How many people read a later chapter in a story, without reading earlier chapters?

[GrantBricksly]

I don't, but based on what I see from the numbers, I think a lot more people do this than logic would suggest. But it's possible that it is accounted for in part by repeat readers, as Melissa suggests.

For example, I've noticed that the last chapter of a series tends to have more views then the next to last chapter. The only explanation I have for that is that since the last chapter is likely to be the "climax" of the story, readers are more inclined to go back to it repeatedly than to the other chapters.

I definitely had not thought of that, or as others had suggested, checking to "see if it is finished"

The clicking on it, and using it to navigate back to chapter 1 thing is a weird one for me...If the story caught my eye...I just click on the person's name to go to their profile/works page, and find chapter 1 there. I have never once clicked a "chapter 36" if I've not read the 35 previous chapters...

 

[MelissaBaby]

I'm wondering if there is another factor that hasn't been mentioned. Isn't it likely that some readers may find reading a particular scene so...gratifying... that they return multiple times for repeat...gratification?

 

[GrantBricksly]

I'm wondering if there is another factor that hasn't been mentioned. Isn't it likely that some readers may find reading a particular scene so...gratifying... that they return multiple times for repeat...gratification?

I think that is kinda of like what @SimonDoom was saying, where people kept going back to the final chapter because the "climax" of the story was so good.

Which yea, I had not thought about before you guys mentioned it.

And I have to say, I get that. I was particularly proud of the sex scene in Chapter 7...I think it may be one of the best ones I've ever written....AND it is how the chapter starts....so it just starts out great...(again, just my opinion...and I am obviously biased..lol)

 

[Voyeurkenneth]

@GrantBricksly Looking at your Ch. 7, the Short Description doesn't necessarily seem more alluring than the previous entries, so that might not be it. In terms of day of publish, 8/8 is a Friday; you could theorize you encountered more clicks from the weekend readers.

As to your question, I personally never click on a later chapter to READ. But if the title and short description sounds interesting enough to me, I might click on the first chapter to sample if it's something I'd like to invest in.

 

[Britva415]

If you publish your story in multiple categories

Are you talking about the separate chapters?

 

[GrantBricksly]

Are you talking about the separate chapters?

Yes, that is what they are talking about. Some people, (not me) have chosen to do that.

I HAVE written stories that were connected (same characters, same universe, even chronologically in order) and put them into a "series" and then put separate stories in different categories based on their content. But those are not chapters.

This story, the one in question, is chapters, and regardless of individual content, I have chosen to keep all of them in the same category.

 

[DHerbert]

Views are just clicks on the story. When your chapter 7 pops up on various lists, people may click on it, then go to the end to find the link to the whole series and use that to jump chapter 1.

These wouldn't be "reads" in any reasonable sense, but they do appear as views in the stats.

Thanks - that explains something I've also wondered about!

 

[Alice_Angel]

I was going to call you a monster for doing such a thing, but then I actually read the post and some of the responses and yeah that stuff makes sense. I've absolutely had stories come up with a chapter that wasn't the first and I clicked, scrolled to the end and went back to the beginning, or pulled up a particular chapter multiple times. So you can't always trust the numbers

 

[MrStill]

I've made repeat visits to some longer chapters in a series that I am into to pick up from where I got up to last time. Particularly where a story has had chapters running 3 Lit pages or so then I find a new chapter with, say, 7 pages.

I've noticed bumps in clicks when I've done that with my series, too. So maybe that's a thing.

 

[Blake_Palafox]

I often read later chapters if the description appeals to me or if the chapter is in one of my preferred genres.

 

[Blake_Palafox]

I honestly enjoy the feeling of trying to figure out what is going on.