Neighbour asked me to read their self published memoir, now what?

[Merlinthewhale]

Would you read a book if a neighbour asked you to? It’s their self published book about a difficult period in their life. I started reading it, now I know more about them than I ever wanted or needed to. I have never regretted reading a book so much and can’t see them in the same light knowing how they view and have treated other people. Do I lie and say I haven’t had time yet? I don’t feel I can tell the truth now and I don’t wish to feature in the next book.
I’ve name changed for this just in case it becomes a bestseller and I’m tracked down to play the nosey neighbour in the movie.

I probably would start it because I'm kinda nosey to see what happened to them. But if it was badly written, poor SPAG, made little sense, was super boring etc then I'd stop.

And yeah I'd probably just lie and say it was good. If they pressed me. But not give any further feedback and change the subject!

Seconding this.

Alternative is to avoid them forevermore.

Probably the best marketing strategy for self published books is to tell everyone you know that it’s out, and then add, with a wink, See if you can spot yourself in it!!

instant sales.

Oh no, memoir writing! God save us! I got matched up for a coffee date with a friend of a friend, and one of the first things he said was that he had done a memoir writing course and was writing his memoir. I truly wanted to phone my friend there and then and say ‘ are you deranged?! ‘
And, Yes, dear reader, he continued to be a self involved bore for the rest of the date.
Flagge Rouge.

if anyone tried to foist their memoir on me I’d say I can’t read, it gives me a headache, soz. Uurrggh.

Is this like peak Narcissist???

Write an autobiography and thrust it upon your neighbours, hours of their lives they will never get back, but that's ok.

Have they suggested a book club? 😆

@chary "Flagge Rouge."

What you could do is print off 600 pages in single space text of nonsense, bind it, say it's your autobiography and it's great because you can give each other feedback.

YOU WILL NEVER HEAR FROM THEM AGAIN.

You can't drop that in & not say more!!

who did she stab & why? Did they die?

I don’t know if the stabbed person died or not. It felt unfinished but to call round and ask questions seems intrusive. It was released last year so I must be on a z list of people being asked to read it. I’ll drop in a bill for my time spent reading it.

What people have done, and what they SAY they have done are two different things. Fantacists walk among us!