April 26, 2016 
mhoogland 
Some people have to finish every book they start reading. I am not one of those people. There are so many amazing books out there that I want to read that it feels wrong, even irresponsible, to spend time finishing a book that has completely lost my interest.
For instance, if a novel’s written in the first person and I can’t relate to that character, then I’m going to stop reading. If a plot is dragging or meanders without a clear end in sight, I’ll usually put the book down unless I’ve become emotionally invested in the characters. Stories and characters that feel familiar are also begging to be dropped and forgotten. Very rarely will I put a book down because of the writing or an unlikable character. I can power through subpar writing if the story is that good—the kind of good that keeps you up at night and practically forces you to turn the page to find out what happens next. Plus if it’s published, then the writing can’t be that bad…right? And I love unlikeable characters, especially a flawed protagonist, which seems to be a hallmark of good fiction.
A book needs to force me to put it down. It’s not easy, but it happens and I’ve learned to recognize when it’s time to move on. What do our readers think? Do you ever stop reading a book? What makes you stop? And if you’re also a writer, are you aware of the possibility that someone might start and stop reading your work? What impact does this have on your writing?
Depends on your definition of an “unlikeable character”; if he or she is so painfully clueless or stupid that it’s a chore to read about them, I’ll probably bail-Scarlett O’Hara was by most definitions a handful-19th Century mean girl, etc., but she wasn’t hard to hang with. I’ve also bailed on a few books that weren’t bad by any ordinary standard of measurement for other reasons; The 5th Wave kept me going for about 8 chapters before I folded-not a bad idea or presentation, and if I’d been 15 or 16 it would’ve been a serious news flash, but having done The Stand and Childhood’s End it wasn’t worth the retread, and besides, where did Cassie get a Luger, for Christ sake? What is this, 1943? And an M-16 is virtually recoilless, (which is why they’re popular with underweight psycho yahoos with no Likes) as opposed to the massive kick described in the narrative. Detail mistakes like this don’t help when you’re essentially doing post-apocalyptic fan fiction. And I’m getting a little burned out on the whole humorless thing, although I’m sure that’s another hallmark of great fiction…
It is only in recent years that I\’ve gotten myself to NOT finish a book. It\’s still rare, but what gets me to stop is if A) there\’s no apparent story… I like to have *some* idea of where the plot is headed, if there is a plot or B) if the characterization makes me angry – ie: stereotypes, racism, sexism, ableism, etc.2 \”big name\” books that I stopped: Wally Lamb\’s WE ARE WATER. So. Much. Backstory. I couldn\’t discern what the actual story was going to be. I tried because I LIKE Wally Lamb. I\’ve heard that listening to it might help.Gabaldon\’s OUTLANDER. 1/3 through and I got to Jamie whipping Claire. Made me so angry I slammed the book shut. I was really liking Jamie, too. And I can see the appeal of the books, but that\’s okay – enough people love her series to keep it going so I\’m not gonna worry. :)Those are my examples that I felt comfortable sharing because of their success, and while I\’m not great at taking my own advice – or yours – I always recommend to others that yes, there ARE too many great books (and of course \”great\” is subjective, which is totally cool) out there to lose time on a non-great one.As a writer? Yes, as I am unpublished, I am hyper aware of how engaging not only my opening pages must be, but the immediate ones after them, too. Difficult! Beginnings are not my strength.
OK, (and hi) I just have to ask-what on Earth is “ableism?” One of the reasons I hang out in this blogspot coffee bar is that it’s such a great clearing house for gatekeeper trendspeak, but I have to admit this is a new one. By the way, one has to allow for some degree of attitudinal imprecision on the part of characters or there aren’t any plot ingredients at all. Although the point is well taken that if the author seems to be just having a wild night scaring the Uber drivers then one might be excused for quietly sliding over the sill…
I’m interested in your comment about racism, stereotypes, etc..
Do you mean, the character is a blatant bigot, and this is unappealing enough to make you quit reading?
Or do you mean that the author has provided only cardboard, “stock” characters without bothering to give them any depth or individuality? (Bring on token middle-aged redneck divorcee…)
Great topic!
I’ve reached the age where I’m unwilling to waste time on anything that:
– contains gross errors of grammar (first person narrative excepted, of course!)
– is ambiguous as to plot, clearly due to sloppiness or lack of talent rather than serving as a “red herring”
– introduces the characters in the first two pages, then gives us three pages of flashback. (I drop the book when I start reading “Ten years ago” — not “earlier”, but “ago”! — they had met when…” etc.)
– contains gross factual errors, like the example mentioned above, about the M-16’s recoil, or having the hero in New York phoning his friend in Phoenix because if it’s 9 am in New York, his friend will be having lunch. You don’t have to write what you know, but you DO need to know what you write!
– does not compensate for slowness of plot with richness of characterization
– includes long stretches of dialogue of the most commonplace variety (i.e., it neither moves the plot along nor tells us anything whatever about the characters)
– does not, at least once a chapter, answer the question, “So what?”