Visual novels usually present an autoplay feature[1] which stops at choices, or just skips text you haven't met yet. The genre is famous for its multiple endings, even in the dozens, so a game can branch a lot and players re-play a game many times, so the autoplay feature is appreciated. You can also set the text speed in many games, and there's a play log called history[2] if you missed something.

[1] https://vndev.wiki/Autoplay [2] https://vndev.wiki/History