On the AskALLi Beginners' Self-Publishing Salon, Orna Ross and Tim Lewis look at the topic of using beta readers in your self-editing process. A beta reader is a trusted book lover whose opinion helps you to do a final self-edit on your book before sending it to the editor. But how do you choose the right beta readers? And how do you ensure you’ll get constructive advice on your manuscript and not just a review or opinion?

Also, on Inspirational Indie Authors

Howard Lovy interviews J. Dianne Dotson. Dianne is both a science and science fiction writer who is publishing a series of books, the first of which is called Heliopause: The Questrison Saga: Book One. And that's where Dianne shines as one of our favorite kinds of science fiction authors--- one who actually knows about science. Howard and Dianne discuss how to find the perfect balance between science and fiction.

The AskALLi podcasts are sponsored by Damonza: Books Made Awesome.

Find more author advice, tips and tools at our Self-publishing Author Advice Center: https://selfpublishingadvice.org, with a huge archive of nearly 2,000 blog posts, and a handy search box to find key info on the topic you need.

And, if you haven’t already, we invite you to join our organization and become a self-publishing ally. You can do that at http://allianceindependentauthors.org.

Now, go write and publish!

About the Hosts

Orna Ross launched the Alliance of Independent Authors at the London Book Fair in 2012. Her work for ALLi has seen her named as one of The Bookseller’s “100 top people in publishing”. She also publishes poetry, fiction and nonfiction, and is greatly excited by the democratising, empowering potential of author-publishing. For more information about Orna, visit her website: http://www.ornaross.com

Tim Lewis is the author of three time-travel novellas in the Timeshock series and three fantasy novels in the Magpies and Magic series under his full name of Timothy Michael Lewis. He is the host of the Begin Self-Publishing Podcast and is currently working on the book Social Media Networking- a guide to using social media to find your dream job, find love and boost your travel experience.