July 22, 2024
How do you determine where to end a chapter?
A chapter is as long as the chapter needs to be.
That’s the best piece of advice I’ve ever received in terms of how long to make my chapters.
I’ve seen chapters as short as two pages and others so long I have no idea how many pages they were. My typical chapter falls in between.
The first books I wrote, I didn’t stop for chapters. I just started at the beginning and didn’t stop until I reached the end. Then I went back and figured out where I needed to make breaks. Frankly, that wasn’t an efficient process.
It also didn’t work out to start a new chapter each time I started a new scene. The length of scenes is often far too short. Breaking it up that way makes the story choppy. I’ve settled on using section breaks for those as denoted by something like *****.
That still doesn’t answer the question of how I know when to end a chapter.
The first few chapters in The Marquesa’s Necklace came in at around 2000 words when they reached a natural stopping point. It seemed like a sign, so I aimed for each one to be around that length. Since the stories in that series were more lighthearted, the shorter breaks felt like they fit the book better. I wanted readers to be able to read it in short bursts. (Or devour it in one sitting if they feel so inclined.)
But short doesn’t work for The Edwards Investigations. So, the chapters are each more that 3000 words. Nowhere near the 81,200 word chapter in the Memory Of Light, the last book in the Wheel of Time series. Shoot, the entire story isn’t that long.
That still doesn’t answer the question.
How do I know where to end a chapter?
I’ve worked with some authors who attempt to start and finish a minor story within a chapter, with the end of the chapter being a natural end to the mini-plot. I don’t work like that. Although I don’t write cliffhangers at the end of a book, that’s how I like to end a chapter.
How do you determine where to close a chapter? I try to end with a hook, something to get the audience to turn the page and keep reading. Or be ready to pick it up again as soon as possible. Sometimes, finding that moment is a battle. Other times, I recognize it as I write it.
But I don’t make the rules. How do the other authors on this hop know when to end a chapter? Follow the links below to find out.
As always, until next time, please stay safe.
July 22, 2024
I never worried about chapter length, until I started writing episodic fiction for Medium. Now, I try to keep the wordcount of each episode (chapter) similar and not too long, to adhere to the publications guidelines and spread the action between chapters.
The first few books I wrote (but didn’t publish) had no chapter breaks. That meant there was no logical stopping point when the reader needed to set it aside. I’m sure there are writers out there that are talented enough to pull that off, but not me!
Yes, a hook is a good idea for the end of each chapter. I also try this too.
In my current WIP, there are a few chapter endings that aren’t ‘catchy.’ But they are logical stopping points. I hope they work for the reader.
You’re the writer. Wherever there is a noteworthy transition or change or where you think it should be. That’s it. Yours.