Chapter Length

Discussion in 'Word Mechanics' started by Ives, Jan 2, 2009.

  1. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    do NOT go by how long or short other books are... that won't help a bit, since you'll find the range too vast to pin down any 'right' or 'wrong' size... with some successful authors, like james patterson, chapters are typically just 2-3 pages long, while for others, like michener and clancy, huge ones are the norm and work just as well...

    except for the common sense-dictated need of shorter chapters for younger readers, let your story dictate how long the chapters should be, not anyone else's idea of what they should be...
     
  2. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    (and, by the way, that was the point arrived at in all the other threads on chapter length)
     
  3. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    cog's point being that before you start a thread about something as basic as this, it's a good idea to use the search option on the site, to find previous discussions on the subject... 'twould save your time and our effort...
     
  4. How long is...

    Your average chapter?
    * I know it doesn't matter but does anyone here have any type of standard that they aim for? I did and then it became a habit to end my chapter at a certain length just because I did not want to drag it on...
    Your novel if you've written one?
    Do you give an individual title for each one of your chapters?

    Just looking to relate to others...and I'm taking a break and I thought I'd visit :p

    Edit: okay, arron89, sorry bout that
     
  5. arron89

    arron89 Banned

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    Learn to use the search tool, all these questions have been answered at great length recently and repeatedly.
     
  6. architectus

    architectus Banned

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    You must be a master mind when it comes to writing a complete mini-story with a beginning, middle, and ending (a chapter) if you can write each one consistantly the same length.

    How can you just decide to just end a chapter at a certain legnth if it hasn't naturally ended?

    I prefer chapters to have a beginning, middle, and ending, sort of like a short story in a longer story, sort of like an Episode in True Blood or Dexter. Each is a complete story, but adds to the whole story. However, if you watched episode seven of Dexter, you would be missing too much information for it to make sense, even though episode seven is a stand alone story.
     
  7. Banzai

    Banzai One-time Mod, but on the road to recovery Contributor

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    Chapters should end where it feels natural and right, regardless of length. If that means you have a chapter that is a single paragraph, or a chapter that is 5000+ words, then fine.
     
  8. Daniel I Russell

    Daniel I Russell Active Member

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    I've had editors that preach against this, and state that chapters should be as uniform as you can make them at around 3000 words. I disagree and go with what Banzai said, up to a point. A novel in which every chapter is a page or two would be a choppy read.

    Remember, you can always use breaks within a chapter.
     
  9. Dr. Doctor

    Dr. Doctor New Member

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    Kurt Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle did this and it was entertaining. But yeah, most novels wouldn't work well like that.

    My chapters are usually anywhere from 6-10 pages.
     
  10. seta

    seta New Member

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    My action-packed chapters are about 5000 words long. My plot chapters are anywhere from 500 words to 5000
     
  11. Marcelo

    Marcelo Member

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    My shortest chapters tend to be somewhere between 800 and 1000, while most of them are 1500-2500.
     
  12. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    first of all, james patterson's novels, all of which are best-sellers, have 2-3 page chapters...

    i don't... and my best advice is to have NO 'standard' size...

    that's one perfect example of why it's a bad idea...

    never for adult market fiction... that would only make sense for children's or some YA novels, imo... and non-fiction self-help and how-tos, of course...
     
  13. Rei

    Rei Contributor Contributor

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    It's definitely not childish. Even if it were, I am getting bloody sick of people implying that "childish" is a bad thing, no matter who publishers would market the book to.
     
  14. Kas

    Kas New Member

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    I don't think anyone would say that "childish" is bad in general, but doing the opposite of what you intend is usually considered a mistake.;)

    I never considered it before, but now that I think on it, there may be something to what maia is saying. It just so happens that most books I've read with titled chapters are YA, or the characters demonstrate naivette, or the theme tends to be a simplified good vs evil struggle.

    The Wheel of Time vs A Song of Ice and Fire is a good example. WoT had titled chapers; ASoIaF didn't. Both are very much adult reads, but the characters in WoT seem unnaturally innocent, and the main conflicts play out in black and white. The world is incredibly detailed, and the plots are immensely complicated, but the same can be said of ASoIaF. The main difference is the depth of character in the latter series, and the dedication to reality (as perceived by the author).

    Neither way is inherently "better"--different strokes for different folks--but there is a very distinct difference. Martin's success with ASoIaF is largely attributed to the maturity of the tale.

    I suppose it's worth considering how your work may be perceived. Though until I thought about it, I never would have judged a book "childish" for having named chapters. Seems like a very minor issue, (if it is one at all) but it's still interesting to think about.
     
  15. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    Note: the post that turned a comment about children's novels into childish writing has been removed.

    There are some adult novels that use chapter titles or similar headings. An example is Ben Bova's recent novels such as Jupiter, Saturn, and Titan. These chapter titles are not necessarily unique within the novel, and there is no Table of Contents in any of them I have read lately. Still, the majority of modern adult novels I have seen don't use titled chapters.
     
  16. seta

    seta New Member

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    I have titled all of my chapters thus far. Of course it would be a simple matter to simply exclude the chapter names from the final product. I use the titles as a guide for myself really.
     
  17. Rei

    Rei Contributor Contributor

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    I've seen lots of people who do use the word very negatively. But that's off topic.

    To anyone who asks about chapter lengths, I say:RELAX. It's not the most important thing in the world. I've read a few novels that don't even have chapters the the same way most do. If where to begin a new chapter doesn't come naturally to you, don't even think about it until you are in the final editing process. Make the divisions then.

    And the majority of children's/youth novels that I read also don't have chapter titles, so it's really unfair to label the technique either way.
     
  18. The-Joker

    The-Joker Contributor Contributor

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    Most of my chapters are about 1000 words long. Some are less than 500. I just feel like I have to end the chapter at a point which asks the same question: What's going to happen on the next page?

    I do it because I like reading short chapters and have read too many books where I've got bored in the middle of a protracted chapter. Keeping them short almost feels like an easy way out, because you don't have to work as hard to hold a reader's interest over two pages as opposed to twenty.

    But I think as many people have already said. The plot dictates the chapter length.

    My one qualm with my 'easy way out' though is that I can't title my chapters. I love names, especially when they're cleverly thought out. It just makes things more dramatic.
     
  19. bluebell80

    bluebell80 New Member

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    A sentence can be short or long. A paragraph can be a single sentence or several pages long. A chapter can be one paragraph, can be one sentence, or can be 10,000 words long... It only matters that the point of it has been made and that the ending of it has a hook to make the reader continue on to the next chapter until the end of the book.

    Whether you give your chapters their own titles depends less on if you want them and more on which publisher you are going attempt to solicit wants. Some don't have any care about it, some don't want them, and some have guildlines that are a little hard to understand. Try it both ways.
     
  20. madhoca

    madhoca Contributor Contributor

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    The publisher I'm writing for now stated categorically that they accept only 70-75,000 words, but said 'don't worry about chapters, usually it's 20, but we can sort that afterwards'.
     
  21. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    'writing for'???

    what does that mean, mh?... did you sign a contract for a book you hadn't written yet, or what?
     
  22. Speedy

    Speedy Contributor Contributor

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    I find it funny that there is half a dozen threads about title length that turn into "Titling chapters and whatnot". Its always a blood bath

    ANYWAY!

    As long as you dont have 300 half page chapters 9Publishers would have all that white and costs etc) it would be fine.

    I have written a little over 300 pages (MS pages) for about 12 chapters (3 to go). So their about 30 pages each (though i have about 5-15 chapoter breaks though each)

    Size means nothing, its all about ending your chapters in the right places.
     
  23. madhoca

    madhoca Contributor Contributor

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    It means that I'm back to writing formula historical romances for *blushes* M&B (had one published in 1983) and the publisher liked the 3,000 words and synopsis I sent and said they wanted the manuscript so I'm about to finish it and get it off to them. Told me to take my time but I want to complete in the next 2 months. Maybe if the editor didn't know me (in a friend-of-a-friend way) I wouldn't have contacted them until it was finished, but I was afraid the story wasn't commercial and didn't want to waste my time.

    I don't know if this comes under the heading of quality writing--maybe it's more like selling cupcakes, but it's fun, the pressure to be a fantastic writer is off and I'm enjoying myself. At least someone is interested in it for a change. And there isn't a large sum of money involved but hey life is short. Of course, at the end of the day, it might not work out; I know they get 1,000 odd submissions a month but it was good to get a positive reaction, and it hasn't taken me months of agony to complete...
     
  24. CharlieVer

    CharlieVer Contributor Contributor

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    I don't recall what book it was, but I recently listened to an audio book. When I heard one of the chapters, I actually had to back it up to make sure I hadn't missed anything. I hadn't.

    There was an entire chapter that was one short sentence. I believe the chapter's entire content was something like, "Nothing else happened the next day," and then, on to the next chapter.

    I would say, don't make your chapters shorter than that. ;)

    Charlie
     
  25. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    hey, at least you're getting paid for your work, which is more than 90% of all who want to be writers can ever say, right?

    hugs, m
     

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