The "DNF" Dilemma: Is It Growth or Am I Just Lazy?

Let’s talk about the three most terrifying words in the reader’s vocabulary: Did. Not. Finish.

For years, I treated a book like a marriage from a Victorian novel—once we started this journey, only death (or the final punctuation mark) would part us. I would slog through 400 pages of dense prose about the inner turmoil of a grain merchant just because I felt I owed it to the author.

But lately? I’ve become a "Book Assassin." If I’m not hooked by page 50, I close the cover and walk away without looking back at the explosion.

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The Anatomy of a DNF (Did Not Finish)

How do you know when it’s time to break up with your current read? Look for these symptoms:

• The "Social Media Spiral": You find yourself scrolling through TikTok for 45 minutes because looking at a screen of strangers dancing is more compelling than the next chapter.

• The "Sleep Inducer": You read the same paragraph four times, and by the fifth time, the book is hitting you in the face because you’ve fallen asleep.

• The "Wandering Eye": You’re at the library picking up "just one thing" because you’re bored with your current "main" book. (You’re basically cheating on your book. It’s okay. We don’t judge here.)

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The 3 Types of Books That Get the Axe

1. The "It’s Not You, It’s Me" Book: It’s a Pulitzer Prize winner. Everyone loves it. The prose is objective art. But you? You just aren't in the mood for a 600-page meditation on grief while you're trying to enjoy your summer vacation.

2. The "Labyrinth" Book: There are 42 characters, 12 of them have names starting with "B," and you genuinely can't remember if Boromar is the king or a talking horse.

3. The "Bad Vibes" Book: Life is hard enough. If the protagonist is making choices that make you want to reach into the pages and shake them, it’s okay to put them in the "Time Out" corner forever.

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My New Reading Philosophy

I did the math (and by "math," I mean I thought about it for three seconds). If I read 30 books a year and I live for another 50 years, I only have 1,500 books left.

$1,500$ sounds like a lot until you realize there are millions of books in existence. Why spend even one hour on a book that feels like a chore?

The DNF is not a failure; it’s a liberation. It’s clearing space for the book that is going to change your life, make you cry, or keep you up until 3:00 AM because you have to know who the killer is.

Now, I want to hear from the "Finishers": Do you feel physically pained if you don't finish a book? Or are you a "Revolving Door" reader like me?