Why Would a Rapper Need a Beta Reader?

So, I guess an introduction is probably in order. My name is Clay Conner and I’m your average everyday writer. Except, that’s probably not exactly true. Before I donned my writer’s hat, I spent about a decade and a half as a hip hop musician. I’m assuming I’m not the only rapper turned author on the planet, but I’m also assuming there aren’t many.

I’ve always had a bit of a way with words, whether spoken or written. In fact, I believe the small amount of success I enjoyed as a rapper came simply from putting pen to pad and writing rhymes more often than my hip hop peers. While most rappers are concerned with image and style, I was always more focused on lyricism, wordplay and what I was actually saying. It seems I was a writer even as a rapper.

My particular journey from rapper to writer was somewhat of a double-edged sword. Coming into the writing world I had a bit of a built-in audience already. Excellent! People already impressed with the pictures I paint using words over music, ready to check out the worlds I can build with ink on a page. However, can I trust them when they tell me my stories are good? Are these people automatically biased towards me? The last thing I want is to be like the rappers who get roles in movies, not because of their acting chops, but because they are already known by the audience.

This is where beta reading comes into play. A beta reader will give you that imperative, unbiased “regular person” perspective. Are my characters likable? Are these situations believable? A lot of times writers can get so tied up in the world they’ve created that small details get lost to the reader. If certain elements of the story or traits of a character’s personality aren’t clear, that can be exposed by a good beta reader and cleared up before publishing.

Having multiple beta readers is also an extremely good idea. Getting a writer to beta read for you can give you insight into concepts of writing and storytelling that may simply be above the average reader’s head. On the other hand, having a beta reader with no writing experience will probably get you feedback more in line with the people that will be buying your book off the shelf. Either way, it’s important to get some type of critiquing from a cross section of people, that way you understand how the public will receive what you wrote.

For me personally, my novel Saint Merle, is a comedic look at the benefits of medical marijuana set in a trailer park in Texas. This is obviously a very niche idea and just simply won’t be for everyone. This is why it was key for me to have it beta read by a stranger that may, quite honestly, be offended by some of the language and antics in the book. Turning Saint Merle in to Quill Hawk for Tamara to read was daunting! In this case however, Tamara loved it. She found my characters, and their antics, to be endearing. Had she found particular elements to be distasteful, which others in the general public almost assuredly will, I would have had to take that into consideration. Then as an author, find my creative line and decide if I’m willing to sacrifice it to appease the masses.

At the end of the day, I’m one hundred percent satisfied with my beta reading from Quill Hawk and Tamara’s feedback. I received plenty of affirmation on the story, public promotion, and some private critique; all of which was useful and gave me a little slice of confidence right before going to press with Saint Merle.

Clay Conner

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