Very basic question

[RedIvan64]

Hello
First time on any thread, so be gentle.
My question is what is the average word length of most Literotica stories?
I know some have parts and some have chapters, but for a simple one part story, what is the optimum length?
If the answer is already posted, feel free to redirect me.
TIA

 

[CalBishForNow]

Average!=optimum.

Personally, I think the ideal length is between 5000 and 15000 words, but people will disagree about what the numbers are and how much they matter.

 

[anthrodisiac]

I don't know if there's an optimum length, but average is probably about 2 - 3 Lit pages, each page is ~3500 words, so between 5 - 10k for a one shot. But there are also plenty of readers who enjoy longer stories.

In my opinion, it's usually best to let the story be as long as it's going to be. If it means it's only 2k, that's okay. If it means it's going to be 20k, that's also okay. Don't worry so much about constraining yourself to a word count, just tell the story you want to tell

 

[PennyThompson]

Hello
First time on any thread, so be gentle.
My question is what is the average word length of most Literotica stories?
I know some have parts and some have chapters, but for a simple one part story, what is the optimum length?
If the answer is already posted, feel free to redirect me.
TIA

As long as the story needs to be!

The smallest amount of text that Lit will allow you to publish as a story is 750 words.

(There is a yearly writing challenge specifically about writing 750-word stories, and the consensus is that it's a tricky challenge to write something satisfying at that size.)

One Literotica page is approximately 3,500 words. Most of my stories are between two and four Lit pages long, but plenty of writers will write much longer stories.

Some readers love long stories, some love short stories, some like complex plots and slow burns, some like fast hot strokers.

There's no right or wrong answer, write what feels good to you!

 

[ElectricBlue]

Hello
First time on any thread, so be gentle.
My question is what is the average word length of most Literotica stories?
I know some have parts and some have chapters, but for a simple one part story, what is the optimum length?
If the answer is already posted, feel free to redirect me.
TIA

There's no such thing as an average word length on Lit, but an optimal word length for a chapter is 2 - 4 Lit pages (7k - 14k words).

For a single stand-alone story, I've had good results around 6k - 10k, but also 20k - 30k.

FYI, I've seen single submissions of 240k, hence my opening answer, to think in terms of an "average" story length is a mug's game,

 

[TheIntrepidBoyager]

Mine are typically around 6k-7k. If it is going to continue then I break it into separate published parts.

 

[WaxPhilosophic]

I have the attention span of a juvenile fruit fly. If it's a story longer than say 3 Lit pages, it has to be very compelling for me to even start it. I also tend to write short ones.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Hello
First time on any thread, so be gentle.
My question is what is the average word length of most Literotica stories?
I know some have parts and some have chapters, but for a simple one part story, what is the optimum length?
If the answer is already posted, feel free to redirect me.
TIA

Just like writing itself, there is no formula for success. People may be bored to tears by a 2,000 word story, and on the edge of their seats with a 100,000 word one.

The key is to write well, not to any target length. And writing well can be writing about sexy happenings, or it can involve big emotional arcs with many external events going on. Again, there is no secret sauce.

 

[WittyUserName]

I don't know if there's an optimum length, but average is probably about 2 - 3 Lit pages, each page is ~3500 words, so between 5 - 10k for a one shot. But there are also plenty of readers who enjoy longer stories.

In my opinion, it's usually best to let the story be as long as it's going to be. If it means it's only 2k, that's okay. If it means it's going to be 20k, that's also okay. Don't worry so much about constraining yourself to a word count, just tell the story you want to tell

I don't even stick to 2-3 pages for single chapters. I had a 30+ page one off. A couple, actually. I agree with your second statement. Some will complain if it gets very long, but the story can still do very well.

 

[AG31]

There's a contingent of us who won't read a lit story of more than 4 or 5 lit pages, and there's another contingent who won't read a story that's only 4 or 5 pages. Pick your poison.

 

[DTales]

I don't know what my shortest story is on here, probably Diss Assemble at less than 5K words. I have two serialized novels over of 100K words. My largest single entry is probably 30,000 words with Knock Me Into Next Year of The Long Pull: Hot Streak. Hot Streak probably earns its length a little more, as Knock got a less warm reception, based on the ratings. I think that might get to being too long.

But as it is... if there's story to be told and butts to be spanked, make it as long as you need it to be.

EDIT: What am I thinking? Lock, Croc and Two Smoking Barrels, my first work, is 53K words and that's all in one post.

 

[Britva415]

what is the average word length of most Literotica stories?

What is the average length of most pieces of string?

what is the optimum length?

You haven't said what you want to optimize for. What are the specific goals you have in mind?

 

[TarnishedPenny]

You get the idea and I won’t add anything else except to say, “Good question!” The only stupid question is the one not asked*. Welcome to AH and feel free to ask more, ‘cause we all did at some point.

Oh, and drop by Tex’s** coffee shop sometime.

* EDIT. I really meant to type 'asked'. My cynical fingers snuck back when I wasn't looking and changed it to 'answered'. Shame on them.
** Under new management.

 

[StillStunned]

You get the idea and I won’t add anything else except to say, “Good question!” The only stupid question is the one not answered. Welcome to AH and feel free to ask more, ‘cause we all did at some point.

I always say that too!

Have you joined the Stillthrodisiac mindmeld thing as well now?

 

[Bazzle]

I think if you keep your words shorter you will keep your readers happy.

Don't throw in antidisestablishmentarianism too many times, as a word length it might be a bit long.

 

[Writer61]

I don't have a lot of time for reading (my 'Read Later' list is over 200 currently), and I tend to skip/delay reading anything over 10k words (that's about 4 pages), so I apply the same standard to my own efforts. Longer than that, and I will seek to split into parts.

 

[yano2mch]

My question is what is the average word length of most Literotica stories?

Personally, I think the ideal length is between 5000 and 15000 words, but people will disagree about what the numbers are and how much they matter.

Hmmm... I was reading a epub of 'how to write erotica' and it recommended 7,500 words. Of course those word length counts you're probably looking at 15 pages or so in a typical paperback. That's also a lot of the super-short stories i tend to see when i was converting PDF screencaps to text, and they don't seem nearly long enough. Then again you're getting into a scene or two of smut and no character development or real story, so i guess that's fine. Not like it's an adventure novel.

Honestly a minimum scene/story I'd try to go for would probably be 20 posts (10 for me 10 for replies, though this is in a 1 hour roleplay, preferably 2 hours so it's not rushed), each paragraph in a post being ~8 sentences, each sentence probably ~30 words. That gets just to 5,000 words (each word about 5 characters, so 25k+ text), though at minimum for reading I'd prefer 2,500 words. Many a McStories I've skipped for being too short to even consider.

So yeah 5k-15k does seem a decent length.

If you chop up the classic erotica books of oh say 100-200 pages paperback (taking about 100k in raw text), you'd be looking at ~18k words. Usually good for 6-8 chapters and some minimal plot. With that in mind a lot of the suggestions here are good overall. Though likely you'd be posting 1/4th of that taking you back to 5k words (but 5k per post when it's several of dozens of chapters long can add up to a huge novel).


Personally I'd say not to take too long to get into an initial scene, say take no more than 4-5 pages deep, and probably at least 1 page for setup rather than jumping immediately into smut; And unless it's a romance or slow-burn or non-erotic, try not to leave someone with blue balls with tons of buildup and no payoff.

 

[TheLobster]

I think if you keep your words shorter you will keep your readers happy.

Don't throw in antidisestablishmentarianism too many times, as a word length it might be a bit long.

What about supercalifragilisticexpialidocious?

 

[RedIvan64]

Stillthrodisiac mindmeld thing

I'm not sure what that is

 

[StillStunned]

I'm not sure what that is

Neither are we. We only know that @anthrodisiac and I seem to have a single brain, which we each get to use about half the time.

 

[anthrodisiac]

I'm not sure what that is

StillStunned and I have very similar views on writing and other things, we're basically the same person when it comes to writing philosophies, and in some other areas as well.

He's also been hogging the brain the last few days

 

[Writer61]

My preference for 3-4-page stories is, in part, because I will probably read them in one go. With anything longer, unless it has clear breaks, finding one's place is a pain.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

Hello
First time on any thread, so be gentle.
My question is what is the average word length of most Literotica stories?
I know some have parts and some have chapters, but for a simple one part story, what is the optimum length?
If the answer is already posted, feel free to redirect me.
TIA

My standard advice is:

1. Finish the story completely before worrying about chapter breaks, length, or category. Things will be far clearer and more comprehensible when the entire story is visible before you.
2. Section breaks and chapter breaks are not synonymous. Chapter breaks typically come after a resolution or just prior to a new conflict. Section breaks are typically scene or character POV changes.
3. Write with purpose in mind, not targets. Targets can be moved. The purpose of your story should be rooted in concrete.
4. Know your audience. The tolerance for story length by readers will vary by several factors, but the category of the story can be an indicator. Readers who venture into the Novels/Novellas category will typically have a much higher tolerance for longer stories, in whole or in parts. Readers in categories targeting specific kinks might be more impatient. Check out the top stories in your desired category to see what those readers prefer.
5. Feel free to check out my story list. Not to read any of them, but to see how stories over 170K and 81 Lit pages, and stories barely over 1K, and everything in between by the same author can all be received by the right audience.