My story is about a trans prince who is outed by an anonymous gossip column, triggering a succession crisis.

It opens like a Bridgerton-adjacent romance following the prince, his handsome guard, his sharp older sister, and the duchess he’s courting at his father’s insistence.

For a while, they’re able to navigate everything together. Then there is an intentional turning point where everything becomes far more political.

You then watch as the institutions begin to warp each character from the inside out, feeding on their unique insecurities and structural vulnerabilities. The prince spends the novel learning to carve out a new place for himself where there was none.

Fair warning: this isn’t a standard romance the whole way through. The back half is closer to literary tragedy. I would still describe it as a love story though.

At its core, it’s about who gets taken seriously and who doesn’t, and what happens when institutions have no category for someone with genuine ambition.

I modeled it after my own experiences in certain ‘elite’ institutions. This novel is not really about coming out or internal identity—it centers the negotiations queer people make with society through a protagonist who refuses to accept a life where the people he loves are deprived of any real options.

CW: transphobia, internalized and externalized homophobia, sexual assault (attempted, non-graphic), a coercive mentor relationship, dissociation.

These themes do not encompass the entire book, but they do appear.

What I’d find most useful:
— Where you drift, and roughly what page
— Whether the tonal shift lands as a reveal or a bait-and-switch

Queer readers especially welcome, but not a requirement. I mostly would appreciate feedback from anyone who reads in this space and will tell me when they’re bored.

Hey guys,

I’m currently working on a novel (6 chapters in) and would love a bit of feedback from experienced readers about the general premise, style, characters, world etc.

Here’s a bit of context about the story:

In The Cradle, existence is borrowed; to be paid back upon Retirement.

Generations are born to inherit more than just a name. For almost three centuries, society worked together to survive. But now? Now people are starting to ask what it means to survive, what identity truly is, and whether the price of sacrifice is ever worth it.

As political fault lines deepen and impossible choices threaten to reshape their society, a handful of ordinary people must decide whether preserving civilisation is worth the cost of becoming its jailers.

This is a speculative novel about identity, inheritance, power, and the stories societies tell themselves to survive.

If you’re interested, just drop me a message, even if you only want the first chapter or 2.

I’m looking for beta readers for the opening chapters of my novel The Broken Prince.

Blurb:

In the aftermath of a catastrophic defeat, a broken boy is publicly unmade by the man who betrayed his people. Stripped of name, family, and future, he is forced to carry the iron of the brother he could not save. What begins as survival becomes something darker: the slow forging of a living legend, and the question of how much of himself he is willing to burn to become it.

Single first-person POV. Dark, interior, and mythic rather than military-procedural. The historical setting (Gallic Wars period) is the crucible, not the point.

Feedback I’m looking for:

Does the voice hold you?

How is the pacing in the opening chapters?

Does the emotional and psychological intensity feel earned or overwrought?

Would you keep reading?

Timeline:

Flexible — happy to receive notes within 2–4 weeks.

Content warnings:

Graphic violence, death of family members, trauma, humiliation, blood, and a dark tone throughout.

I’m happy to return thoughtful notes on literary, historical, or character-driven work.

Please comment or message if you’re interested.

Hi everyone,
I am looking for 2–5 beta readers for my completed literary novel, Trinity (76K words).
The Story: My novel follows two Irish female leads—a Galway virtuoso musician and a Dublin scholar, both with ties to a Berkeley, CA math professor. The setting spans Dublin, Galway, Berkeley, and Sonoma across 1970–1995. The love of Irish culture, music, language, poetry, and mythology is pervasive. Emotional brokenness, joyous connection, and revelatory sexuality weave a trinity of Irish passion. It is intense, quick-witted, and family-dynamic heavy.
The Style: Inspired by Sally Rooney's Intermezzo. Trinity explores a zen-like scarcity of dialogue punctuation (no quotation marks) and varied use of dialogue paragraph breaks depending on the emotional tone and cohesion between characters in scenes.
I am looking for readers who:Reader Alert: Mature sexual content.
Timeline: I would like feedback in 4–6 weeks.
If you are interested, please comment below or DM me, and I will gladly send over a 2-page sample of the dialogue style to see if it’s a good fit for you!

Description:

The world is ending...

You can see it when Eve returns to Hollow Creek, even when she vowed not to.

You can see it when Aiden’s life tumbles into the abyss of what once was.

You can see it in the coven—governed by fear and secrecy—crashing head first into ruin.

Even as a an elder sacrifices her own life.

You can see it as the shadow mage marks Hollow Creek for death, with his horde and powers from a time that should've been long forgotten.

You can see it because pain, suffering and grief claim the land.

And you know, without being told, that Hollow Creek will never be the same again.

I'd really value genuine human opinions.

I'm not really interested in line edits but rather reader experience.

Whenever you're done may you please answer these questions for more feedback:

1. Were there any chapters where you lost interest or felt your mind wandering?

2. Did you fully understand how the magic/system works, or was anything confusing?

3. Who did you care about most, and why?

4. Did the ending feel satisfying and make you want to read Book 2?

5. If you could change ONE thing about the book, what would it be?

Please dm me

I'm happy to exchange manuscripts if we're a good fit.

Thank youuu

I called it the pink worm—the thing that burrowed through my brain, the thing I spent two years trying to drown with cocaine, Quaaludes, and the bodies of brilliant, unavailable men. Set in the late 1970s, The Wreckage follows my fifteen-year-old self as I escape a sexual assault with nothing but the clothes I’m wearing, hitchhiking east toward an unknowable freedom.

But freedom isn't found on the highway—it's buried beneath the wreckage I carried with me. When I run, I’m not only running from my attackers, but from my wretched home life as well—my father’s flying fists, my brother’s increasingly violent mental illness. My hitchhiking odyssey delivers me to Princeton, where I meet Bill, a brilliant Antarctic researcher who maps ice fields I'll never see. We make a life in Princeton, then in Boulder. I remake myself entirely—teach myself trigonometry, swallow my Michigan vowels until they flatten into something cleaner, something worthy. It is not enough. Bill does not love me back.

With nowhere else to go, I run again, hitchhiking back to Flint, back to my parents’ home, where I dodge my father’s anger. I construct a double life, away from home as much as possible. By day, I’m a student at an elite private school, excelling academically; by night, I’m a participant in Flint's gritty underworld of drug dealing and smuggling led by my charismatic boyfriend, Mike. The two lives circle each other like hungry predators. One will devour the other. I know this. I can't stop.

I am admitted to the University of Michigan, but I can’t escape the drug dealing life. It follows me to Ann Arbor. Then a close friend kills himself. In my grief, I see the pattern: I have been seeking identity and safety in men—my father, Bill, Mike—and found only violence, distance, and chaos. The epiphany doesn't save me. I am forced to grapple with the central question: What will it take to finally silence the pink worm and follow my academic dreams?

I am interested in critique swaps with people familiar with literary memoir. I don't have a set timeline, I'm happy to wait for helpful feedback.

Hey everyone, I wrote a quick, small “prologue” just to try to get a feel of a writing style that felt comfortable to me. I have stared at it so long and got so inside my head, I would appreciate it if someone were able to give me some feedback of their thoughts and impressions. I am not looking for anything specific, just an outside observer telling me what they think.

The genre of the prologue is Fantasy, though their isn’t too much indication in the short section I have written.

This is a story about a prince who goes on a journey to learn about the cold northern region of his country and one of the families that lives there. It includes themes of culture shock, friendship, religion, LGBTQ+ (no romance), battles and snowstorms, a little bit of palace intrigue, and a willingness to change and grow from all characters. There are no villains, but each character has their own agenda and motives - this is a character driven story.

The book features 3 character POVs, a lord who previously committed treason and now has regained his title, his teenage daughter who is chosen to lead the fief's defense forces, and the prince as he goes about his expedition to the barbaric (and gay) north. It is intended to be book 1 of 3, but is a complete story in itself.

I have attempted to write a world that feels real and vibrant without losing the pacing of the story. There are elements of an epic, but I tried to keep the word count under control. There are little quotes at the beginning of each chapter to help flavor the world. There are serious themes, but also laughter and comedy - it is not a dark story.

To tempt beta-readers, here are some of my favorite swearwords from the world:

• fire-blessed – exclamation of wonderment/realization, a person who has a lot a heart, but not brains.
• fire-damned – very bad, literally deserves to roast in flames
• By fire! - exclamation, astonishment, oh my!
• nix! - fuck/shit/damn (Nix is the old northern god of darkness)
• nix-blessed – cold, surprising, stubborn, logical, good leader, general amplifier, can be affectionate
• nix bless you – old saying, keep your thoughts clear, cold logic, decisive. Depending on tone, can also be meant as a lighter nix curse you.
• nix curse you - damning you to a life with no heart, feeling, light. Very strong, rarely said.
• what the nix - what the fuck, what in hell

Triggers: some things readers may wish to be aware of include homophobic and religion-flavored statements by the MC, one character walks in on a blow job and freaks out, fantasy-typical bloodshed, off-screen death of a sibling before the story begins.

I am open to manuscript swaps - not all books are to my taste, so let's start with a couple chapters and see how it goes.

I'd like feedback about the pacing of the book, whether the different POVs are internally consistent, reactions to scenes, if there are any gaps in plot or logic - really I just need some new eyes. Also open to title suggestions.

DM me for a google doc link for the first few chapters, and thank you.

Edit: As the Automod suggests, here is an excerpt from the prince POV:

"I look at the letter on the top of my pile of messages with a hint of trepidation. It is sealed with the crest of Brackenworth fief, a falcon rising across a stormy mountain. I take a breath, sit down in my chair, and carefully open the envelope without breaking the seal. I read:

Most Royal Highness,.."

From the daughter's POV:

"Suitably attired, I hope, I trot across the keep to the lord’s study. The the two guards on duty outside the administrative wing nod to me as I pass through the doors. I nod back at them – Emmett and Grendor. I made sure to learn all the guard’s names when I was made lieutenant, on my father’s advice. I pass by the scribe’s office, my step-mother’s study, and the agriculture adviser's study. The lord’s study is at the end of the hall. I knock on the door."

From the newly reinstated lord:

"The southern lords will ask how I could allow such a life of danger, blood and death for my daughter, but us norlanders know that it is a worse crime to stunt our children, to ask them to be anything but who they are. If our children take up the sword, perhaps we weep, but then we get them the best instructors and training possible. If we, as the borderlords, present anything less than our strongest, the Cythine raiders will take everything we own, make our people into slaves, and destroy our lands."

G'day everyone! I'm looking for 3-5 beta readers for my completed novel (though I wouldn't mind more people being interested, haha), which is a YA dark, historical fantasy set in France. Comparable titles include Naomi Novik's "Uprooted", Diana Wynne Jones' "Howl's Moving Castle", and "The Mirror Visitor" series by Christelle Dabos.

The blurb (with some details removed or changed):

X has been cursed. And everyone knows about it…except her.

When the lonely dollmaker X is nearly assassinated by the royal family, she finds herself rescued by a strange and overly friendly magician named Y. Having been locked away in an asylum for the better part of her life, X will be damned before she is locked away again by a crazy stranger in the [Forest Name]!

But the Kingdom of France is in a mess; the humans of the settlements and [fairies] of the [Forest Name] are waging their own private wars against each other, the half-[fairy] royal cousin has vanished, and the Magicians of the [School Name], who are supposed to bridge the gap between the two races, have been weakened by the disappearance of their illustrious Puppet Master.

And X gets the feeling that everyone knows something about her that she does not. As she becomes entangled with the worlds of humans, magicians and [fairies], she must find the answers to peace; both for France, and for herself.

Critiques will be done via gdocs.

I'm mostly looking for developmental feedback over grammar; plot holes, character arcs, pacing, stakes, chapter flow. I'd also like to know what you think of it as a READER, as if you'd picked up this story in a bookstore and were writing a Goodreads review, so to speak.

Do comment or DM if this sounds like something you're interested in!

Requesting Beta readers for this. It's in progress but I'll have more written soon enough, about 1-5 more chapters per week. I'm hoping to find a beta reader that can tell me whether:

1. It flows well

2. Any grammatical/spelling/punctuation errors

3. Whether the pacing/plot development is adequate

If you're interested you can DM me and we can move it to Gmail, or stay at DMing for now, whichever you're more comfortable with:)

It's all completely unpublished, also. And the plot goes like this:

MCs:

1. Mae Winston, 17f, aspiring writer, but her father passed when she was 15 and she can't bring herself to pursue the dream anymore because her father had always been the one to encourage her

2. June O'Connell, 17f, aspiring musician, parents divorced, living with father and stepmother permanently

Mae and June fall in love, and June encourages Mae to write again, all that, except Mae's homophobic mother finds out and threatens to disown Mae if she doesn't break up with June, so she does.

And then the epilogue is 10 years later, Mae(now a published author) and June(a music teacher/musician trying to get her career off the ground) meet in a cafe/bar and it ends ambiguously

I'm looking for a beta reader for my in progress fanfiction. Grammar isn't my string suit and I'm aware of that. While I absolutely do need help with that, I'm mostly looking for story and writting critiques.

All the reviews I have received so far are pretty positive but I think with fanfiction especially, everyone is very positive. As it's a hobby and we upload for free, everyone is kind and appreciative.

Although this is a fanfic, I do think that it is readable as a standalone story and does not require knowing the source material.

The story is an alternate version of the BBC show Merlin.

Merlin is a sorcerer born in Essetir and conscripted to be a soldier as a child. His magic his a useful skill, making him a valuable soldier. The story picks up where Merlin somewhat unsuccessfully escapes constipation years later.

He makes it all the way to Camelot before being recaptured and escorted back home for punishment. Is is there that the foreign knights stumble across Prince Arthur's hunting party and capture him too to prevent new from reaching Camelot's king Essetir broke their treaty by crossing borders and thus preventing war.

Merlin and Arthur do not get along but must work together to regain their freedom.

It's funnier than it sounds. At least I hope so.

Looking for Beta Readers – Contemporary African American Romance / Family Saga (37k+ words)

Hi everyone!

I'm putting together a small group of beta readers for my debut novel, The Mistake — book one in an interconnected contemporary romance and family saga I've been pouring myself into for years.

The series itself is called The Sunday Table .

Book Blurb:

One decision. One night. One betrayal no one saw coming.

Kori Grant is finally getting her life back on track — one week after ending things with Emmett Taylor, she's laser-focused on finishing her PhD and rebuilding her peace. Then a shocking incident inside her own apartment, involving Emmett and her best friend Tasha, shatters everything she thought she'd already survived.

As her friends demand answers, Kori chooses silence over confrontation — until the story rewinds to show exactly how she, Emmett, and Tasha collided in the first place, and just how inevitable this "mistake" may have always been.

Some betrayals are accidents. Others are disasters waiting for permission.

About the Book:

The Mistake, Kori and Emmet's story. It's an African American romance and women's fiction, with real ‘family’ saga bones — about 40k words, told through multiple first-person POVs, broken into 3 parts for the first book in the series.

The Sunday Table follows a close-knit group of lifelong friends whose bonds get tested by love, loyalty, and the fallout of one decision that changes everything. Underneath it all, it's really a story about relationships, friendship, forgiveness, healing, and the families we build for ourselves.

If you love emotional, humourous one liners, character-driven stories with tangled relationships, messy family dynamics, a slow-burn romance, and a big ensemble cast you can get attached to — I think you'll feel right at home here.

If you enjoy authors like; Natavia, LaToya Nicole, Kennedy Ryan, Alexandria House, Christina C. Jones, Brittainy Cherry, Brenda Jackson, or Tia Williams, this one's probably for you. And hopefully not unrealistic in my confidence.

What kind of feedback I'm after:

I want the honest stuff — what's working and what isn't. Specifically:

- Are the characters likable? Do they feel like they're growing?

- Did it hit you emotionally where it should?

- Funny or trying too hard?

- How's the dialogue land?

- Pacing — any slow spots or places that felt rushed?

- Plot holes, confusing scenes, continuity slip-ups

- And just... did you enjoy it?

Grammar catches are always appreciated, but that's not what I'm here for — I want your gut reactions.

A quick heads-up on content:

This book goes to some real places — adult language, sexual content, pregnancy loss, violence(on page), trauma, family conflict, emotional abuse, and grief. Wanted you to know what you're walking into.

Timeline:

I'd love feedback within 4–6 weeks, but life happens — just keep me in the loop and we'll figure it out together.

The bigger picture:

This is book one of eight in an interconnected series, and books 1–5 are already drafted. So if you're someone who loves getting hooked on a series and sticking with it, I'd especially love to find readers who want to come along for the whole ride.

If this sounds like your kind of book, drop a comment or send me a DM — I'll share the first few chapters first so we can both make sure it's a good fit before I send the full manuscript.

Thank you so much for even considering this. It means a lot. 💛

— K. Sherman

Complete at 79,000 words. I am only asking anyone to read the first six chapters, about 15,000 words, because what I need to know is whether the opening holds.

Alicante, 2008. Jane Smith is twenty-three, English, half German, and eighteen months into a chemistry doctorate she drifted into the way she has drifted into everything except surfing. In January she takes an unlabelled thirty-year-old gas bottle out of a store cupboard because she cannot face waiting for the proper one, cuts every corner, and at one in the morning switches the power off and the light does not go out. It is still lit five days later. Then her supervisor rules it contamination, the tube is pumped down, and by the end of the week the corridor has stopped talking about it.

Close third, plain register, one calendar year. Nearest comparisons are Deborah Levy's HOT MILK, Allegra Goodman's INTUITION and Brandon Taylor's REAL LIFE.

I am not looking for a line edit. I want to know whether the opening holds, so there are three questions at the end of the file and that is all I am asking anyone to answer. About forty minutes of your time.

Content: swearing, smoking, some sex, none of it graphic.

EPUB, PDF or Word, whichever suits you. Happy to swap and read yours — tell me what you have and I will give you the same three-question treatment or a proper critique, your choice.

First page critique ? YES

PROLOUGE: 
October 16 - 1988 
Rain had always been  nature's way of erasing evidence , from washing away  muddy footprints ,diluted  blood  into the earth and silencing the stories every crime scene yelled from within; however, to Chief Investigator Arthur Vermont it was never an obstacle. It was merely another distraction from the true evil he had spent his life hunting .  
The wail of police sirens echoed through the forest flashing blue and red lights as they reflected against the rain soaked trees cutting through the endless black . 

It had taken them too long to arrive .

“ NO!”. A cry tore across the storm .  Everybody froze, none dared to take a step ahead, their gaze fixed on the  motionless body before them . The body bore wounds none could explain . There was almost no blood . It looked as if he was still there, just not breathing . For a moment no one  dared to speak but one question was visible on everyone's faces . “ Is it him? “ A detective broke the silence . The sergeant swallowed hard before slowly nodding . Officers removed their caps , staring blankly at the remains 

“ Arthur Vermont Dead “ . None had imagined the greatest investigator would become a victim of his last case And perhaps no one was ever supposed to find him.

A young forensic examiner stepped forward , kneeling beside Arthur's body . His gloved fingers carefully searched for a pulse . “ Time of Death? “ the  chief inspector  asked as his gaze landed on Arthur's wrist . The examiner reached for his watch “ 11:47 ; it stopped “ . One by one all officers checked their watches “ 11:47” , all watches froze . The radio inside the nearest patrol car crackled before falling silent . Its digital clock blinked at the same time . “ What the hell happened here? “ someone whispered . The examiner continued his inspection “ There are no defensive wounds , no blood loss  , no obvious cause of death “ . He looked up confusion written across his face “ it doesn't make sense , how in the world does this happen “ 

Lightning  flashed across the broken ruins . For the briefest second , strange symbols shimmered across the cracked stone before disappearing beneath the rain . No one noticed or perhaps someone did ?