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Breaking Up is Hard to Do
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Mary
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Jun 01, 2016 07:55AM
Maybe it's because I was raised Catholic. I feel as though I will go to hell if I don't finish a book I have started. Anyone feel the same way? Sometimes this notion has paid off (for me, THE GOLDFINCH had a really clunky beginning, but I loved it by the end). Sometimes, I'm not so sure. (I'm currently slogging my way through the dense opening chapters of A LITTLE LIFE.) Isn't it an author's job to rope us into a story from the very beginning and hold us, tightly, to the end? Or, is it our job as readers to finish what we started before we can truly judge a book's merit?
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Mary wrote: "Maybe it's because I was raised Catholic. I feel as though I will go to hell if I don't finish a book I have started. Anyone feel the same way? Sometimes this notion has paid off (for me, THE GOLDF..."Mary,
Reading should always be an enjoyable and rewarding experience. The very nature of a novel is to entertain and hold the interest of the reader. Of course there is occasionally the rare exception to every rule; however, generally speaking, if the initial few pages are boring and fail to spark a reader's curiosity and enjoyment, the rest of the book will prove to be the same.
A talented author will gain the reader's confidence and hold their attention within the first few pages, and very often, the first few paragraphs. As previously stated, there are occasional exceptions to every rule, but the possibility of them occurring is not worth wasting the time and effort to force oneself to slog through a book that one neither likes nor enjoys reading.
I almost always finish a book I've started. Almost. There have been two (out of thousands) that I just couldn't finish, and yes, I did feel like I was breaking some immutable rule when I closed them with the decision not to open them again.But then, I'm not a you've-got-to-hook-me-in-the-first-line/page/chapter kind of reader -- as I know so many are. Too many times, I've been pleasantly surprised by how the entire work plays out. Admittedly, I've also been disappointed by a book, but feel I can't know this until I've finished it.
I do think it's an author's job to rope us in... but I'm an easy catch. I don't think it's a reader's job to finish what they start -- that's just my reading preference.
Mary wrote: " Isn't it an author's job to rope us into a story from the very beginning and hold us, tightly, to the end?"Oh, God, no. No no no. Just no. My job as an author is just to tell stories. That's it. If they're not to your taste, they're not to your taste.
As a reader, I pick up books and put them down all the time. Sometimes I come back and finish, sometimes I don't.
I felt that way with one book I was reading, but after trudging through about 40% of it, I asked why I was torturing myself and tossed it back on the shelf. If it's not to your taste or standards, there's no point making yourself angry trying to finish it. Put it aside and find one you like more.
I have no problem discarding books sometimes after the first paragraph because I dislike the author's style. I will only slog if it's a series book and I loved the previous books in the series. Then I have a reason to hope it gets better. Otherwise, I really need to be engaged from the opening of any novel. There are too many books and too little time.
I'm the type that I trudge through books even if they're boring me to death. Then when I'm finished, I'll hurl it across the room against the wall. I don't know exactly why, but I have to know what happened all the way. I'll try from now on though, because it's a waste of my time reading something that's trying my patience. I should have the mindset, that if it's not my kind of book, and the boring story is only angering my patience, then why should I care what happens to the characters:)
S.L. wrote: "Neither do I care for Stephen King's horror novels,"I'm the same way. There's no doubt he's a fantastic author with a brilliant imagination, but his books don't speak to me the right way. I'd never trash his work, but neither am I tempted to try reading it again.
I'm the same way as Joe, and S.L. Stephen King has a brilliant imagination, but I cannot read his books, I wait until they are made into movies which I absolutely enjoy!
I'm Catholic too and don't worry finishing a book is not listed in the 10 Commandments though I think it should be there for authors. I am an author too and if I can't grab a reader in the first few lines or paragraph I shouldn't be writing. That's my job. I'm not against pretty prose, in fact I love it but I don't necessarily write it. The trick is to hook your reader without them realizing it and without using anything particularly gory or sinister or stupid. In my latest novel's opening line another author read the book & told me, "Gee, you're the only author I've read who used a sexual climax to open a book..."
An author cannot possibly catch and hold the attention and interest of every reader, but for those who are interested in that particular genre and style, he or she most certainly should.There are too many books out there to struggle through a book that I'm not immediately enjoying. Something in it has to make me want to continue.
I general I quickly scan the book (if possible) or read the Amazon "free" section and reviews, as well as try to find out how it ends before I start reading. Endings don't have to be happy ever after or whatever, but they do have to appeal to my sense of "rightness" otherwise I won't even start.
I pay for books to entertain me, not to put me to sleep, give me a headache, a fit of depression, or give me a feeling of simmering rage. And I definitely do not agree that one has to learn how to appreciate a fiction author's style. I am the one paying for the product.
It can be a dilemma - do you drop a book or persevere past the discovery phase, hoping you'll be glad you did. As a writer, I strive to write the type of story I'd like to read, and hope others will enjoy the ride.
As readers, the sum of our life's experiences and personal preferences put a different spin on the books we sink our teeth into.
V.W. wrote: "An author cannot possibly catch and hold the attention and interest of every reader, but for those who are interested in that particular genre and style, he or she most certainly should.There are..."
I completely agree with you that you are the one paying for the book so you should have whatever you choose to read. As for me, I personally hated the western historical until I was forced to visit Tombstone AZ. The simple history of the place was so well preserved and impressive that I decided to look into the corresponding genre. I still do not like the genre but at least I gave it a chance. I always tell aspiring authors that every genre helps every other genre so for those who write or want to write reading everything expands their style and technique as well as and especially their command of the language. I wasn't suggesting cheating your readers by hoodwinking them, my intent was to draw them in subtly and engage them in thinking about buying or as now happens, getting free books. My whole point was to engage readers early or immediately not by tricking them but by writing well enough to achieve that feat.
The end.
Life is too short to read poor books. I usually try to make it through the first three chapters but I'm not invested at that point I know I never will be. For me it is all about connecting with a character. I don't want to spend time with people I don't care about. I'll spend time with people I don't like but not people I don't care about.
Davyne wrote: "I almost always finish a book I've started. Almost. There have been two (out of thousands) that I just couldn't finish, and yes, I did feel like I was breaking some immutable rule when I closed the..."I think I'm leaning your way, D. Settling in for the ride. Seeing where it takes me.
Kathleen wrote: "Life is too short to read poor books. I usually try to make it through the first three chapters but I'm not invested at that point I know I never will be. For me it is all about connecting with a c..."I wonder, though, if this prevents you from reading about characters who aren't like you at all. Sometimes I like to peer into brave, new worlds.
In most cases I usually try to stand firm and finish a book to it's end...unless one thing, it's boring. If I'm reading a book and I'm reading a book and I'm half way through it and nothings happened, I don't care that I'm haf way through it I'm going to stop reading it.I read a few books to their end that I probably shouldn't have but it was only because I thought perhaps it would get better and I wanted to read it for a while so i kept hoping and..yeah..din't work out.
Totally right, Justin. Boring is the worst!
Anybody else having trouble with Hanya Yanagihara's A LITTLE LIFE? I'm loving the writing, but struggling to find a story. Up to page 101 and slogging.
Im afraid im exactly the same, i just have to finish a book regardless of whether im enjoying it or not. My husband thinks im crazy but i have always been the same and wont change. It is an unwritten rule for me :)
I look at my reading time this way... it's taking away from my writing time. If I think my writing is better than what I'm reading, it's bye-bye book.
Michael wrote: "I look at my reading time this way... it's taking away from my writing time. If I think my writing is better than what I'm reading, it's bye-bye book."Yeah, but doesn't that make you crazy when your writing is better than the book you're reading?
