Who Really Needs Chapters Anyway?

Penelopen

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Hey all,
I am having a hard time wanting to break my novel into chapters? My novel is YA. It's appx 30000 and finished. I was going back through for another edit (something it needs severly), and it occurred to me: if the work is fast-paced, and doesn't break much through the story would I need chapters?
Is this a dumb question? Help?
 

cornflake

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Hey all,
I am having a hard time wanting to break my novel into chapters? My novel is YA. It's appx 30000 and finished. I was going back through for another edit (something it needs severly), and it occurred to me: if the work is fast-paced, and doesn't break much through the story would I need chapters?
Is this a dumb question? Help?

That seems sort of akin to asking why people use paragraph breaks. I can't quite imagine a story with no breaks or scenes that end. However, it's not like it's a requirement. Some of this depends on what you plan on doing, self-publishing (your decision, though people tend to expect chapters) or seeking a trade deal (as people tend to expect them, you may have someone request them, or find it odd reading). Given the wordcount, you don't have a novel, you've got a novella, your trade options will be more limited.
 
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DarienW

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Have to agree with Cornflake. It is too short, and the only book i read with no chapters was a big chunk of Dolores Claiborne by Stephan King. He's the one, and many people loved it, but I felt like it was an endless blathering at me. I liked the movie better. (I know, blasphemy!)

Check out chapter hooks, as we writers like to end on a moment that makes people want to read on. If you're looking for where to insert them, maybe that will help, and it can be one continuous scene broken up too.

Hope anything helps, and welcome to AW!

:welcome:
 

Ari Meermans

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My stock answer to questions like yours: every decision must be in service to the story. If your story is best told without chapter breaks, it's best told without chapter breaks. There are many books out there without chapter breaks.

That being said, chapter breaks are really for the benefit of your poor reader. We readers have been conditioned to expect a major story shift at a chapter break. Chapter breaks signal such things as location changes, POV changes, character/storyline shifts, significant time changes, and so on. Again, though, whatever decision you make must be in service to the story.

Also, I agree 30,000 words isn't a novel. just sayin'
 

Bacchus

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Your work, do it your way although, as has been mentioned, there are good reasons why chapters are used to help the reader (and, in my case, the writer...)

I'll give you a quote from Terry Pratchett though

Life doesn't happen in chapters — at least, not regular ones. Nor do movies. Homer didn't write in chapters. I can see what their purpose is in children's books ("I'll read to the end of the chapter, and then you must go to sleep") but I'm blessed if I know what function they serve in books for adults


(and, yeah, as above, 30k words is a bit long for Chapter 1 and a bit short for a novel :) )
 

CoffeeBeans

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I struggle with breaking things up into chapters (and my MSes are much longer LOL) because I don't think in chapters. I give my best betas free rein to tell me where I should move my penciled in chapter breaks.

Do you have scenes/parts/any other units that break up the work? As others have said, 30K doesn't make a novel, but at that length you could probably make every scene a chapter and not end up with a million chapters...
 

Beginning Write

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Imagine reading a 30k word document for work without any breaks. How far did you get before your imaginary eyes glazed over? Us writers love to believe our writing is so gripping that it will grab hold and never let go of a reader's attention, but unfortunately people need breaks no matter how good the story (and in fact, if it really is that emotionally gripping, the story will need chapter breaks to allow the reader to pause for a moment and digest all the goodness they just read :) ). If you really want a fast-paced, shorter novel I would look at Captain Underpants as a guide. Yes it may be a silly comparison but a valid one. Those novels are short (averaging 150 or so pages) but still incorporating plenty of chapters to allow the reader to be able to breakdown the non-stop humor, fun, action.

Long story short, yes you need chapters and in fact they will make your writing even better ESPECIALLY for shorter works :)
 

Polenth

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Never assume that a reader will want to read your whole book in one go. It's not about the pace of the story. It's about the length of a story. 30K may not be a novel, but it's still a big chunk without any breaks.
 

Cindyt

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Right off the bat 30K words is more than a novella and less than a book.

As has been said, it's your MS, do what you want with it, but I wouldn't read a book that didn't have breaks in it. The first chapter of Savage Ecstasy by Janelle Taylor is 90 pages long. It slowed the pace and I can't image reading 30k words of the same.

You don't have to break it into chapters as in Chapter 1. James Michener's Centennial incorporates titles--1. The Commission, 2. The Land, and so on.

I use parts broken into chapters broken into sections because I'm anal.;)
 
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Lawless

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I have never seen a book without chapter breaks, so this question sounds like do I prefer dogs who can breathe underwater or dogs who can't. I have no idea.

In another writers' forum, one user recently wrote that chapter breaks are a welcome excuse to take a break from reading. I second that.

Primarily I think it's the writer's choice. It's your story. You ask "who really needs chapters?" I can think of no one.
 

Tocotin

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I have read a 40,000-word novel which had no chapter breaks and consisted of two sentences. The second sentence had only 4 words.

It was a good novel. (I liked it and read it twice.) It was, however, a literary one, written by an established, well-known writer, and published in 1960, so quite long ago.

Conclusion: do whatever you think is necessary for your novel, and see if it works.
 

Jan74

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I like chapters, so I can't imagine not having chapters or some sort of break in the flow. Many books don't label a break as a chapter, sometimes it's a date, or a change in point of view, or even a subtitle. There is a tonne of choice in how you want to divide it up, if you chose to. I'm an anti-rule person so I would never say "you have to have chapters". You have to decide what feels right for your story and go from there. I also think 30,000 is a fine word count for YA(for any genre) I love a short story/novella.

The old man and the sea had a word count of less than 30,000 :)
 

Toothpaste

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To take this in a slightly different direction:

1. You say your work is fast paced. Here's something strange but fascinating: chapters actually help speed up the pace. Ever had that feeling as a reader of "Just one more chapter?" Well when we know the end of the chapter is in sight we kind of read almost faster, getting there, and then. . . well . . . then we want to read the next one. Because, it's not that long and we're so into the story and want to keep reading. Want to really take advantage of the fast pacing affect of chapters? Go full Dan Brown and end them on cliffhangers. That makes people want to turn the pages even more (but don't do it every chapter because then it can get tedious).

No breaks, no chapters, makes a book feel longer. It becomes a marathon as opposed to a series of manageable sprints. People think more about "When do I get to stop reading thing" as opposed to "I just want to keep going a bit longer".


2. You might not care about this, but it is something I do personally. Reluctant readers need chapter breaks. I myself am a reluctant reader and can speak from experience. A chapter gives the reluctant reader a sense of accomplishment. It makes the task of reading seem less daunting. Less overwhelming. Now no writer is obligated to write for the reluctant reader, but it's always a nice added bonus when a writer does take us into consideration, especially when it comes to younger readers.


All this said, if you truly feel like your work needs no chapter breaks then that can work too. But make sure you make an informed decision. Understand the benefits of chapters, and also the challenges you face in selling a work that doesn't have them. If you are sure no chapters is what suits your story best, then go for it, but make choices based on knowledge not ignorance.
 
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Cindyt

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I like chapters, so I can't imagine not having chapters or some sort of break in the flow. Many books don't label a break as a chapter, sometimes it's a date, or a change in point of view, or even a subtitle. There is a tonne of choice in how you want to divide it up, if you chose to. I'm an anti-rule person so I would never say "you have to have chapters". You have to decide what feels right for your story and go from there. I also think 30,000 is a fine word count for YA(for any genre) I love a short story/novella.

The old man and the sea had a word count of less than 30,000 :)

It was a longish novella.
 

sempersomnium

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I agree with everyone else. When I read a book, I want to feel like I can get X amount read in an evening, or have a place I know I can stop and come back to later on. If there are no chapters, for me personally, the reading will feel like a task to complete rather than an enjoyment.
 

MaryLennox

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To take this in a slightly different direction:

1. You say your work is fast paced. Here's something strange but fascinating: chapters actually help speed up the pace. Ever had that feeling as a reader of "Just one more chapter?" Well when we know the end of the chapter is in sight we kind of read almost faster, getting there, and then. . . well . . . then we want to read the next one. Because, it's not that long and we're so into the story and want to keep reading. Want to really take advantage of the fast pacing affect of chapters? Go full Dan Brown and end them on cliffhangers. That makes people want to turn the pages even more (but don't do it every chapter because then it can get tedious).

No breaks, no chapters, makes a book feel longer. It becomes a marathon as opposed to a series of manageable sprints. People think more about "When do I get to stop reading thing" as opposed to "I just want to keep going a bit longer".

This is definitely me. I often say I'm just going to read into the end of this chapter...and then something happens and I need to keep going. It think chapters definitely keep the reader engaged.

My most recent book that was published was for 11-14 year old reluctant readers and the editor insisted on having inticing chapter endings - ending on a some sort of a hook. It doesn't have to be a huge cliffhanger every single chapter (because that would be tedious), but something.

That being said, 30,000 words is short. Have you ever considered doing Parts? Most books with parts have chapters within each part, but I feel with a 30,000 word novella, chapter-less parts could work. You could only have two or three, or whatever ends up feeling right.
 

Laer Carroll

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If you do your job right your readers will be so caught up in your story a chapter break is just a blip on their awareness.

Scenes are the major dramatic element, not chapters. They have a definite start and stop point in time and space. Chapters are more useful for us, as containers for the scenes we write. We can use them to organize our thoughts.

For instance. In a book I just completed I packaged a teenager's summer into two chapters. She spent half the summer with her mother, the other half with her father. Each chapter was a little over or under 5000 words. Each contained about a dozen scenes, some short, some long. So each chapter let me organize my thinking into Time with Her Dad and Time with Her Mom.

Penelopen, the solution to your problem is to go through and mark where each of your scenes end. Put a between-paragraph marker of *** or ~ or the copy editor mark # to indicate a blank line.

Then see if several consecutive scenes are part of some large dramatic sequence. A chase sequence. A school dance sequence. A falling in love or out of it sequence. The end of the last scene of a sequence is where you end a chapter.

The next part of your task is to look at the several chapters/sequences. Do they make a story arc which has missing sequences needed to more fully develop the three major parts of every story: character, settings, and plot? Because the other posters are right: you have maybe half a story of 60K words. That is a good length for a debut authors first book, especially in young adult.
 

Debbie V

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If you do your job right your readers will be so caught up in your story a chapter break is just a blip on their awareness.

Scenes are the major dramatic element, not chapters. They have a definite start and stop point in time and space. Chapters are more useful for us, as containers for the scenes we write. We can use them to organize our thoughts.

For instance. In a book I just completed I packaged a teenager's summer into two chapters. She spent half the summer with her mother, the other half with her father. Each chapter was a little over or under 5000 words. Each contained about a dozen scenes, some short, some long. So each chapter let me organize my thinking into Time with Her Dad and Time with Her Mom.

Penelopen, the solution to your problem is to go through and mark where each of your scenes end. Put a between-paragraph marker of *** or ~ or the copy editor mark # to indicate a blank line.

Then see if several consecutive scenes are part of some large dramatic sequence. A chase sequence. A school dance sequence. A falling in love or out of it sequence. The end of the last scene of a sequence is where you end a chapter.

The next part of your task is to look at the several chapters/sequences. Do they make a story arc which has missing sequences needed to more fully develop the three major parts of every story: character, settings, and plot? Because the other posters are right: you have maybe half a story of 60K words. That is a good length for a debut authors first book, especially in young adult.

Adding to this brilliant post: sometimes a chapter has a theme to connect the scenes and not a true sequence of events.

Think very carefully about your ideal reader. Write a description of that person. Does that person need breaks?

30,000 might fly as a short Middle Grade, but not as a YA. It could be it needs to be cut down to short story length and not filled in to create a YA. Try what Laer suggests. Also, consider posting in Share Your Work once your post count is high enough.