Word count per chapter

[Lemon3]

I'd have to agree with @Introversion. And add too many variables. Assuming this is not a picture book that doesn't have chapters at all, is it MG, YA or adult? Is it SFF with tons of world building slipped between character and plot or is it a thriller that is barely "just the facts" narration?

I aim for around 3-5k per chapter, sci-fi, adult. I might have a very short (1-2 scene) chapter for effect. I might go a bit over, depending on scene lengths.

It's YA. I try to aim for at least 3000 but sometimes I go over to 4000-5000 and then I wonder if I should split it up into separate chapters.

 

[Maryn]

I'm reminded that Stephen King's Misery had a one-word chapter--and it was fully effective and downright chilling. And that some fine books have chapters in excess of 10K. Or no chapters at all.

It's up to the author (and their editor and publisher) to decide what works best for each book.

When I'm writing and revising, I tend not to think about chapter length. Some are quite long, others not. In a later edit, I might start breaking big chapters into two shorter ones, since I'm among the readers who prefers to stop at the end of a chapter or scene. But I make zero effort to create chapters of relatively uniform length. That would have me padding and over-editing like a crazy person.

Maryn, not the benchmark of publishing success

 

[Lemon3]

Is this for adult fiction? I think roughly 5000, with a range from 1500 - 1700, but really it's 'whatever works for the book'. YA probably similar, but MG would be shorter.

Thank you, Unimportant. I like the idea of "whatever works for the book."

 

[Lemon3]

What everybody else said. My chapters tend to run 2000 - 2500 words, but chapter length (and variation) can be used for pacing.

Really, it's just whatever works.

That's very true about pacing...

 

[Lemon3]

Like most writing rules/techniques, I think how you use your chapter lengths is far more important than adhering to a specific standard. Short chapters can make it easier for readers to say 'Just one more' or risk giving them more natural opportunities to put down your book. Placed among longer chapters, they can shine a more focused spotlight on whatever moment they contain. Long chapters can risk wearing readers out, but they can also keep people immersed in your world or emphasize particular moods - say, someone having a very long and arduous day.

Personally, I focus on making sure each chapter does what it needs to do, in terms of story events and mood, and only worry about combining or breaking them up if it feels like they're interfering with the overall pacing.

I really like this, thank you.

 

[Lemon3]

I try to keep it above 600 words (unless I feel it works perfectly with less) and dislike going over 2k (then really hate going 2.5k and dread exceeding 3k), but that's mostly when I'm writing horror or anything YA/MG. The cult novel wound up having a lot of longer chapters simply because of some internal action and where the best breakpoints landed. My multi-POV novels often had shorter chapters. In fact, one of the first haunted house novel's shortest chapters -- a supporting character's only POV chapter -- is still among my favorite things I've written. The writing is a bit hackier than I remembered, but the chapter still hits so many notes and makes the character feel pretty real. And, with a few small edits, I could probably even use it as a standalone story... well, except for the needed context at the end.

For fantasy (adult), I was trying to keep it roughly 2k-4k. That's definitely true for manuscript 4, but I'm 90% sure it also applies to manuscript 6.

In general, demos/genres will have different average lengths. And, for lit fic, you could even forgo chapters entirely. However, they're kinda useful for smoothing out the passage of time or for making a climatic moment more climatic.

That's really interesting to have chapters less than 2000 words. I'm curious about that--I'd be interested in reading some of your work.

 

[Lemon3]

As long as they have to be, but no longer. As a reader, I get a bit frustrated at longer chapters (over 3,000 words) because I like to finish a reading session at the end of a chapter. (At the end of a scene will do in a pinch.)

Chapters that go on for a bit had better move the story along or I'll wonder if the author isn't sure where they're going.

Sometimes I get the opposite effect when I'm listening to an audiobook (so I can't look ahead) and then be surprised how short the chapter was.

 

[Lemon3]

This is about where mine are. I average about 2500. The shortest is about 1900, the longest a little over 3k. Not really on purpose. Just sort of happening that way.

As a reader, I never notice this sort of thing. I rarely stop on actual chapter breaks, and the only time I even tend to notice them at all is when there is a POV shift or something of that nature that makes it stand out very obviously.

I never really thought about them either until I listened to audiobooks.

 

[alexp336]

When I'm writing serialized stuff (i.e. publishing a chapter at a time) I've found 3,500 words seems to be the sweet spot. Long enough that people are engaged; not so long as they get bored, and leaving them wanting more.

If I'm writing something novel-length, though, I split into sections as I go, but leave organizing into chapters until I'm finished writing.

 

[Lemon3]

This is a huge point. There are so many things while writing we think about that readers just breeze by. I'm certain I've spent more time thinking about my dialogue tags than any reader ever will because 99% of the time our eyes just run over "said" like it wasn't there. Same with chapter breaks and scene switches. One sentence of "now the characters are in this other situation..." is perfectly suitable.

Also agree with the point CMBright brought up earlier. Audience matters a lot. Fantasy and sci-fi tends to run longer than contemporary, and the younger the audience the shorter the everything.

Haha, I don't want to get started with dialogue tags... Also, that is a good rule of thumb, "the younger the audience the shorter the everything."

 

[Lemon3]

Wow, interesting question and no clear answer. I've read many, many books over the last 50 years and they've ranged from a couple of pages to no chapters at all (which I hate). I don't mind what the chapter length is but I like consistency. My neurodiversity requires symmetry. And if they are long chapters, I like scene separation so I can stop at a break.
I don't read a lot of YA but I'd think the chapters would be shorter. I write speculative sci-fi and my chapters are up to 8000 words with lots of scene breaks. But there's only 12 chapters in the manuscript so it's not chapter length but scene length that's important.

I never realized how the different genres have varying chapter lengths.

 

[Lemon3]

It may work for me because I tend to write suspense novels. These have faster pacing anyway and tend to be more plot-driven. But I admit I might have a chapter that is pretty short. A great example of this might be an explosion. Since an explosion in real time is only nanoseconds long yet takes time to describe what happens during one; I make it a separate chapter. Including it in another chapter takes away from the impact that an explosion is. But it need not be wordy in describing one. One explosion in my last novel was a separate chapter and yet only 544 words. But that becomes symbolism too. A short chapter... an explosion nanoseconds in duration.

Most of my chapters are in the 2500-3500 word range. I also try and get my setting descriptions, dialogue and characterization in roughly 1/3 increments so a chapter is not overburdened with words, overly descriptive, or lacks characterization. Obviously only description derives a chapter explicitly for an explosion so why they are so short...they break the one third rule.

That's a good point about suspense novels, because I believe those were the type of novels that had various word counts that could have been 3K-4K down to make 1K. Is there an actual 1/3 rule?

 

[Lemon3]

I'm reminded that Stephen King's Misery had a one-word chapter--and it was fully effective and downright chilling.

I had to look it up! I feel like only Stephen King could get away with something like that in the middle of his book...

 

[Maryn]

Not really. I've seen chapters less than 20 words long quite a few times. When it's not overdone, it can be quite effective.

If the author ends chapter 20 with the MC's fears for something just awful coming but reason to think it won't happen, if chapter 21 is short and It Happened, it can be better than a lengthy description. It trusts the reader to fill in the horrific blanks, which can be fun.