Does chapter size matter?

[LynaForge]

Is there an ideal chapter size you aim for? Want to read? etc? Are big chapters deal breakers for you?

 

[Sylthix]

Theoretically, long chapters are bad because it's hard for the both you as a writer to continuously immerse the reader and reader attention span needs to be taken into account. In my experiences reading stories with short chapters, I dislike reading like six paragraphs before having to go to the next chapter because I feel like I don't get enough content.

I personally aim for 1.5k words to 2k but I might just be special so get a second opinion besides me.

 

[vaurwyn]

I think the ideal length is 2K, +- 1 K.
If your chapter is less than 1K, and a lot of readers will get frustrated having so little to read at a time, even if your updates are frequent.
If it is more than 3k, and people will sometimes have to stop reading n the middle of the chapter, making it hard to return to that specific part and start reading again.
Of course, this is just a general rule, and you can have special long or short chapters. I know some very successful web novels like the wandering inns have super long chapters, so in the end size does not matter too much,. As long as there content is interesting, poeple will read it.

 

[Mellohwa]

Uhn. My ideal chapter would be 2k+ words and I only read novels with 1k+ words/chapters.

 

[Renaxan]

I would read anything as long it is not below 1k words because it is just too small... otherwise, I dont really mind about big size chapters.

 

[Lorelliad]

I can finish writing a 1.3k chapter in about forty minutes. So I can pump put uploads regularly without having to have a stockpile of chapters like most authors do. Unless I get sick, of course, which is when I do stockpile.

 

[NotaNuffian]

I will be honest, my limit as a reader is soft capped at 2.5k and 4k max.

I don't have the stamina to finish it.

 

[Alfir]

I did a 500 word per chapter, and you can imagine just how irritating it can get...

Most often, my stamina can't keep up with my thoughts and schedule, so I'm stucked at 500 words per chapter. It's not just irritating to my readers, it's also very irritating to me.

Though initially, I opted for longer word count atleast 2000 per chapter, but the readers started 'suggesting' to put more chapters... In average, a novel have the minimum of 40k to 70k words. Imagine the number of chapters if you go in a 1000 word per chap, their would be 50 chapters right? But that doesn't how it really works. Controlling your word count like that seems forced and unproductive.

It's quite difficult to create an outline to follow for writing as an exact guideline on how to write a chapter. Sure, we have a prolouge, epilogue, interlude and the plot. But those stuff doesn't really tell you how much you should write in a particular chapter.

Yes, prologue, epilogue and interludes are shorter than the plot, that's a given. But that doesn't tell you how much you should write in the chapters to follow.

So my answer is... Chapter size relatively matters... It's a very safe answer, I must say. Yes, it matters because word counts give you a goal. No, it doesn't matter because their are no limitations to writing(this is just my opinion though.)

 

[Arkus86]

My sweet spot as a reader is ~3-4k words, and longer is still tempting. Anything below 1k I don't even bother opening, as I find reading a story in chunks that small... frustrating and immersion breaking.

 

[Deleted member 54065]

I write isekai, and I tend to subvert the common tropes. Before I write up to 6.7k words, then when I reached the 2nd arc, I reduced my average word count to 4k words.

Downside is, most readers today are impatient, and tend to drop the story once they realized each chapter is wordy.

Good side is, you get to explain your concepts and set the atmosphere well.

 

[RayneStorm]

I tend to write between 1.5k and 2k words per chapter but some can be more. Very rarely do I write a shorter chapter than that

 

[kiplet]

Couple-three thousand is the sweet spot: long enough to engage, short enough to read on a coffee break.

 

[lnv]

Is there an ideal chapter size you aim for? Want to read? etc? Are big chapters deal breakers for you?

Nope. There is no such thing. Generally while not always possible, I prefer chapters to at least bring something to the table. Which is why volume 1 chapters were 1.5k-2k words, volume 2 chapters were 2k-3k words and volume 3 chapters were 2.5k-4k words. I wasn't aiming for any specific size other than above 1.5k. But as more conversation was added to the mix and more characters, the word size just grew if I needed to get something done.

 

[Maze_Runner]

I go for at least like 620 which is pretty short but in that way you should add more chapters in it. \

 

[Gryphon]

My chapters are around 2000-3500 words long. But, I accidentally got to much into the zone and made a 8000 word chapter forcing me to split it in 3 parts. Part 3 still has yet to come out, but it actually gave me enough time to write chapters ahead of time.

 

[BlackKnightX]

Is there an ideal chapter size you aim for? Want to read? etc? Are big chapters deal breakers for you?

Know what? When I first saw this thread, I thought you were asking “Does size matter?” which I’m pretty ready to answer.

But then, I saw the truth… Well, it’s a little disappointing, but here goes…

The chapter’s size does matter a bit, but it’s not set in stone, and it also depends. At the end of the day, you want to make your chapter coherent and satisfying. There needs to be at least a setup and payoff in each chapter to keep the readers satisfied.

Think about it. When a chapter is too short, it’s because there’s only setup and no payoff. There’s no conclusion in that chapter. It’s kinda like when someone’s trying to turn you on and then give you a blue-ball.

And when the chapter is too long, it’s mostly because it’s freakin boring. You meander too much instead of setting things in motion and telling the story.

If you don’t feel like it’s too short or too long, then you’re doing the right thing—keep the readers engaged. Chapter’s size doesn’t really matter if you can keep them engaged and satisfied throughout.

So, yes. Size does matter a bit, but it depends more on how you use it~ lol

 

[TheDylanDrakes]

The average of Our Dark Prince is apparently 1.3k. Part of that though is that I'm a pretty ruthless editor. I went from 190K to 118K from the first to the second draft.

I think that 1K is about as small as you can go to reliably include a setup, build and payoff in story increments, without it feeling insanely rushed? But then again, some genres, like thrillers, WANT that feeling of constant, unsteady rush.

 

[Luxican]

My personal goal everytime I start writing a chapter is, 'I have to at least write 1k'.

I'm very bad at writing long chapters as I usually only introduce one (new) plot point per chapter, and after completing that objective I never know what to add lol.

So this goal helps immensely with my world-building, because I force myself to rethink my whole story-arc. In this way I have already found and corrected several plot holes, as well as improved my overall planning for the story.

But this probably only works for me because I mostly improvise my story/chapters lmao

My reading preference changes depending on the type of novel I read. But reaaally long chapters get can get tiring if they aren't well written.

 

[Topgun1908]

Is there an ideal chapter size you aim for? Want to read? etc? Are big chapters deal breakers for you?

I say stick around 1k-2k words it's a decent amount so readers can be satisfied and it isn't a huge amount so the author can write it quickly allowing for more frequent uploads. Any lower and it's annoying for the readers because you barely get any story progression. Any higher and it starts getting to be too many words to read without stopping. Also as an author you have to realize your limits of how quickly you can write without rushing out a shitty chapter. If you have a lot of free time to write those longer chapter than you can go ahead and take your time, just realize you should prioritize how much time you actually want to spend writing long chapters.

 

[OsiriumWrites]

2300-3100 words seems to be the sweetspot thusfar.