Chapters?

This is my first year, and I seem to be averaging about 2500 words per chapter. I have no idea if this is too long for a children's book, but it seems to be the right time to break.

angelteach

I write in chapters. It's easier to handle 30 small files rather than one big one, and they seem to run anywhere from 1700 to 4000 words. Really, it varies. Chapter length may end up changing later, but for right now, it seems that one chapter is one day-ish. (In story, not one day of writing.)

I wrote without chapters last year. It didn't even occur to me I was doing it. This year I didn't think about it again. I'm not really worried about it. For me it's just kind of an extra concern I don't need to bother with right now. I can totally see how it would be of help to others. I encourage anyone to pursue it however it feels comfortable to them.

"What could I do if I did not have to do it perfectly? A lot more than I am now."

I'm not planning mine, but I am including chapter breaks when it "feels" right. I am just shy of 10,000 words and have not yet started chapter 3. My first two chapters consist of two days and two flashbacks each, though I didn't plan it that way. I have a lot of weird breaks and skips that could probably serve as other dividing points.

My chapters, at least this year, are ending up between 2,000 and 2,500. Which is alarming, since if I multiply that average by the number of chapters I have planned in my outline, I'll fall short of 50,000. One bright side is that at least one chapter has somehow split into two already, and the latest chapter, the longest so far, is about 2,800.

I just finished Chapter 5, and it's the 5th, so it's about a chapter per day, but I was 700 words into this chapter when I started tonight. Against common writing wisdom, I do often end on a chapter boundary, since they're natural stopping points. I've been trying to spill over into the next chapter, but tonight I just didn't have it in me.

What helps me with that though, is that my style tends to end chapters as cliffhangers. So I have until I get time to write again to puzzle out how it's going to resolve.

Plus sometimes it's just fun to leave the characters dangling. :) Drives my writing group crazy though, since they got the chapters from past years in 2-3 chapter installments. At least they always look forward to the next time! :)

Chris

--
NaNo 2007 - Four 'til Late - Winner!
NaNo 2008 - Sinking Down - Winner!
NaNo 2009 - Me and the Devil - In Progress!

I write in chapters, but just because it keeps me organized. At times, get stumped and literally my chapters are two are three pages long. Sometimes I even just place notes - chapter - include seciton on X. Again, it's personal preference.

Terridactile

2008 - St. Joseph's Table

My outline has 25 chapters at 2,000 words each, plus a prologue and epilogue at 1,000 words each. I write a chapter a day (Nov. 1 = Pro + Ch. 1) and I do not break from the planned schedule. Of course, this is a reactionary set-up to my natural "won't work if there's no structure" tendencies, so your mileage may vary. I also take breaks on weekends, although the scheduled day got moved from Saturday to Sunday to accommodate the Mo'Joe's SatAfternoon writing group. :-)

2006 - How to Survive an Earthquake (50,600)
2007 - No Title (5,000ish)
2008 - Moon Dog (15776)
2009 - The Baker's Apprentice -- updates M-F @ http://joanna-nanowrimo2009.blogspot.com

I'm doing chapters, but I'm just splitting them in whenever a scene breaks for now - for the most part, at least. So my first chapter is 1600 words or so, but the next one is, well, let's just say I'm still on chapter 2. Then again, that first one might've just been something like a prologue and I'm currently working on chapter 1. That would make more sense. I'm also writing in one big file since writing chapters in separate files would get me confused and lost - and I like to look back every now and then to make sure I didn't get a name or date wrong or whatnot.