Maybe size does matter?

[Empathy]

Now as a reader myself I know that in the past i was alway more inclined to take a look at something completely new if wasn't to lenghty. Someone would recommend a story to me and I'd take a look out of curiosity and the everlasting search for a good read. Now by the time I've started looking over they text I already know if this is they type of story i enjoy. I'm a huge fan of science fiction, it's what I like to read and what I like to write. The rest falls into a distance 2nd, 3rd etc. When I get a recommendation for a mystery, romance etc, I'm already questioning whether or not I want to read the story. It's not about, not being willing to read something other than my favorite story type. We all have our favorite story types and when we're ready to read I think that's what most of us look for.

 

 

It seems to me that a story written in shorter chapters seems to get a little more attention that the more lenghty ones. Of course right here on GA you'll find several contradictions to that statment. Although I think you'll also find that in those cases there is the presence of an astoblished author with an astoblished readership. So basically I'm talking, two brand new stories, from authors you're not familiar with. One story features chapters around 4-6 pages long, the other 10-12 pages. Which one gets your time?

[Graeme]

Personally, I'm not in a position to invest much time in reading serial novels, so I would tend to go for short chapter lengths, as long as that doesn't make the story too disjointed. On the other hand, I would prefer to read a 10 chapter novel with longer chapters than a 30 chapter novel with shorter chapters.

 

I have heard people look at the number of chapters of a completed novel, and not start because there are too many. On that basis, the short number of chapters can sometimes help bring in new readers. They might be the same length, but when you're looking at a chapter list, 10 chapters "feels" shorted than 30 chapters.

 

The debate about chapter length has been had before. The ultimate answer has always been that a chapter should be as long as it needs to be. My latest novel has chapters that range from 10 pages to 22 pages in length -- it depends on what needs to be said.

 

To bring in new readers, a short chapter may prompt some interest, because people want to see what's going to happen next, but a longer chapter may draw them in and gives them more "ownership" of the story and hence want to read more.

 

There's no simple answer.... Sorry.

[Krista]

Personally, I don't read stories that don't have 10+ pages per chapter. The number of chapters don't bother me, I finished reading a story on nifty that had tons of chapters. The chapters were long, but anyway I don't even give a story that averages less than 10 pages a chapter a chance. To me, longer chapters have more room for detail.

 

 

Krista

[DomLuka]

If a story is complete, I don

[Jack Scribe]

I purposely write chapters that are 10 - 12 pages (60 - 62 KB) in length in deference to the reader's time constraints. For me, it also works as a discipline in telling the story. I admit to being a poor planner; my initial story outline consists of a flimsy idea that poses a situation/plot for a skeleton group of characters and a vague conclusion. Working in the framework of a specific page length gives me a mental structure for story lines and a goal to grab the reader's imagination.

 

Nothing pleases me more than finishing a rough draft chapter and sending it on to the editing process. The number of chapters are determined when I reach the original conclusion in a satisfying manner. So far in my young avocational journey as an author, stories have ranged from 11 chapters to 26 chapters.

 

I strongly concur that a series should have a consistant posting timetable. My electronic pulp fiction is out there on a weekly basis...on a specific day.

 

Jack

[Dio]

One story features chapters around 4-6 pages long, the other 10-12 pages. Which one gets your time?

 

The one that's interesting.

 

The ultimate answer has always been that a chapter should be as long as it needs to be.

There's no simple answer.... Sorry.

I object to your objectional use of a long paragraph to objectify your simple answer by obfuscating!

 

If a story is complete, I don't think chapter size matters at all.

 

Long or short. Ten font or sixteen font. TNR or Verdana. Dialogue or narrative. Third person or first person. Good grammar, bad grammar. Clever or funny. Lack-witted or cliche. It's all about how a piece is written, not the length.

 

Do people honestly start reading a story, flip to the end of the chapter, say: "Well duhr. The chapter is 18.5 pages. That's 3.5 pages past my attention span no matter HOW interesting the content of the chapter is." Well, I suppose such an occurrence is certainly possible. I won't disregard anything in this day and age. In my own experience I base my decision on reading a story (and buying a book) on two simple things. Usually as simple as: Can the author write prose that catches my attention. And: Is the premise at all interesting? Later, as often happens, my opinion might change--but that's entirely irrelevant of how LONG a chapter is.

 

Which leads to my next point, Empathy. You might notice the longer chapter stories seem to be less well read--and I won't argue with that. But length is only one of many factors that should be considered. A lot of stories like that are usually written poorly. Sometimes it's the fault of rampant narrative with little drive. Others, it may be as simple as being boring, uninspiring, unrealistic, or uneventful. Whatever the reason, the author has made a fault in his craft (assuming of course, he so wishes to have readers). On the flip side, it's not that long chapters are boring 100% of the time, but rather, require a heavy investment of time on the reader's part--which by necessity speaks to their expectations. If the reader is expected to read a lot (a large time investment), the story very well had better be worth reading. Often, as I've found online, the longer stories are as poorly written as some short that have gained larger readership than the former. That said, I feel less annoyed wasting my time reading a small amount of a so-so story that was good for a chuckle, then wading through the rushes of a long-winded piece of drivel when I certainly have better things to do. I certainly have less qualms sitting down with a long book than I do sitting down with a mediocre story on the internet--though the former can sometimes be just as disappointing.

 

In a consumer driven world, our thoughts revolve around 'bang for our buck'. And hey, time is money. A movie is ~ two hours in length. I pay 12 bucks to go see it. If every author can honestly say that their work (two hours of reading equivalent, slow or fast) is worth at least twelve dollars of my time, I would certainly think about reading it.

 

 

Dio

[GaryKelly]

There was a time when I didn't dare write a novel because I feared rejection and criticism. For starters, I didn't know what a chapter was. Sure, it had a beginning and an end, but what exactly governed the boundaries? I always figured if you wanted to know something, ask a professor or check the dictionary. Bleh, so out of frustration I decided to MAKE MY OWN DECISIONS in relation to chapter length. And whaddaya know! One of the first peeps to critique my first book was a retired professor of English with, "this is one of the best books I've ever read..." Go figure. BTW, I usually write about 10 pages per chapter and I use 'gut instinct' to decide when to stop.

[Lugh]

meh

 

my chapters have ranged from 99 words to more than 10000 words (pages dependant on font size) and the only complaint that I usually get is "when is the next one coming out?", which I guess technically isn't a complaint come to think of it...

 

anyway

 

when I go to read a story chapter length isn't even in the top things I look for...

the top three: basic grammar, spelling, use of paragraphs

with out those it is generally unreadable...

after that: is it interesting? are the characters believable? can I connect with them? does the author know how to convey his/her ideas? is the author beating me over the head with his/her own agenda?

 

all those (and more) are more importiant to me than... is the chapter 4 pages or 24?

 

Lugh

[GaryKelly]

is the author beating me over the head with his/her own agenda?

 

Lugh

 

Here, here. Pour yourself another drink.

[Jack Scribe]

The one that's interesting.

If every author can honestly say that their work (two hours of reading equivalent, slow or fast) is worth at least twelve dollars of my time, I would certainly think about reading it.

 

I want to think my stories are worth reading. Okay, my movie runs 1:48 minutes but I'm invested in every frame. I've also struck out a few times...but who's counting. I still hold to my premise that we can grab only so many minutes of the reader's time.

 

Jack

[eliotmoore]

I'm beginning to think people are answering on the basis of how quickly they can jack-off before someone enters the room and catches them. I think if that is the case I'll just look at one or two choice pictures or a short xvidio.

 

I love a good read and I love character development along with the erotic fun. I like to sit and read for hours at a time. Anyone with a long story that goes somewhere and a string of well tirned phrases can email me some links. Short stories are good but I like novels better. The archives are full of good quick f**ks. After a while you begin to wish you knew the participants better. None of the one night stands I had with anonymous strangers could hold a candle to my relations with my partner... that holds true for the stories I read.

 

By the way, we are all by and large amatures and what we produce lacks polish. The larger the vision, the easier it is to get lost along the way and leave the reader floundering or bored. It does not therefore follow that the shorter the story the better the clarity of purpose.

[Lugh]

By the way, we are all by and large amatures and what we produce lacks polish.

 

heh

maybe YOU are... but there are several people on this site who, if they submitted their work to the right publishing house, would be snatched up in a heartbeat, not to mention the one or three authors who are already published (not counting the several who use vanity/self-publishing).

[eliotmoore]

heh

maybe YOU are... but there are several people on this site who, if they submitted their work to the right publishing house, would be snatched up in a heartbeat, not to mention the one or three authors who are already published (not counting the several who use vanity/self-publishing).

 

Oh there is indeed some fine writing and storytelling in the various archives. No doubt it is publishable too. I'll stand by my "by and large" comment though. I don't mean to tread on toes here.

 

I have posted five stories and probably should have stopped at two. I am indeed an amature. I don't have a problem being characterized that way .