Beta Readers
The manuscript is complete, and I've sent it off to my beta readers. What does that mean?
The job of the beta reader is to mark places in the manuscript where they notice something. Maybe something was interesting or funny. Maybe something felt slow and they skipped it. Maybe something was confusing. If they notice it, they mark it. See something, say something.
This isn’t an editorial review. I’m not asking my beta readers to solve story problems—I’m just asking them to point out their authentic reactions. When their feedback comes back in a month, my job will be to compare their notes and decide what to refine, rewrite, or leave alone.
Retrospective
I’ll do a full retrospective on the project once everything is finished. But having reached this milestone, I figured it was time to take stock.
First, I find it entirely too easy to chase perfection. Creating art and sharing it with the world is an exercise in vulnerability. It’s human nature to tie a sense of self-worth to how others react to our creations; praise for our work feels like praise for ourselves. It may not be a fair or true reflection, but it’s hard to escape the feeling. It follows, then, that an artist only wants to share their best possible work with the world. That's where the pursuit of perfection takes hold.
In preparing this draft for beta readers, I reviewed the five previous versions I’ve written since starting this project. Each has elements I like and elements I dislike. Even the manuscript out for review right now has flaws I can clearly see.
A fellow writer I trust reminded me that I had to stop chasing perfection if I ever wanted to finish anything. They were right. That’s why I drew a line in the sand and sent this version out the door.
Second, I’ve learned that the standard novel might not be my ideal format. It’s too large of a canvas for my storytelling style. My initial draft was about 60k words. At one point, it ballooned to over 120k. The draft I sent off for review is around 49k words—closer to a novella. And that’s fine. This isn't a school assignment with a minimum word count. But it does explain why I struggled to finish earlier drafts and why my next project will take a different shape. Long-form novels are just too sprawling for me. I’m leaning toward a short-story collection for 2027.
Next Steps
While the manuscript is out of my hands, I can turn to the rest of the publishing pipeline. I’ve already started the cover design conversation and we'll see where that leads. I also need to plan the front matter (acknowledgments, foreword, etc.), back matter (synopsis, author bio, blurbs), and marketing strategy. I’m still weighing my options for distribution and promotion, so that gives me plenty to think through in the meantime.
Title
My working drafts have all used variations of the title Cascadia 2080 since that marks the setting. But it never quite felt like a gripping crime title. So, for reasons that will make sense once you read it, the final title is Kill Command.
"To write is to expose oneself to the risk of being misunderstood, rejected, or ridiculed. But to write truthfully is to accept that risk as the only way forward."