I-am-called-I
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I have been writing a novel atleast how many chapters should I have before publishing? And also one chapter should be of how many words should one chapter be
Atleast how many chapters before publishing?
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SailusGebel
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10 chapters. 1500-2000 words.
LilRora
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...That question is getting repetitive.
A single chapter should have no less than about a thousand words, and as long as you don't have much experience should be kept below three thousand. Long chapters become very tedious to read if not written well. Keep your chapters between those two numbers at the beginning, and when you get the hang of it you can switch things up.
As for the number of chapters before publishing, I'd say it's one? You should keep a few in the backlog in case you get sick or something, or if you often add things to earlier chapters, but you might as well publish as soon as you write. If you're a slow writer, you can also consider stacking up a backlog of ten to twenty chapters before publishing them in shorter intervals.
A single chapter should have no less than about a thousand words, and as long as you don't have much experience should be kept below three thousand. Long chapters become very tedious to read if not written well. Keep your chapters between those two numbers at the beginning, and when you get the hang of it you can switch things up.
As for the number of chapters before publishing, I'd say it's one? You should keep a few in the backlog in case you get sick or something, or if you often add things to earlier chapters, but you might as well publish as soon as you write. If you're a slow writer, you can also consider stacking up a backlog of ten to twenty chapters before publishing them in shorter intervals.
TheEldritchGod
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One, and at least 2 words.
CapitaoCaverna
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That really depends on what kind of writer you are or how you're gonna be posting it.
Like, if you're trying to get immediate notice or build a Patreon or something, I suggest getting at least around 20 chapters, the first ten you release very fast, like, two every day for almost a week.
Then you put some as advanced chapters on Patreon and keep it like that, behind different levels of support, like, at least three.
If your goal is to get money, make sure to use market tricks like making the middle option less attractive than the more expensive one.
I mean, yeah, it doesn't feel very good, but you're trying to make a living and, supposedly, you're giving people content for free, they'll only support you to get that content earlier, or just because they like your story and want to help you out.
In the end, if you manage to make a living of it, they'll actually benefit even more since you'll have more time and motivation to write.
Money isn't the only reason you may want to have a reserve. Having a surplus of chapter also allows you to make corrections based on feedback, like, if a reader points out something and you think it's good, you can change your advanced chapters more easily if they aren't posted.
On the other hand, if you're a slow writer, have trouble finding the motivation or you don't have a set schedule, it may not be in your best interest to even have a surplus of chapters, posting them fast may actually incentive you to write more.
If you're posting at a set schedule and, suddenly, your reserve runs out or you start slowing down a lot, you may actually annoy your readers a lot. I mean, a lot of people will understand, but some don't, and it's the extremes that tend to be more vocal.
Here in SH, I find that readers are mostly very understanding, but the vast majority won't say anything about it, also, a few bad apples are always around, and getting insulted by the more vocal minority can feel really bad.
Also, I find that anything between 1.5 and 3k words is a good number to aim for at the beginning. Long chapters can be hard to do if you don't have a lot of experience and very small ones can leave a reader unfulfilled. But it really depends on your story and skill.
I have read a story where the author only posted 500 to 600 words every chapter, but he was so skilled it was great, although it was more comedy than anything, I don't think it would work as well in other genres.
I have also read 20k words chapters that keeps my interest the entire time, but those are VERY rare.
Like, if you're trying to get immediate notice or build a Patreon or something, I suggest getting at least around 20 chapters, the first ten you release very fast, like, two every day for almost a week.
Then you put some as advanced chapters on Patreon and keep it like that, behind different levels of support, like, at least three.
If your goal is to get money, make sure to use market tricks like making the middle option less attractive than the more expensive one.
I mean, yeah, it doesn't feel very good, but you're trying to make a living and, supposedly, you're giving people content for free, they'll only support you to get that content earlier, or just because they like your story and want to help you out.
In the end, if you manage to make a living of it, they'll actually benefit even more since you'll have more time and motivation to write.
Money isn't the only reason you may want to have a reserve. Having a surplus of chapter also allows you to make corrections based on feedback, like, if a reader points out something and you think it's good, you can change your advanced chapters more easily if they aren't posted.
On the other hand, if you're a slow writer, have trouble finding the motivation or you don't have a set schedule, it may not be in your best interest to even have a surplus of chapters, posting them fast may actually incentive you to write more.
If you're posting at a set schedule and, suddenly, your reserve runs out or you start slowing down a lot, you may actually annoy your readers a lot. I mean, a lot of people will understand, but some don't, and it's the extremes that tend to be more vocal.
Here in SH, I find that readers are mostly very understanding, but the vast majority won't say anything about it, also, a few bad apples are always around, and getting insulted by the more vocal minority can feel really bad.
Also, I find that anything between 1.5 and 3k words is a good number to aim for at the beginning. Long chapters can be hard to do if you don't have a lot of experience and very small ones can leave a reader unfulfilled. But it really depends on your story and skill.
I have read a story where the author only posted 500 to 600 words every chapter, but he was so skilled it was great, although it was more comedy than anything, I don't think it would work as well in other genres.
I have also read 20k words chapters that keeps my interest the entire time, but those are VERY rare.
LunaSoltaer
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Really up to you.
If you get in a writing groove, just be ready for your chapter lengths to go up. I started around 2000 because 2000×30=60000>50000 and i wanted to NaNoWriMo.
now I range anywhere from 1600 to... 4300. i probably could have cut a lot out of those chapters but realistically im probably never going to get feedback on those so Ill have to wait and binge my own work again to notice.
for webnovels, i think youd want shorter chapters the more frequent you post, but thats a basic conjecture from calcing an overall words per day over an average.
If you get in a writing groove, just be ready for your chapter lengths to go up. I started around 2000 because 2000×30=60000>50000 and i wanted to NaNoWriMo.
now I range anywhere from 1600 to... 4300. i probably could have cut a lot out of those chapters but realistically im probably never going to get feedback on those so Ill have to wait and binge my own work again to notice.
for webnovels, i think youd want shorter chapters the more frequent you post, but thats a basic conjecture from calcing an overall words per day over an average.
NotOriginal
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I would say it depends on how confident you are in keeping to your release schedule and in writing chapters
Tyranomaster
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I'm a relatively new author, so take the following flowchart style advice with a grain of salt.
First and foremost, between 1000-2500 words is a good length. I aim for 1500 words a chapter, and my average is 1575.
The other thing to remember is an honest, straightforward, and consistent publishing schedule is the best way to grow readership and retain it.
Before any of the following questions, be really honest with yourself, both emotionally and logically. If you tell yourself, obviously it won't become the next big thing, but emotionally you really want it to, you'll still be disappointed if it doesn't take off right away.
With that out of the way, time to start the flowchart.
Which of these describes you best related to this work?
I'm writing this because I'd like to read it, I won't be disappointed to get bad reviews, or have very little readership.
There are two subcategories here
First subcategory: Its a long story, and I plan on seeing it through to the end.
Great! I'd advise getting a nice backlog going before publishing. I personally aimed to have 31 chapters ready to go before publishing. In reality, I got to about 20 and said it was time to publish.
Why do this? There are two good reasons. First, you'll get much better visibility on your story if you publish once or twice daily for a while before setting into a "normal" schedule. Second, the quality of your initial work will be higher, because you'll have the freedom to do initial rewrites to make the beginning much more cohesive. Remember, the beginning of the story is what will hook readers, so it being top quality is important!
Second subcategory: I don't know how long it'll be, and honestly, I'm not sure if I'll continue it after a while.
That's fine too! In this case, just go for it! Publish when you want, and don't sweat the small stuff.
I'm writing this because I want people to read it. I love the genre/concept/OC and want to share with others! AND/OR I'm writing to improve my writing skills.
Excellent! Get a few chapters (5 to 10) ready and start publishing once or twice a day. I'd advise you to see what pace you're comfortable with for regular scheduled releases after these chapters go out.
I'm setting out to write the next big thing!
First, and I'm sure you've heard this a million times, but be aware of your expectations. Its good to aim big, but be aware of limitations. With that said, I'll give the best advice that I can. If you really, truly want to hit the next big thing, then start writing now, finish your first novel, and go back and edit it a few times. Read, and re-read through your work multiple times, and correct every grammar error and plot hole. After that, calculate how long it took to reach that point, and schedule your chapter releases such that you'll have novel 2 done in the same manner by the time your first novel is done publishing.
Its smut, and you know why ;)
Honestly, treat this category like the second subcategory of writing for yourself. Just publish and have fun with it! Don't worry about scheduled releases or meeting quotas. People will find and enjoy your story for many evenings to come.
I'm sure I've missed some categories here, but hopefully this helps.
First and foremost, between 1000-2500 words is a good length. I aim for 1500 words a chapter, and my average is 1575.
The other thing to remember is an honest, straightforward, and consistent publishing schedule is the best way to grow readership and retain it.
Before any of the following questions, be really honest with yourself, both emotionally and logically. If you tell yourself, obviously it won't become the next big thing, but emotionally you really want it to, you'll still be disappointed if it doesn't take off right away.
With that out of the way, time to start the flowchart.
Which of these describes you best related to this work?
I'm writing this because I'd like to read it, I won't be disappointed to get bad reviews, or have very little readership.
There are two subcategories here
First subcategory: Its a long story, and I plan on seeing it through to the end.
Great! I'd advise getting a nice backlog going before publishing. I personally aimed to have 31 chapters ready to go before publishing. In reality, I got to about 20 and said it was time to publish.
Why do this? There are two good reasons. First, you'll get much better visibility on your story if you publish once or twice daily for a while before setting into a "normal" schedule. Second, the quality of your initial work will be higher, because you'll have the freedom to do initial rewrites to make the beginning much more cohesive. Remember, the beginning of the story is what will hook readers, so it being top quality is important!
Second subcategory: I don't know how long it'll be, and honestly, I'm not sure if I'll continue it after a while.
That's fine too! In this case, just go for it! Publish when you want, and don't sweat the small stuff.
I'm writing this because I want people to read it. I love the genre/concept/OC and want to share with others! AND/OR I'm writing to improve my writing skills.
Excellent! Get a few chapters (5 to 10) ready and start publishing once or twice a day. I'd advise you to see what pace you're comfortable with for regular scheduled releases after these chapters go out.
I'm setting out to write the next big thing!
First, and I'm sure you've heard this a million times, but be aware of your expectations. Its good to aim big, but be aware of limitations. With that said, I'll give the best advice that I can. If you really, truly want to hit the next big thing, then start writing now, finish your first novel, and go back and edit it a few times. Read, and re-read through your work multiple times, and correct every grammar error and plot hole. After that, calculate how long it took to reach that point, and schedule your chapter releases such that you'll have novel 2 done in the same manner by the time your first novel is done publishing.
Its smut, and you know why ;)
Honestly, treat this category like the second subcategory of writing for yourself. Just publish and have fun with it! Don't worry about scheduled releases or meeting quotas. People will find and enjoy your story for many evenings to come.
I'm sure I've missed some categories here, but hopefully this helps.
I-am-called-I
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Thanks for everyone who replied I have planned on 7 chapters before publishing I have written 5 each of almost 1300 words