How many chapters do you expect per week for ongoing novel?

[IDreamNovels]

Assuming every chapter is ~2000 words on average, how much does the release rate affect your choice to read a novel?

Or maybe you are the ideal reader who will patiently wait for however long it takes, as long as you like the novel?

 

[mostlyharmfulll]

Where is the "ideal reader who doesn't care as long as trhe novel is good" option?

 

[Chaos_Sinner777]

Everybody has their own pace. Which is what I have to believe because I am a terribly inconsistent writer myself.

 

[IDreamNovels]

Where is the "ideal reader who doesn't care as long as trhe novel is good" option?

Added.

 

[Vaxel00]

I don't really expect any chapters, if the novel is good I'll read but if there's no updates for a while and I forget the plot then I won't resume reading.

I have this problem with translations mostly, some that stop updating for months and when a new chapter finally comes out I just can't bother re-reading it.

 

[Milanin]

Something along the lines of ideal reader, when not bored/left on a abyss reaching ravine.
Otherwise I would like to have a chapter ready when I finish the previous one. (50 chapters a day?)

 

[yansusustories]

Truth be told, I feel like I'm cursed. Whenever I start reading an original story that I actually like, the creator will inevitably go on hiatus after a couple of chapters. Sometimes, they even delete their projects. So I've sworn to myself that I won't start reading before the project isn't finished. It's better for both them and me
I might make an exception if I see the creator has several finished projects already that were consistently updated but even then, I'd have to read all of them first before starting on anything new. Actually, I'm doing the same with translations in where I want at least 50% of the novel to be translated or even more if it's an unknown translator/group.

 

[Piisfun]

I prefer there to be at least one update per week, but I will still read stories with one update per month.

I just dislike it when someone writes two chapters of a seemingly promising story, then disappears without giving any sort of conclusion.

The other thing I very much dislike is when the author decides to force a genre into their story (especially Yuri/Yaoi) when it doesn't fit the story.

 

[DubstheDuke]

I would say that any less than 2 is unacceptable unless the 1 chapter is long.

 

[K5Rakitan]

Authors are often people with families, jobs, health conditions, and other things we simply cannot put on hold for our hobby. We do what we can, and readers are getting something for free, so readers can whine all they want, but if you're one of my readers, it's not going to change anything. I release a new chapter every 8 days. I haven't missed a release day since I started my current story, but it's probably going to happen when I give birth.

 

[Maple-Leaf]

I read things if they have a decent chunk of chapters when I find them and if they interest me, but I'm usually more inclined to read if it's finished. Anything after that doesn't really matter to me because I just find something else to do in the meantime.

 

[Cathra]

I'd prefer at least one update a week, but if the story is good then I'll stick around even there's months in between updates.

 

[ConTroll]

My perspective on the question as an author:

Chapter releases should really be up to the author, not the audience.

If you want to write a lot of garbage, go for it. Your progress to becoming a better writer will be hindered, but you will please the masses of readers you may or may not have. If your 'story' is good enough, people won't care about grammatical errors or plot holes until they are knee-deep into your world.

If you want to write the best you can, go for it. However, understand that you releases will come once or twice in a full moon. This route will likely gain less viewership due to slow chapter releases. Additionally, it will definitely have a slow growth in candid fans, as your story will lack the chapter count to be binge-worthy. On the upside, the quality of your work will reach closer to your ideal, plot holes will be few if any at all, and you will feel more satisfied with your own work as an author.

If you want a good balance of quality and quantity, then aim for for the following:
[1] a daily or weekly quota of words;
[2] a release schedule that fits your writing;
[3] an average word count or range per chapter;
[4] accept that your writing will never be perfect, so aim for writing something that you are proud of and can still improve upon
[5] have a general outline of where you want your story to go

Remember, there are three primary factors to product releases: Cost, Time, Quality. For fiction writing, these three would be represented by: Effort, Time, Quality. If you could pick only 2, which would you choose?

 

[RuggyRuggy]

As a reader, I'm fine with at least a part a week. But it's not a big deal if it's every two weeks or so.

But as an author, my release schedule depends on both my back log and the chapters left until the Book is done.

For example, I post weekly until I'm close to being done, then I release two parts a week. Then three parts until I'm on the final chapter. Once I am, then I post daily until the final chapter is complete.

Like, the final chapter of Book Two of my story was 13 parts long with word counts from 1,900 to 3.5k words. So that was 13 days of daily releases.

To me, that's the best release schedule because it builds up hype for the conclusion. But I know that might not be sustainable for others.

 

[ConTroll]

As a reader, I'm fine with at least a part a week. But it's not a big deal if it's every two weeks or so.

But as an author, my release schedule depends on both my back log and the chapters left until the Book is done.

For example, I post weekly until I'm close to being done, then I release two parts a week. Then three parts until I'm on the final chapter. Once I am, then I post daily until the final chapter is complete.

Like, the final chapter of Book Two of my story was 13 parts long with word counts from 1,900 to 3.5k words. So that was 13 days of daily releases.

To me, that's the best release schedule because it builds up hype for the conclusion. But I know that might not be sustainable for others.

I feel this method is fine so long as you already have the backlog to do it. I just find that a lot of authors that post almost daily have the opposite issue -- that they have no backlog and are trying to keep up with their own status quo to keep readership engaged.

 

[RuggyRuggy]

I feel this method is fine so long as you already have the backlog to do it. I just find that a lot of authors that post almost daily have the opposite issue -- that they have no backlog and are trying to keep up with their own status quo to keep readership engaged.

Agreed. Like, my back log at a 2,500 to 4k words a week is probably four months. That gives me enough time to finish writing it and do a bit of Book Four before I mass release. I can only do this because of the backlog.

 

[gaylolis]

i expect most of them to only release a chapter or two and drop it forever

 

[Kaguro]

Most people only follow if it is daily, otherwise people mass read it.

 

[Deleted member 29316]

My readers would mostly binge-read my releases, which I regularly update because of backlogs.

But I try my best to have a backlog of at least one volume.

 

[Stratothrax]

1 or 2 chapters a week seems ideal though I am surprised 1 chapter is getting slightly more votes than 2, although I'm not surprised 3 chapters and daily are getting dunked on