Ammanas Posted June 27, 2017 Posted June 27, 2017 (edited) For your enjoyment! Everything you could ever want to know about Beta reading Oathbringer. No spoilers, but a in depth look at the process of it. http://www.tor.com/2017/06/27/unity-of-purpose-the-oathbringer-beta-story/ Edited June 27, 2017 by Ammanas 3
Who Sharded? Posted June 27, 2017 Posted June 27, 2017 Quote Q: How have you seen Brandon’s writing evolve with Oathbringer vs. previous works? (Specifically wrt: TSA, focused on technique improvements and that sort of thing, not content-specific.) A: Everyone who responded to this had a different angle, but everyone said they had certainly seen improvement. It’s really hard to pick just one or two comments for this one! Ravi noted Brandon’s increasing ability to elicit emotion, and as Eric said, “The lows are so devastating, and the highs will make you scream with joy.” Others mentioned greater skill with chemistry and romantic tension; the self-contained structure within each Part; the build-up of context and meaning to a dramatic pay-off at the end; and the remarkable ability to still surprise the reader with amazing plot twists and incredible character moments throughout the book. Can't wait! 2
Steeldancer he/him Posted June 27, 2017 Posted June 27, 2017 (edited) Isn't that what he does with every book? I cannot WAIT for November. And who is Ravi? I can relate to a speed reader Edited June 27, 2017 by The Flash
Calderis he/him Posted June 27, 2017 Posted June 27, 2017 Just now, Extesian said: This is my whole day. 1
+Ravioli Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 2 hours ago, The Flash said: Isn't that what he does with every book? I cannot WAIT for November. And who is Ravi? I can relate to a speed reader A horrible, evil person. 8
+eveorjoy she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 1 hour ago, Ravi said: A horrible, evil person. Are you, Ravi, the same Ravi? And if so can you give us a spoiler free review? Although, spoilers are cool too, but I assume legal reasons would prevent such.
Andy92 Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 2 hours ago, Extesian said: Is that...is that the font they use on the slides on SpongeBob?
+Ravioli Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 51 minutes ago, eveorjoy said: Are you, Ravi, the same Ravi? And if so can you give us a spoiler free review? Although, spoilers are cool too, but I assume legal reasons would prevent such. Sure! Spoiler Free Review: It is a book. Spoiler And not for legal reasons, but because @PeterAhlstrom would eat me. 6
+eveorjoy she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 7 minutes ago, Ravi said: Sure! Spoiler Free Review: It is a book. Hide contents And not for legal reasons, but because @PeterAhlstrom would eat me. But is it satisfying?
FeatherWriter she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 Mom, look I'm famous! They quoted me on Tor.com!! 10
Calderis he/him Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 Just now, eveorjoy said: But is it satisfying? Has Brandon let you down on that before?
+Ravioli Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 1 minute ago, eveorjoy said: But is it satisfying? RAFO 5
Ammanas Posted June 28, 2017 Author Posted June 28, 2017 @Ravi I know that you are probably sick of questions about the book, but I have a question on the process. I noticed that you have a low post count so I assume you are a recent addition to the Shard. Have you been on Tor's staff for a while and have done Beta reads for multiple authors? How did you become a Beta reader. Are you a long time fan of Sanderson? 1
+eveorjoy she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 9 minutes ago, Calderis said: Has Brandon let you down on that before? I love Brandon, but no author is perfect. I already have the book pre-ordered regardless.
+Ravioli Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Ammanas said: @Ravi I know that you are probably sick of questions about the book, but I have a question on the process. I noticed that you have a low post count so I assume you are a recent addition to the Shard. Have you been on Tor's staff for a while and have done Beta reads for multiple authors? How did you become a Beta reader. Are you a long time fan of Sanderson? My low post count is due to me being shy to join online communities. I've lurked on 17S for years (I was always daunted because I felt I wasn't a big enough superfan to join) and have been a Brandon fan since I accidentally met him in 08. (I didn't start WoT until after I read his stuff) I don't actually work for Tor but I have beta read for other authors by chance. Uhhh and I became a beta reader by being memorable and somewhat persistent. Edited June 28, 2017 by Ravi 5
+eveorjoy she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 18 minutes ago, FeatherWriter (Alyx) said: Mom, look I'm famous! They quoted me on Tor.com!! When I saw you being quoted, first I thought "awesome." Then my second thought was "Of course she can't do a SplinterCast of 'Oathbringer' after she already read the book." Though a assume there is another reason you won't be doing any more SplinterCasts. :'(
Ammanas Posted June 28, 2017 Author Posted June 28, 2017 21 minutes ago, FeatherWriter (Alyx) said: Mom, look I'm famous! They quoted me on Tor.com!! Is the 15 seconds of fame all its cracked up to be? I'm still waiting for mine
FeatherWriter she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 Nah, that's the reason. I dropped a comment on the last episode of Splintercast, after the cat got out of the bag. Can't Splintercast and beta at the same time! 1
+eveorjoy she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 12 minutes ago, FeatherWriter (Alyx) said: Nah, that's the reason. I dropped a comment on the last episode of Splintercast, after the cat got out of the bag. Can't Splintercast and beta at the same time! Oh well. I will miss your Splintercasts. Sigh.
FeatherWriter she/her Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 I might post some of my beta comments somewhere after the book is out. The ones that are still relevant, that is! 1
Chaos he/him Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 Hey, some of my comments made it in this article! Fast spoiler free review: "!!!!!!!!!" There you go! Ravi is in fact absurdly fast at reading the book (though I was near him in finishing part one). Hi @Ravi Alyx was amazing in the beta and the beta would have been weaker if she was not involved. (She noticed a few things in particular that went past everyone else.) That said I am pretty sad I can't listen to an Oathbringer Splintercast because as I said in the article, the highs are so high, and the lows are so low. Muwahahaha... Other Sharders were also betas (Alice had a lot of comments to distill down for this spreadsheet). I'm pretty sure we identified all the errors... I guess you can partially blame us if not. 2
Ammanas Posted June 28, 2017 Author Posted June 28, 2017 2 hours ago, Chaos said: I'm pretty sure we identified all the errors... I guess you can partially blame us if not. I'm sure you guys did great! I am pretty bad at catching little errors bc my mind usually automatically corrects grammar mistakes. I think the only mistake I have ever caught in a Sanderson book was in Way of Kings where Dalinar refers to the king as Adolin's nephew when they were obviously cousins. I have no idea how that made it past everyone and later editions corrected the error. Anyways many thanks to the people that contributed! It seems like beta reading is much more work than I thought it was. 1
Jofwu he/him Posted June 28, 2017 Posted June 28, 2017 3 hours ago, Chaos said: Fast spoiler free review: "!!!!!!!!!" Guys that's 9 exclamation points. Can't be coincidence. 5
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