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I was working on my WIP the other day, and became curious. So I tweeted a question. How long are your chapters? Well I got answers anywhere from 1000 to 5000 words. One person even pointed out some books that had chapters only a few words long.The thing is, it depends. It depends on where the natural breaking point is. If we think of a chapter as a sort of mini-book we won't have to worry about things like length. How do we do that? Make sure it has a
- beginning (problem/point of change)
- middle (rising action/conflict)
- end (resolution/action to address the conflict)
Let's use an example. Because I know you love those. Plus I have to bring in the "paranormal" somewhere, right? Let's go with our ghost example from my filtering through character post. Remember? Ghost is haunting her ex-boyfriend (Erik) who is taking another girl to prom. In our fake chapter let's have our ghost try to ruin the evening by messing with the prom date (Heather) at dinner...
- Beginning: We start with the problem. Jealousy. Q: what's the first thing your character thinks or notices? A: The way Erik's hand rests on the small of Heather's back
- Middle: This is where the meat of the action/conflict takes place Q: What would my MC do to solve the problem? A: Manipulate objects like food and drink spilling on Heather to make her look bad. Tripping her. Maybe even pushing her at the last second so she bumps heads with Erik when he goes to kiss her
- End: Resolution. Q: What happens as a result of the MC's actions? A: Erik feels bad for Heather when she starts to cry, and tells her she looks good with spaghetti in her hair. Maybe he puts some on his own head to make her laugh and holds her head steady so he can carefully plant a kiss...
That works out well, no? A kiss after all that is a nice page turn. How long is this chapter? No idea. Probably pretty short (though honestly for me that's typical) but it really doesn't matter. What matters is it's a complete unit that's furthered both the overarching plot and character development. It has to be satisfying, yet make you want to keep reading. Piece of cake, right?
I often want to post 'a chapter is as long as it needs to be'. But also, I try and keep mine shorter, for many reasons.
ReplyDeleteI want to get to the point, I want to have enough turning points within the chapter, and I want to have the characters to have some changes and perhaps a new challenge.
But the main reason I like to keep chapters short is because I read way too much, and when I'm reading late into the night, I sneaky-peaky turn the pages to see how long the next chapter is. If it's 10 solid pages of description, I'll put the book down.
If it's 6 pages with dialogue (therefore some lovely white space, easier on the eye and all that) I'll keep reading.
I want people who read my books to keep reading.
Hypocrisy warning: My first book has a 20-page first chapter. It was only 10 in the manuscript, but blew out to 20 with formatting and layout once it became a book. So I learned the hard way, and did my best to make the chapters in book 2 shorter wherever possible.
Geez that was a long post!
ReplyDeleteI actually have a different pacing with chapters, often ending them at the peak of the conflict.
ReplyDeleteMy chapters are pretty short. I write in short stints, so I usually aim to complete a chapter. I guess that's why they're usually short.
ReplyDeleteI agonize over this occasionally, but I think you're right--there's usually a natural stopping point. Useful post~ thanks!
ReplyDeleteAs you say, chapters should be as long as they need to be. The first chapter of my novel is only a page. Having said that, I'm really not a fan of hugely lengthy chapters, which is just as well since I'm writing kidlit.
ReplyDeleteI'd add that I try to end all my chapters on a cliffhanger, although it isn't always possible. I think it's a good way to get a reader to keep reading.
Ebony - Yes, as I admitted above I prefer shorter chapters too, but I NEVER cut it just to cut it, you know? Also I've read many wonderful books with longer chapters, so I know that's just a preference. :D Keeping the reader reading is a very good goal however!
ReplyDeleteChristine - stopping at the point of conflict can work too! My only concern would be if it was forced and therefore looked gimicky or made the rest of the chapter not flow right. I'm sure this ISN'T true of yours, I just want to put that out there for others who may be reading this.
Joanne - Short is good, but not if it's because that's only how long you had to write!! ;D If it's a complete chapter that's cool though.
Jess - Glad it was useful!
Girl Friday - Again, cliffhangers are great as long as they're not forced and don't impede the natural flow of that or the next chapter.
If only it were as easy as it sounds.
ReplyDeleteI use to really stress about my chapters all being the same length, but I got over that. Different things happen in different chapters. Some are shorter and other longer. But I do loves it when a chapter ends with a page turner.
ReplyDeleteAngela - ROFL IT IS! Well okay it takes work. :P But that's part of the deal.
ReplyDeleteKaren - :D That's always a nice happenstance. Mostly I just wanted to use that word because I like it. Happenstance. But it's true. ;D (Too much coffee)
Wait, why are messing with me at dinner? ;)
ReplyDeleteSeriously though, I love your idea of a beginning, middle, and end. All chapters need that! I think of them as having tiny arc of their own. Each chapter must accomplish something for the story or character. Excellent post!
Hey, is this part of your next book and you're not telling me? If I read a scene with a bowl of spaghetti on someone's head, I'll know the truth.
ReplyDeleteChapter ends aren't always easy for me, but hey, if it was easy everyone would do it, right?
Heather - exactly!! :D
ReplyDeleteJulie - RIGHT. Um, no it's not in my WIP but I'm having so much fun with the example... You never know! ;D
Great question. It depends on the genre, too. Faster paced genres like suspense benefit from shorter chapters, but too many in a romance make the book feel choppy. I like your breakdown!
ReplyDeleteJill - Great point! Sometimes my brain gets stuck in YA. :D Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone else (I'm soooo origninal aren't I?), the length of the chapter should be as long as it needs to be.
ReplyDeleteI recently judged an entry in a RWA first 25 page contest for one chapter (of the organization, not of a book). It felt like the writer had this predefined number in mind as to how many pages the first chapter needed to be and wrote it to fit this. I lost interest interest in the first chapter mid way because it just seemed to be filler after that until the second chapter. Not good! :P
My chapter lengths definitely vary with the style of book, although I'm tending toward shorter now.
ReplyDeleteStina - That's too bad. I'm glad there isn't a stringent rule book out there for those kind of things. That can really stifle the important things like voice and story.
ReplyDeleteSusan - *lightbulb goes off over head* I suspect the chapter length also ties in with voice. :D I have no proof of this allegation, just a suspicion.
I agree that it's fine if chapter lengths vary as long as they have the beginning, middle and end. I'm writing my WIP in scenes and will figure out the chapters later. I think I prefer shorter chapters too.
ReplyDeleteGhenet - That beginning, middle and end are what I want to stress. You can't take shortcuts just because you want to end teetering on the end of the shark tank. ;D
ReplyDeleteMy chapters fall between 5 and 10 pages. Love the mini book analogy.
ReplyDeleteLeslie - well hello superwoman. :D Thanks for the comment. Or is that bionic girl?
ReplyDeleteWhen people ask me how long a chapter should be I always end up waving my hands vaguely and talking about instinct and gut feeling. I'm not being purposely obtuse, it's just one of those things that, to me, comes solely out of just knowing where my chapters naturally fall. Which is utterly unhelpful for other people!
ReplyDeleteIt's SO good to see this analyzed--things make a lot more sense when you actually dissect them and figure out why things work the way they do. Great post!
Meagan - thank you! I felt the same way you did when I came across another post about endings. It made it sound so technical it was almost scary to me. I thought, Have I been doing something wrong? But then I went in and analyzed WHAT was working for me, and this is what I came up with. I hope it's helpful.
ReplyDeleteHey Lisa, great post! I love your thoughts on how a chapter should be structured. I tend to write very short chapters - it's funny having over 100 chapters in a YA book :D
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Rach
Rachael - I too tend toward shorter chapters, and yes, I get nervous about the numbers going so high sometimes! :D But if it works...
ReplyDeleteAs a reader I prefer shorter chapters, as I seldom sit for long spells of reading. As a writer, I'll probably hold to the same mold. Current effort is new, still a bit undecided on the chapter breaks. Guess I need to take a look at that.
ReplyDeleteDean - it's not the first thing you should attend to, but it is something to kind of keep in mind as you work through your WIP. :D Short is fine.
ReplyDelete