Beta Reader Terms — Public Call (voluntary, unpaid)
These terms govern your participation, if you are selected through the public call on maclenmagnuson.com, in the beta reading program for the unpublished books The Present Dad (English) and Papá Presente (Spanish) (the “Manuscript”). The program is operated by Maclen Magnuson (“we”, “us”). By checking “I agree” in the reader portal you accept these terms.
Separate terms for the private circle. Readers personally invited by the author to his private circle take part under separate terms (https://maclenmagnuson.com/beta-terms), which include an honorarium. Those terms do not apply to the public call, and these terms do not change them. The reader portal shows you the terms that apply to you before you start reading.
1. Who can participate. You must be at least 18 years old (or the age of majority where you live). Applying through the public form does not guarantee a place; selection is by invitation and is made by the author. We may close or change the program, or end any reader’s access, at any time.
2. Confidentiality (no sharing). The Manuscript is unpublished and confidential. You agree that you will not:
- share, forward, publish, post or sell the Manuscript or any part of it;
- copy, print, screenshot, photograph, record or download it, except reading it inside the reader portal;
- upload or paste it into any AI tool, translation service, summary app or other third-party service;
- give your personal access link to anyone else.
You may tell people that you are a beta reader. You may not reveal the content. These confidentiality duties continue after the program ends, until the Manuscript is officially published or we release you in writing.
3. Personal access and watermark. Your access link is personal. Each chapter you read shows a visible reader code (for example “DBR-7F3K”) that identifies your copy. If a copy of the Manuscript appears where it shouldn’t, the code lets us identify the source. If we believe these terms have been breached, we may revoke your access immediately.
4. Reading window and format. You will have 21 days from the moment you receive access to read and share your impressions. The Manuscript is delivered by chapters in a private reader portal, with an audio version where available. It is not provided as a PDF or any other downloadable file. The Manuscript is a pre-publication version and may change. Your access ends when the reading window ends or the program closes, whichever comes first.
5. Your feedback. We want honest feedback, positive or negative. By sending feedback (through the portal or by email) you give us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual permission to use it to edit, improve and publish the books and related materials. You don’t have to agree with the author, finish the book or write a review to take part.
6. Testimonials and quotes (separate permission). We will not publish your name, likeness or words as a testimonial, endorsement or public quote unless you give separate, explicit permission for that specific use (for example, a checkbox or a written reply). You can withdraw that permission for future uses at any time. Any public review you choose to write is voluntary. If we ever give you anything of value in connection with the books, we will tell you, and we may ask you to disclose it in any public review, as advertising rules (such as the U.S. FTC Endorsement Guides) require.
7. Voluntary and unpaid. Participation in the public call is voluntary and unpaid. You will not receive an honorarium, gift card, payment, free copy of the final edition or any other compensation for applying, reading, sending feedback or withdrawing. The Amazon.com Gift Card honorarium described in the private-circle terms does not apply to the public call. What you receive is early access to the story, the audio version where available, and a voice in the editorial process.
8. Withdrawal at any time. You may stop participating at any time, for any reason, from the portal or by telling us at [email protected]. If you withdraw, your access to the Manuscript ends. Your confidentiality duties in section 2 continue. An honest “stopped reading” note is always welcome and useful.
9. No other relationship. Participation does not create employment, partnership or agency. It also gives you no ownership of, or rights in, the books.
10. Disclaimer and limitation. The program and the portal are provided “as is”. To the extent the law allows, we are not liable for indirect or consequential damages arising from your participation.
11. Privacy and messages. We handle your personal data as described in our Privacy Policy: https://maclenmagnuson.com/beta-privacy. Program messages for the public call are sent by email. We do not ask for your phone number in the public call and we send no text messages unless you later choose, separately and optionally, to receive them; in that case the SMS program terms at https://maclenmagnuson.com/beta-terms apply to those messages only.
12. Changes, law and contact. If we change these terms, we will show you the new version in the portal, and you will need to accept it to continue. These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Wyoming. Contact: [email protected] · 1309 Coffeen Avenue, STE 1200, Sheridan, WY 82801.