by Clare Langley-Hawthorne
http://www.clarelangleyhawthorne.com/
Aloha from rainy Hawaii! Waiting for the sunshine and inspired by a panel I attended on the weekend at Left Coast Crime on ‘things that make me stop reading’, I thought I’d offer my top 5 reasons for putting a book down (or throwing it against a wall!) and find out from you what, as readers (and writers perhaps), you consider ‘deal breakers’ – when you just cannot continue with a book.
The panelists (Hallie Ephron, Mysti Berry, Kate Stine, and Sue Trowbridge) mentioned a number of things which caused them to put down a book and not read further. Here’s some of their (abbreviated) list:
- Stereotypes
- Lack of clarity – where the hell are we, when are we, who is talking etc…within the first few pages.
- Gratuitous violence, sex or animal cruelty
- Lack of character pull – the character fails to draw them in
- Geographical inaccuracies (like someone flying all the way from San Jose to San Francisco!)
- Prologue that seems gratuitous, manipulative or contrived
Reducing these issues to a list always seems to lessen the impact of the discussion but I agree with all that was said and with the panelists’ assertion they will forgive almost any of these if the writing is sufficiently compelling to keep them interested.
As for my top five list – well here goes:
- Characters that make me a yawn- if I’m not drawn in by them then I’m not going to keep plowing through the book.
- Set up requires more than just a suspension of disbelief but putting aside all reality.
- Clunky, awkward writing that requires way too much concentration – I want the story to flow, to draw me in – I don’t want to have to take out the paddles and brave the rapids to get there.
- A sense of manipulation or self-awareness – if I sense the author pulling the strings I’m taken out of the story (and I’m pissed off).
- Blatant inaccuracies that make me doubt the writer. I think when you start a book you place a great deal of trust in an author and if that trust is broken too quickly by inaccuracies or false steps it’s hard to regain it and keep reading
So what are the deal breakers for you – what makes you stop reading a book? What about in a series – when does an author ‘blow it’ and stop you from continuing? For me bringing back dead characters (Patricia Cornwall anyone) is a deal breaker – If I want that kind of plot twist I’ll tune in to General Hospital…What about you?