The trick that saved me from 50 page DNF guilt

I used to force myself through 50 pages of a book before letting myself quit, thinking I owed it a fair chance. Now I give it exactly 20 pages, and if I'm not hooked by the end of chapter two in a 300 page novel, I drop it. I picked this up after reading a tip from a librarian in Portland last year. Has anyone else found a specific page count that works for them when deciding to bail?

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angelab622mo ago

20 pages rule changed my life, honestly.

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rileynguyen2mo ago

Man, the 20 pages rule is something I always circle back to when I'm deep in a project. It's like my brain needs that permission to just dump ideas without editing myself first. I remember talking to @angelab62 about something similar back when I was helping my niece with her college essays, and she said the same thing - you gotta push past that first block of garbage to find the good stuff. The real gold comes after you've filled those mandatory pages and your brain finally relaxes.

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