10 Rules of Peer Reading

THE 10 RULES OF PEER READING

Give your peer reader a clean manuscript with no other mark-ups or edits on it. Be sure the work has been self edited and copy-edited to the best of your ability.                        

Do not place undue pressure on the reader to complete the book. A week to ten days is reasonable as a short timeline.
 
Do not phone your reader each day asking how the book is going.
 
The reader must meet a reasonable timeline and, if this date is pushed back, let the author know about the delay.
 
While the phone may work in a pinch, it is always best to meet and talk about the project in person. 

Meet in a quiet space without the opportunity for distractions. It is best if the talk is private.
 
The author must allow the reader to do almost all of the talking. A ninety-ten split works best and it is hard to be defensive when you only get one word in every ten.
 
The reader should speak to what the book is. The reader should point out the spots where the book may need some specific help. The reader should also attempt to convey what the book could be.
 
The author should find something (at least one thing!) within the suggestions to mark as significant and let the reader know this.
 
Compensation ranges from a friendly return of the favor to a friendship for life. Classy short term options are building a social thank you time together, to an acknowledgement of the reader's role in the development of the book.