Kas, this is a real tough one. You often hear “good is good enough,” because some of us could tweak and edit and rewrite forever. On the other hand…(speaking like a true Libra, here), you really want to feel like this is as good as you can make it. I think the answer depends on how much you trust your beta readers and how much you want to get it “right.” You’ve done a lot so far, but maybe you might want to get a stranger who is a fan of your book’s genre to give a read for a fee. What do you think?

Sandy

After doing all of the above, I still wonder if the book is DONE & maybe I should ask a couple more Beta readers to review it. Am I just a perfectionist unable to call the novel finished?
Kas

Maggie’s URL is correct — yours has a typo. It’s yarn, not yarm — as in spinning a yarn.

Sandy

That’s a great tip, Nancy. Thanks! It’s sensible and efficient.

Sandy

Lindsey, I wonder if it has to do with the state of the manuscript. I suspect that if an author wants a high-level review, maybe she doesn’t want the beta reader to get bogged down by the small stuff that the authors knows hasn’t been corrected yet. If that’s the case, the author should make it clear: “I know there are lots of typos and spelling mistakes and I’ll get them fixed. What I need you to focus on is X.” On the other hand, if the manuscript is pretty much finished, I don’t understand why anyone wouldn’t appreciate learning about typos, etc.

Sandy
PS I fixed your typo. : )

I also wonder about authors who don’t want a beta reader to point out ‘typos’. There are typos and there are TYPOS. TYPOS can be the right word with the letters in the wrong order, the right words in the wrong order, a miss-typed word (sea/see, hear/here, of/off etc), extra spaces, missing punctuation etc – and if a spell checker hasn’t picked them up first time round it is not going to spot them second, third/umpteenth time round. I’m not saying this should be part of a beta reader’s role but if they are willing to do it why turn them down?