I don't know if my experience is unique, but I was wondering:
Those of you who do beta-reading and editing, if you're younger than the author of the fic (and you know it), do you ever feel awkward editing their work, or even making suggestions to improve the story?
It's not even just fanfic I'm talking about--I once edited/beta-read a textbook that one of my older friends (he's at least in his fifties, and I'm 23) was writing, and I have to say, I was kind of afraid to tell it to him straight, because of the age difference, and the fact that the younger person--me--was doing the editing, instead of the other way around. Luckily, my friend was really good about it.
Or how about when you first BR/edit a story for an author whose stories you've read before, and utterly loved? Does seeing the rough draft of their newest work make you skittish about helping them improve it?
"You take turns, advise and protect one another, even heal or be healed when the going gets too tough. I know! That's not a game--that's friendship!" ~Shelly Mezzanoble,
Confessions of a Part-Time Sorceress: A Girl's Guide to the Dungeons & Dragons Game Darcy\'s Place
