in, and start selling my Blood Bowl minis…