Chapter length depends on the genre:
For serialized Wattpad short stories, novellas, novelettes, and novels, if most of your chapters are 2 to 75 words, that might be too short.
Some writers tend to go a little longer and have found great success. In the long run, choose what is best for your story.
The new recommended length 1500-3000 is recommended for Wattpad novels, but I sometimes go shorter, and my best chapters are around 700 words. But if you go longer or shorter, you will not be allowed in specific Wattpad programs.
My mystery novel Muses, Mishaps, and Murder!, chapters are much longer than my apocalyptic comedy series, The Worst Apocalyptic Romance.
Why 3K?
3K is around 15 minutes to read, which reduces eye strain and is helpful to those with ADHD.
A younger reader with healthy eyes might read a 10 to 70k chapter because it's their favorite fandom, the story is gripping, or just for the novelty of it. I wouldn't write a chapter that long, but some writers can get away with it.
Epic fantasy and YA vampire chapters tend to go longer. You could push it at 4K or maybe even 5K if you feel your story is well-written enough, but I wouldn't write a chapter longer than 4K if it's not a traditionally published print novel.
With a print book, readers can use a bookmark for that 15,000-word chapter. It's harder to do that with a Wattpad chapter.
What genres run shorter?
My shortest chapters are usually poetry, flash fiction, or my prompt book.
Flash fiction is a lot of fun to write, and I write those for contests. One win was for a 6-word story, another for an 8-word story.
A one-shot is a sub-genre of a short story. It's usually fanfiction, but not always. Sometimes it can be an original but themed short story.
With my prompt book. I needed the readers to think about each prompt, so cramming them all in one chapter wouldn't work. But I also didn't plan on 200 chapters. I planned around 20. Shorter chapters need careful planning.
Super-long chapters can also be an underwriting issue. I worked with an author who had written a 6,000-word short story. The concept was good, but the story had natural breaks and not enough description or action. The author had a novelette and didn't realize it.
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Writing Juicy Fiction: Transformative Writing Tips
Non-FictionComplete. Writing Juicy Fiction: Transformative Writing Tips are tips I used to help my own writing. It's not about perfection, but about doing the best you can. Share your best tips in the comments.
