The Novel
What do you say when they ask what you thought of it?
Level 2 · 6 / 20
The Novel
Your best friend has spent five years writing a novel. They quit their job and drained their savings to finish it. They finally hand you the manuscript and ask for your honest opinion. You read it over the weekend. The writing is terrible. The plot makes no sense. The book has no chance of ever getting published.
What do you say when they ask what you thought of it?
Then ask
- Do you tell a white lie to protect their feelings?
- What if they ask you for a loan to self-publish it?
- At what point is honesty just cruelty?
The classics and some new ones. A scenario, the question it forces, and the follow-ups that make it bite.