Thank you so much for your interest in signing up to beta read for Taker of the Third Path! Please note that by filling out this form, you are not agreeing to beta for this project---simply indicating your interest to do so. If selected as a candidate, I will reach out to you in March 2024 to determine your participation. All answers to this questionnaire will remain confidential.
Project: Taker of the Third Path by Fell A. Marsh
Word count: ~100k (split into two approximately equal halves)
Genre: Queer romance (trans MLM), fantasy, potential tragedy
Content warnings:
“Off-screen” child and sexual abuse; explicit, detailed, consensual sexual content; death; threats of violence; self harm; attempted suicide; manipulation; mild hallucinations; natural disasters; forced relocation; imperialist violence. If you would like to inquire about the presence of a specific trigger not mentioned here, please do so in the optional question at the end of this form, or reach out to me via email.
Beta Period: Four to six weeks for each half, with some flexibility. Files and questionnaires for part 1 of the beta will be sent out in mid-April 2024; I anticipate sending out part 2 beginning of June 2024.
Desired feedback: Broad strokes! Right now, I'm most interested in what works and what doesn't work about the story, specifically its plot and characters. Feedback about character development and dynamics, pacing, and clarity of concepts is what is most helpful to me right now. If accepted as a reader, I'll provide you with both a list of specific questions and a place to leave open ended feedback. Utilize either or both!
Synopsis: Directed by the voice on the wind he calls god, traveling hedgewitch Linmiru settles in an abandoned inn at an ancient crossroads to watch for the next person to follow the overgrown “third path." Ton’s prophecy is deceptively simple: the fate of the world rests on Lin meeting the taker. But as the months drag on with this mysterious stranger nowhere in sight, Lin begins to form a connection with one of the inn’s guests that leaves him questioning his devotion to destiny… And when the taker finally does arrive, Linmiru must face the realization that nothing at the old crossroads has been as it seems.
Themes and motifs: fate, grief, guilt and forgiveness, the past and the future, healing and redemption, revenge, love, circles and spirals, fate vs choice, names, ghosts, home, family, threads that connect vs threads that bind, journeys and return, power.
Want more info? Check out this post on Tumblr or shoot me an email at thatfellamarsh@gmail.com.
Thanks again for your interest! I am so, so excited to share this novel with you.
