book lengths

Eric Zeigler

Eric Zeigler

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Indiana
So I'm working on my first novel. First chapter, goes smooth a little problem editing stands at around six thousand words. Second chapter, also goes smooth a little shorter than the first chapter. Get to the third chapter, ok not as smooth I got lazy and fell behind. The chapter comes out at just under ten thousand words. Fourth chapter, not going smooth at all havent actually finished it yet. I think it will be at around eight thousand words.

I have another 20 chapters to write. I'm enjoying it, but should I be worried about the length? Or should I just shut up and write?
 
Shut up and write (I'm just repeating what you said!). If it ends up too long, you can dock lots in the editing phase.

The story will take as many words as it needs to be told properly, and there will definitely be places where you'll need to tighten it up in the second draft. For now, just enjoy it.
 
Your first draft is about getting ideas down. It's just for you. Don't worry if it runs long.

My drafts run short (about 60k for the first draft of a 100k novel) but then all the descriptions and conversations are place holders and are more about telling me what information needs to be conveyed. I then expand as I review through it.

It potentially sounds like you have the opposite view and undoubtedly, your work will get cut down as you go through development.

Both methods are equally valid.

The excellent critique section on the board will help you identify issues with your work.
 
And don't put too much emphasis on chapter length. I never know how many chapters a story of mine is going to take to tell. And like many books I've read, some chapters end up quite short, while others quite long. The chapter needs to play itself out, no matter how many (or few) words that takes.
 
I'll join in by saying shut up and write, and don't worry about the chapter length. Chapter 4 in my current WIP was an absolute beast, but I worked out that a lot of the information in it could be drip fed over the course of a few more chapters, one sub plot in it ended up going nowhere and one of the characters introduced in it ended up getting her role merged with another character introduced in it... So I ended up managing to achieve the same info through adding one conversation and expanding a couple of others. The point is, I wouldn't have known I could do all that without writing the entire first draft - bloated chapter 4 included.

Welcome to the Chrons, have fun and don't be afraid to ask stuff - most of us don't bite :)
 
Welcome Eric and Harry. Yeah, what DG said. Oh, and watch out for Cathbad. Apparently he has fangs. We didn't know. ;)
 
I lean towards the shorter side. My chapters are around 1500 words and my books short. There is no right or wrong answer. I'll put in another vote for shut up and write!

I write very similar to ralphkern. Drafts are short and I add detail later. Certainly not as much though.
 
Yeah, just write it for now. :p Worry about consistent structure and reasonable length when the time comes to start trimming the fat. :)
 
Write, then worry. Honestly, I'm working on what was, originally, my fourth book. I thought, oh silly me, I'd nailed this writing lark (this was back in 2013.) It was an absolute turkey. I've now written six books before it, and many, many shorts. I picked it up a few weeks ago and guess what? I like it, but the structure is awful. It now vaguely resembles what I wrote then, in the sense the characters are the same, the continuity is the same and some of the outline scenes are the same, albeit reworked. Otherwise, it's all changed. Write, deal with the details later. It's a slow game this.
 
Write.
Write till The End. (Congratulations meet your first draft.)
||: Edit cause, you know what? None of this stuff makes sense. Write. Edit more. Discover a better middle, edit more.
Be brave, be daring, put it up for critique thinking it's the best thing you've ever written. Mope around for a month or two cause, you know what? None of this stuff makes sense.
Edit. Cause... I'll show you. :||
 
write till the end - excellent advice.

don't worry if it's short, you'll think of things to add along the way. make a note somewhere and do them in your second run, unless you edit along the way. I need to finish and start again.

I try my best, to keep the chapter lengths within a couple of hundred of each other so there's an even flow while reading it. No matter how intense the chapter is, if it's twenty pages longer than the others then subconsciously it has me thinking, is this chapter long or is it me and I'm out of the book.
 
Just write for now. You may consider word count after you've finished. If it seems too short, you can go back and add. If it seems too long, you can look for boring unnecessary parts to delete.
 
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