"Every couple of years, I’ll ask a friend or two to read a manuscript, and it happens. You can see it in their eyes. 'I hope it’s better than his last one. Or at least shorter.' I know what they’re thinking because that’s what I’m thinking when they ask me. 'How much is this friendship worth, in terms of page count?'"
From the essay "I Write in Brooklyn. Get Over It." by Colson Whitehead.
That essay definitely made me think of all the kind friends who read my manuscript to give me feedback. First they read the 535-page version, then they read the 379-page version. A lot to read, either way. Hopefully they thought the friendship was worth that much in page count. Hopefully.