I’m about 2/3 of the way through my first novel and need some advice. For context, I’m not a massive reader but I read the Satsuma Complex and enjoyed it and found it easy to read so looked for other books that were similar but without much success. So I started writing with a target audience in mind of people like me who want more easy to read books. I quite like short chapters but here’s my dilemma. My first chapter which introduces the main character is about 2000 words which I’m OK with. The second chapter sets the scene and is nearly 5000 words which I think is too long. I could split it into 2 chapters but the problem is that the actual story doesn’t kick in until my current chapter 3 which would become chapter 4. My guess is that this is too late right? Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated.
I'm not sure what you mean by the plot not kicking in. Do you mean the inciting incident? What are the first two chapters about? The question you need to really ask is whether you have anything that is going to capture the reader's attention and make them want to read on in approximately the first paragraph. If the first chapter is an info dump then the answer is almost certainly no.
Yes. Basically the crux of the story stems from something happening in Chapter 3. The first chapter is about the main character and the second chapter is setting the scene - the context etc.
Unless it's irrelevant info, or presented as pure exposition, that is part of the plot. What elements are you including as part of "setting the scene"? As I said, I think you mean your inciting incident doesn't happen until chapter 3. And that's fine, as long as the first two chapters are interesting enough for the reader to make them want to turn the page. You may need to hint at stuff about to happen very soon.
What is the genre of the story? I am one who likes slow-burn stories, so having chapters 1 and 2 be set up could work. But I feel the key to writing is mixing inciting, set up, and character introduction from the beginning.
The answer I always give to this question is this - depends if you're planning on querying agents/indie pubs or if you're going to self-publish. If you are self-publishing, do whatever you want. If you're going for traditional publishing, the inciting incident happens in Chapter 1. No introductions, no backstory. Dive right into the action.
