Hi there -- long time reader, fairly new writer, first time forum-poster. I have an idea for a fairly long and intricate story. I've mapped out the chapters, where there are options, how to build the chapter links to tie different threads back together. I have a full outline, and I've begun writing the actual content. My question is -- release it all at once when it's done, or release a couple chapters at a time? Do readers care about this? Does the site? Will it impact my follows and likes (which I don't really care that much about). Just curious if there are standards, preferences, expectations, or even just personal opinions.
The readers are a mixed bag, some will prefer a slow drip and some will get intimidated if there's a new story with 45 chapters to read. There's no single answer. If you're seeking reader engagement though, A large chapter dump will limit that. Your story will fall off the front page pretty quickly on busy days and people just won't see it. If you are looking for feedback and engagement, parceling it out is better, just because of the site mechanics. Also, allowing you to see how your plot/characters are landing might inspire a new direction.
Good question. I know sometimes when I read a story, I'm eager to read the whole thing. I want to know how it ends. Away from this site, I don't buy regular books chapter-by-chapter.
Its early where I am and my brain has the dumb, ok? Lol You might want to tell a complete story in one shot, perhaps. Some writers don't care about feedback at all, they write it, post it, and move on to the next project without looking back. That's not a criticism btw
I trickle. I want my stories on the front page as often as possible, as Dissonant Soundtrack also alluded to.
I think this is the best strategy for growing your audience. If you've got the material, pick a release schedule and stick at it. (one per night or every other night for example).
This is super helpful. Thanks for the feedback. I launched part of the story today, and I'll follow with more over the next few weeks. I'm not in a place for a strict schedule, but I'll deliver what I can, when I can.
I'll be honest, I have one philosophy: Give the readers something at least. But I don't think this strategy works for anyone, not unless they're like me and wonder if they'll have the motivation to finish a story, or write another chapter. Basically, however, each chapter should have a beginning or continuation, and an end. That way, at least someone's satisfied at the end of the day, and any loose ends are immediately cut for when motivation, inspiration, imagination, and/or time disappears.
Personally, I think spacing out the published chapters is a good idea, I find it kinder to the readers because it offers them an opportunity to discover the story and get round to thinking about clicking on it, while also offering more opportunity to the author to receive feedback through views likes and if they are very lucky, comments. I think it's a good idea to have a healthy stockpile of ready chapters, or at least outlines for chapters because it can help develop an ending for the story, help with the pacing and provide a goal to work towards, It might prevent the author from becoming overly sidetracked by side branches in their pursuit of a specific readers niche enthusiasm (love these readers, they actually leave comments and help to go out of the comfort zone!) while still offering them the time to write side branches if inspiration strikes. And I think the biggest benefit is that if the reader feedback is poor, or non-existent it has less influence on the author because they can just edit and post the next chapter that's waiting to be published, while if they just have a vague outline in their head it has the potential to kill the story. So basically It's probably a good practice to have most of your story outlined and written when you start publishing, but publishing slowly can give you the benefit of publishing as you go which is, it gives you the opportunity to improve, develop and diversify your story as you go while amassing a following and having an end in sight. This is a good point. Although might be a different topic than the release schedule. But I think it's mainly relevant for well-written stories that have plot and where you as the author want your readers to care about the story and the characters. Although it's a strategy on its own to write short barely cliffhanger chapters of a few hundred words that allude to the juice parts being in the next chapter and the reader just has to click and click and click are pulled along in the pursuit of the climax. It leads to more views, maybe more likes but you may not have readers coming back once they've gotten what they wanted. I personally find the short chapter variety more easily digested, and I'm more likely to click through a few chapters before making a decision on whether I will read it or not thus ultimately spending more time on them and giving them more of a chance. But it can get on my nerves after a while if it gets overly ridiculous. I also personally find that making every decision for the protagonist alienates me from the story, I'd much rather make decisions on things that have a bigger influence on the direction of the story in one go... if the story is indeed what I'm after. ; ] But now I'm thoroughly sidetracked, XD
A fairly regular stream of chapters is best, as other people have said. It's not even about someone clicking on the intro and then looking at the story map (although some do just that) but it's about getting some potential exposure regularly by being on the recently updated list. Some readers check every day, many check now and then. If I had a lot of content saved up I'd post some during the day and then late at night two days later. Ignore Friday's as it seems like traffic is just lower in general on a Friday, but putting up a chapter Saturday and Sunday helps. Some readers will be slightly interested in your story but after they see it a couple of times on the front page they'll give it a try. Good luck!
I'd agree with the trickle theory. Releasing the chapters one by one (or a few at a time if they are short and you have lots written) gives you more exposure on the front page of the site, and thus you will attract more readers.
You posted this a month ago, and have since put up 600(!) chapters and been made Story of the Week. Good grief, we should be coming to you for advice. What a start!
Haha, I know ... I think I got kind of carried away! I kind of got hooked on my story and my central characters, and I just kept going. I just hope folks are enjoying it. That's the point, right?
Strive to write at least one chapter a day. Release when you reach a narrative stopping point if you want max Likes. (People read to the end, get a satisfying conclusion, and click Like.) Release every day if you want to reach as many new readers as possible (More releases mean more trips to the Front Page.) You can farm extra views from your existing fans by making them go back and re-read some older chapters to refresh their memory. (But I'd be surprised if this is stronger than the Front Page boost to New Fans.) Whether by luck or by good incentive design when creating this site, these min-maxing strategies collectively boil down to "write as much as you can and publish as often as you can while telling the most satisfying story that you can. Source
