Opinion: Story Length

[MikeLowrey]

So I know the response to this question will be subjective but I am wondering with, the “recent” addition of the word count up front on stories, what would be the ideal word count for you to want to read the story? Does the word count “scare” you away from certain stories? Does it just matter what you are looking for at the time?

Would love to hear/read your thoughts if you care to share.

 

[Handley_Page]

So I know the response to this question will be subjective but I am wondering with, the “recent” addition of the word count up front on stories, what would be the ideal word count for you to want to read the story? Does the word count “scare” you away from certain stories? Does it just matter what you are looking for at the time?

Would love to hear/read your thoughts if you care to share.

Well, given that a Lit page is about 3700 words or so,
I think 3 or 4 pages is ideal, but I'm not over-bothered by 6 or more.

 

[MikeLowrey]

Well look at there, learned something I didn’t know nor did I think of researching. I was unaware that a page was roughly 3700 words.

Thanks for that!

 

[NotWise]

So I know the response to this question will be subjective but I am wondering with, the “recent” addition of the word count up front on stories, what would be the ideal word count for you to want to read the story? Does the word count “scare” you away from certain stories? Does it just matter what you are looking for at the time?

Would love to hear/read your thoughts if you care to share.

I rarely read stories over about 15k words, even though I've written quite a few longer than that. Among my own stories, the ones I enjoy the most are typically 7,500 to 12k words.

The readers don't seem to look at it that way. My story with the most views, favorites, and comments is 30k words -- one of my longest. My highest rated story is 24k words.

 

[PeytonMirabelle]

If the tagline is interesting, I'll usually read something five pages or less (so, 18K words or so) all the way through, unless it's so awful I can't take it. "So-so" or better and I'll plow on. If it's longer than that, it a) has to be from a writer I've already read and trust, or b) needs to hook me in the first two pages. If not, I'll step away.

The readers don't seem to look at it that way. My story with the most views, favorites, comments, and votes is 30k words -- one of my longest. My highest rated story is 24k words.

It doesn't seem to hurt. I read Romance more than any category and a quick glance at the top rated stories shows that among the stand-alone entries in the top twenty, all are 7+ pages and several are 10+. There could be any number of (statistical) reasons for that but I think it's safe to say that if the writing is strong enough or strikes a chord with the reader, any length will be fine.

 

[oggbashan]

I get a large number of reads of my 50-word stories posted as sets of 15.

 

[SimonDoom]

Reader and author preferences for story length are all over the map, and Lit is a big place, so there's a large readership for whatever length you prefer.

8Letters has done some analysis on this, and if you search this forum you can find a few posts he did earlier on Story Stats and story length.

Lit Readers, as a whole, have an appetite for long stories, to a degree that is interesting. You can find novel-length stories with tons of readers and very high scores.

"Short" stories, on the other hand, tend not to score as highly. By "short" I mean stories under about 7000 words, or less than 2 Literotica pages.

I gravitate toward stories I can read in a single sitting, so I tend not to read stories that are more than about six Literotica pages. Sometimes I will if the story looks especially interesting.

Keep in mind that many of the readers are looking for a story to give them sexual gratification. They're looking for something they can get off to. There seems to be a sweet spot for a story to do that. It's got some buildup to get the reader aroused, and then a good sex scene for the climax.

But there's no average Lit reader or writer. There's a lot of variety, so write whatever you want to write.

 

[oggbashan]

The usual answer is the best length for a story is the length it needs to be told...

 

[mfan2112]

I was thinking the same thing yesterday. I think the sweet spot is between 8k - 12k words for a chapter or stand alone. Not to say I don't like or read the 20k - 25k pieces. I enjoy those very much. But not everyone has the time to read a longer piece in one sitting. A couple times I have broken up a longer chapter and made it into two part for publishing, just so readers could have it in smaller chunks.

I look at the word count just about every time I begin to read a story to judge if I have time to complete it before I have to move on, go to bed etc. Nothing worse than having to set a story down just as it is getting to the good part.

These are my opinions and worth exactly what I was paid for them. If you are somehow having to pay to read these opinions, please note, that I am not receiving a single penny.

 

[mfan2112]

8Letters has done some analysis on this, and if you search this forum you can find a few posts he did earlier on Story Stats and story length.

Here are links to a couple of 8Letters's posts for reference

Statistical Analysis of Stand-Alone LitE Stories
http://forum.literotica.com/showthread.php?t=1488161

Story Stats by Day of Week
http://forum.literotica.com/showthread.php?t=1518378

 

[MikeLowrey]

Loving the feedback. Keep them coming!

 

[HeyAll]

For my personal taste, 6,000 - 7,000 words is the sweetspot for great erotica, granted it must be tightly written and have no excess in it. Great erotica could also be 5,000 words if tightly written.

Those are the lengths that I am for and leave me happy with the final product.

Having said that, I often get comments that readers wish the story was longer. And I often get requests for a sequal.

I think readers are used to long stories and multi-chapters because there are so many stories like that.

 

[SaintCordelia]

I like shorter stories, and am unlikely to be in for the long haul unless it's from an author I like or the quality/concept is intriguing. If there's a lot of voice to the writing, I am more like to be hooked. My first story posted here is short by comparison, 2-pages (but really 1-page spilled over a bit onto 2 at about 3700 words), and the score may have been impacted a bit (also the tropes I used may not have appealed to the meta of the category, but such is life!), but I was/am really happy with it, so it doesn't really bother me too much.

Curious if it's the nature of the whole site, the timing the story posted, or the category when it comes to page-length having such a possible impact. Also curious if I had extended it a bit more if the rating would have jumped a bit, but I packed a lot in, and probably wouldn't change it even if a could. The stories I am drafting will likely end up around 10k words just because of story demands.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

I think it depends on the type of story.

Many that I post are in the "Novels and Novella" category. When I post them I try to break them up into chapters of other divisions between 5K and 10K words, but some goes as high as 16K or more.

I did post one story in it's entirety that was almost 100K words. It received a few complaints from readers about its length, but it was also a Readers Choice winner, so go figure.

 

[Nightwaves]

As long as it takes

Ah, heck, I've written my share of short stories, but a recent submission clocked in at almost 25K words and has received great reviews. My current project is almost at 17.5K and may be twice that count when done. I also wrote a series of chapters that added up to over 200 pages, which also got great response.

 

[EddieTheMuse]

The chapter I'm working on now is 14,xxx words, probably too long for a chapter. I'm wordy, always have been, one of the reasons I left Lit, that and had a lot going on in my life.

 

[PennameWombat]

Ignoring my 750 word entries, my shortest story is ~1700 words (half a Lit page) and my second shortest ~3100 words. Both are amongst my lowest rated, although the first one has very complimentary comments, but readers who stay silent and rate it aren't so enthused . The second one I'll admit isn't my best work but it was fun to write. Its rating is probably fair

The bulk of my stories fall into either of a cluster around 15,000 words or another around 30-35,000 words (with a few slightly shorter or in between.) My longest single story is ~70,000 words and although it walks the tightrope right now it has the red 'H'. It's in SF&F which seems to not mind long stories if they're written well enough.

My recent Summer Lovin' 2020 entry was ~24,000 words and my Winter Holidays 2020 entry a bit over 30,000 and both are around my highest-rated.

I have some chaptered and serialized stories and aim for 15-20,000 per entry on those.

 

[TxRad]

When I write, I don't care about how long or short the story is until i finish and then it is what it is. Tell the story and let the chips fall where they may. You can't please everyone so you might as well please yourself.

 

[missyunderstanding]

Ask Abe

Abraham Lincoln was once asked: "How long should a man's legs be?" He gave the answer: "Long enough to reach the ground.

Your story should accomplish what you intended to accomplish and then end.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I've had a couple of 4k - 6k stories do nicely recently - the nearest I'll ever get to writing stroke. My longer story cycles typically end up 20k - 40k, which I'll put out in chapters or as a stand-alone, as the mood takes me - most of my stuff over the last three years is all joined up in one way or another anyway - my Floating World.

My longest complete work is 104k words, which I released over fourteen parts. I write them as long as I need to be.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

My average length is 7,200 words, more or less.

My highest-ranking story has 6,400 words and my lowest-ranking one 2,200 words.

My longest story (27,700 words) and my shortest story (just 2,000 words) both have the same (very nice) score.

Having looked at this, I must go along with what everybody else has been saying, which is that there is no link between reader satisfaction and story length. Like the King in Alice in Wonderland said, begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop.

 

[yowser]

I like shorter stories, and am unlikely to be in for the long haul unless it's from an author I like or the quality/concept is intriguing. If there's a lot of voice to the writing, I am more like to be hooked.

I agree completely with this. If it is not the title or description that draws me in, and the criteria outlined above, the piece has to grab me within the first handful of paragraphs or I am done.

I am astonished at the length of some of the offerings here, both pleased and puzzled that readers have that sort of endurance.

 

[RejectReality]

Longer stories score higher through attrition. The majority of people who make it to the voting form enjoyed them. That's true with any story, but there's more opportunities for a reader to have a falling out and exit stage right the longer the story is.

Once you pass 3 Lit pages ( around 11k words ) on a standalone story, people who don't already know your work start to back-click without even trying. The more pages there are, the more people bow out from the numbers. You see that from responses every time this thread comes up. Even people who write long stories won't necessarily read them.

You'll get more eyeballs and ( typically ) votes on 2-3 page stories. You'll usually get a higher but more volatile score on longer stuff.

Chapter stories are a different animal. Anyone who will open a chapter 1 is already inclined to follow a longer story. The number of pages at the bottom is less of a concern for them. Not breaking into a third page per chapter on a multi-chapter story is a net negative with this type of reader. People seem to really hate 1 page chapters.

Still, providing chapters that can be read in a single sitting is easier on the reader, because they can use the chapter breaks as easy bookmarks between reading sessions. It's easier to start back up with chapter 4 than it is to find where you left off in a fifteen page chapter.

The story should be as long as it needs to be, and there are a significant number of readers for any length of story on Lit, as so many have said. Everything else is something to have in the back of your head once it goes live. The more you're prepared for the reader trends, the less chance you'll be upset by a lower score/ anemic view numbers/etc. It should be used as a roadmap to temper your expectations more than a guideline on what to write in the first place.

 

[MColton84]

So I know the response to this question will be subjective but I am wondering with, the “recent” addition of the word count up front on stories, what would be the ideal word count for you to want to read the story? Does the word count “scare” you away from certain stories? Does it just matter what you are looking for at the time?

Would love to hear/read your thoughts if you care to share.

Norrmally I'd say like 8,000 to 16,000 words. I've read as many as 45,000 in a story and as few as 3,500. Honestly, if the story is good and engaging word count doesn't matter to me.

 

[MikeLowrey]

These are awesome. So many different views and opinion without making me feel “dumb” for even asking or flat out saying “this is what you need to do.” Really appreciate that. I still keep the “as long as it needs to be” advice in the back of my head.

Please feel free to keep the opinions rolling in!