Spoiling it, for yourself.

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jennifer75

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The simple answer is you can't write something that will please everybody. Here you have people who insist they will read every part of the book front to back, and you also have people who choose what they wish to read.

I personally find it really odd that some people skip to the end to find out what happens, instead of reading through to it, but I don't consider them lesser readers.

I quoted this from the "to prologue or not to prologue" thread....and it made me think...

Some people do this, I knew someone who would do it because she couldn't stand the suspense of not knowing...so she spoiled it for herself but still read the entire book.

Have you done it? Which book? How did you feel throughout the book, having already read those last few words, sentences, pages? Were you glad you did it? Were you disappointed?
 

truelyana

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First of all Hello Jennifer, nice to see you again. :)

I have only ever read the end of books on a few counts, as I wasn't that involved in the middle of the book, and upon my discovery the end wasn't that good. I don't remember the exact name of the book, but it was one of those books I just read for them being popular, and not an actual interest in them. What about you? Remember the book? I think everyone does it at some point, as not all books captivate the reader. I think it just depends on how the reader is feeling, really. :)
 

inkkognito

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I do it all the time, both with novels and with true crime (although w/TC books you usually know the outcome by the blurb or by reading the captions in the photo section). It doesn't lessen my enjoyment at all, but then again I'm also the sort of person who re-reads my favorite books countless times with almost as much pleasure as the first time.
 

Bubastes

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I quoted this from the "to prologue or not to prologue" thread....and it made me think...

Some people do this, I knew someone who would do it because she couldn't stand the suspense of not knowing...so she spoiled it for herself but still read the entire book.

Have you done it? Which book? How did you feel throughout the book, having already read those last few words, sentences, pages? Were you glad you did it? Were you disappointed?

I'm one of those weird people who usually reads the end of the book early on. This is more of a survival tactic: I'm unable to put a story down in the middle without knowing the end, so I need to do this to get some sleep! For me, it doesn't spoil things at all because I enjoy the entire journey and seeing HOW the characters get to the end even more than knowing what happens at the end. I also re-read books a lot.
 

Williebee

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The only times that I've done this is when I suspect it the author is setting up a series. I want to know it's a series going in. If it is, and the next one(s) aren't out, the odds are I'll wait until some of them are, so that I can get a more satisfactory reading experience.

And yeah, I know that if everybody felt that way, the next book in the series might not come out at all. My reading angel and my writing angel have argued about this more than once.
 

jennifer75

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First of all Hello Jennifer, nice to see you again. :)

I have only ever read the end of books on a few counts, as I wasn't that involved in the middle of the book, and upon my discovery the end wasn't that good. I don't remember the exact name of the book, but it was one of those books I just read for them being popular, and not an actual interest in them. What about you? Remember the book? I think everyone does it at some point, as not all books captivate the reader. I think it just depends on how the reader is feeling, really. :)

HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII TRUE!!!!!! Where u been hiding, in that cottage with the tea and scones...hehheh?? ;)


PS love the pic! It's a chilly 68 (yea I said chilly) and I've got tea going. Yum.
 

jennifer75

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I'm the kind of person who is extra careful not to see those last words, BUT I do have an obsession with having to know the page count....so I will pull the page back just enough to see that number, then close it back up.....I can't stand a spoiler.
 

Judg

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I almost never skip to the end. The rare times I've done it, it's because the book is not holding my attention well. I figure if the ending is a downer, there's really no point in plowing on.

I'm a re-reader too. That's the whole point of buying a book, as far as I'm concerned. Otherwise, I just take it out of the library. This means I sometimes buy books I've already read and they go straight on the shelf, to be picked up again in some future month or even year. I just want to have them on hand.
 

vixey

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So far it looks like I'm the exception. I can honestly say I've NEVER read the ending of any book. I've always thought that if I did, I wouldn't want to finish it.

ETA: Looks like I cross posted with Judg.
 

maestrowork

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I've never done it, although sometimes I can guess the ending halfway through the book, and it's a bit of a letdown because the ending becomes "predictable" for me. Still, for me, reading is about the journey, the plot and not the necessarily the ending.

When I buy, I sometimes flip to about 3/4 of the book or near the end to see if the prose still holds up. But I never would want to spoil it that way.


My mom is a notorious "ending reader." She drives me crazy when she would flip to the end first.
 

Mr Flibble

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I've never done it, although sometimes I can guess the ending halfway through the book, and it's a bit of a letdown because the ending becomes "predictable" for me.

Me too. Unfortunately, far too many books I've guessed the ending and not been surprised which is always a big disappointment :( Even more of a bummer when you're reading a whodunnit and figure it out 100 pages from the end. In one particular series I correctly guessed the shadowy Ultra Bad Dude three books before the end. No, I did not buy the three books to see if I was right, I borrowed them from the library and skimmed them till the Big Reveal, hoping against hope there would be an Uber Plot Twist because it was sooo obvious who it was. Sadly, no Plot Twist. Sadly no enjoyment. Sadly, stopped reading that writer.

I prefer surprises.
 

Ms Hollands

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I have never read the end of a book before I'm meant to. It's some weird respect to the author as well as just not being in me I guess.

My brother, on the other hand, as probably never got through a book without reading the ending first. He also always played the banker in Monopoly when we were kids and somehow always managed to win...are the two connected?
 

Deccydiva

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I did it once because I was feeling the MC's pain so much I just had to find out if she had a happy ending, or I would not have been able to read any more of the heartache in the middle!
 

maestrowork

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Me too. Unfortunately, far too many books I've guessed the ending and not been surprised which is always a big disappointment :( Even more of a bummer when you're reading a whodunnit and figure it out 100 pages from the end.

That's why I don't read mysteries anymore. 9.9/10 of the time I could guess whodunit midway through the book. It's no fun anymore.
 

ishtar'sgate

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Have you done it? Which book? How did you feel throughout the book, having already read those last few words, sentences, pages? Were you glad you did it? Were you disappointed?
I can't remember which books I've done it with but I've done a modified form of flipping to the back. If I've found a character really engaging and am worried they might get killed off, I've turned to the back of the book, kind of clouding my eyes and not really looking at the sentences but only scanning for a name I hope is still there. If I see the name I settle down, go back to where I was and keep reading. If I don't see the name I'm on edge until I find out what happened to them. Maybe I get too emotionally involved.:D
 

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With some fantasy writers, I'll flip to the back of the book to see if it's a "To Be Continued". I've been burned enough where I now want warning.

Past that, I've skimmed the ending twice. Once was a book that was boring me, and I wanted to know if it would be worth it to read the rest. It was a satisfactory ending, so I read the rest.

The other time the book had more suspense than I could handle, and it was making me anxious (I can't watch horror or intense suspense movies, and I don't remember why I was reading this book). I read the ending just so I could read the rest of the book. It was definitely a sign that the author did a great job! :D
 

Darzian

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Okay, I NEVER read the ending first. As a writer, I know how difficult it can be for a writer to build up sense for the climax, and knowing that climax makes most of the suspense worthless. I really can't ever do it. Characters may die at any point. If I read the ending to make sure that everyone's still alive, then what about those precious life threatening moments that the author put in?You know they'll live, so is there any thrill in reading those parts?

Do note that the above is IMHO.;)
 
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AdamH

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I never have sneaked a peak (though I was tempted while reading "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" to find out who the Half Blood Prince was). I like the suspense. There's nothing in the movies that compares to the quality page-turner that keeps you up all hours of the night to know what happens next.
When I find a book like this, I consider it a disservice to myself if I spoil it by flipping easily to the end. I want to enjoy the ride.
Though, like in many movies, I can usually predict the ending before I reach it. Rare is the story that surprises me. But when I find one, I hold on for dear life and enjoy the novelty. (pun intended :tongue)
 

Cassidy

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I did it once because I was feeling the MC's pain so much I just had to find out if she had a happy ending, or I would not have been able to read any more of the heartache in the middle!

oh yeah, i've totally done this. more than once...
 

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I always read the last bit if there is an animal in the book. If there is an animal and it’s killed by the end of the book, I’ll be depressed for days, can’t help it, can’t talk myself out of it, so I don’t read those. I’d like to see the animal in the last sentence so I don’t have to see who done it. But then I’m terrible at remembering who done and can reread mysteries again and again. If I like the characters the mystery doesn’t matter. Yes, it spoiled HP & and pretty much the whole series for me. Particularly since I didn’t see the point of it.

I once read one that turned out to be a to be continued and it was a year before the next volume came out. I felt betrayed since I wasn’t warned at the beginning of the book. Now if I do get the first of a series I don’t read it until I get all three, (HP exception because they were complete books, you know what I mean.) With fantasy I always look at the last page for the To be continued tag. You don’t have to read the ending to see that.

S
 

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I only read the ending if the book is bad. that way i get some closure and i dont have to slog through pages and pages of crap.

I go to a writer's website and there are a lot of women there who read the end of the books before they buy them for one reason. It has to have a happy ending. If it doesn't, they put the book back. They refuse to read anything that doesn't end with a neat happy ending all tied up in a ribbon. Personally I think they're missing out on some great books but it's a personal choice i guess.
 

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I always used to do this when I was younger, but never considered that I'd spoiled the book for myself, I'd still enjoy it. I was the same if anyone ever gave me an early birthday or Christmas present, I'd open it as soon as the person, who gave it to me, had left.
If I am watching a film and really enjoying it, at my sister's house, I'll turn and ask her how it ends? I don't know why I do it, because she always gives me the same answer...'Wait and see.' Grrr!!! :D

Some people do this, I knew someone who would do it because she couldn't stand the suspense of not knowing...so she spoiled it for herself but still read the entire book.
 

truelyana

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HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII TRUE!!!!!! Where u been hiding, in that cottage with the tea and scones...hehheh?? ;)


PS love the pic! It's a chilly 68 (yea I said chilly) and I've got tea going. Yum.

Yes, I have been around. Something like that, and thank you for the 68 comment. I really do like it. :)

Me too. Unfortunately, far too many books I've guessed the ending and not been surprised which is always a big disappointment :( I prefer surprises.

Me too. With most books, you can easily guess the ending, as there is not enough story and suspense to it. I do prefer surprises as well.
 

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I'm with Nevada on this one.

I only skip to the end if I'm not enjoying the book. Sometimes the story question will pique my interest but the actual writing falls flat-so I'll skip to the end so I can be done with it.
 
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