A little note about multi-part stories.

Quote by WSCLG

Kiera, there are always guidelines that we like to see adhered to. Does that mean if the word count does not meet said guideline we reject it? By all means, no. If the story is good enough to stand alone, be it part of a multi-part series (what this thread is about) or a single story, then we can waive the guideline and publish the story. When it gets too far outside the guidelines, that's when we suggest the author make corrections.

Ahh - time, the elusive arbiter of our being able to enjoy life and do as we please. If we all had the time, then ....... well, then we would.

Quote by DirtyMindedMom
Is there a technical reason for the 10,000 word maximum? I realize there has to be an upper limit, but why only 10k?

I attempted to submit the first "chapter" of a three part story, but it got returned because it was 13k words. I wasn't aware of this word limit, especially since I've had stories published here previously that were over 10k words without it being an issue. The solution suggesting that I break it into smaller parts doesn't really work for me. The whole piece was constructed with an intentional structure. If I break it into two parts, the first part will be all mounting action with no climax. This will result in justifiably lower ratings and a consequent loss of readers both for this first part and subsequent parts. Meanwhile, the second part will be all climax, which will be just as unsatisfying for the reader. Both parts will be out of balance and the quality of the story will be lessened, giving readers a poorer experience as a result.

Many of the comments in this thread declare personal preference for shorter, longer, or mediumer length stories. There are people who never read long stories, but at the same time there are people who only want to read long stories. The limits shouldn't be evaluated in terms of subjective preferences. In light of this, the 10k limit feels somewhat arbitrary in that it doesn't function to serve the author or the reader, but rather a seemingly abstract guideline.

Quote by Annamagique


Why are you concerned about lower reader figures. Isn't it better to know that the readers who stay to the end are really enjoying your work and not just reading because of the sex?

Quote by DirtyMindedMom
Is there a technical reason for the 10,000 word maximum? I realize there has to be an upper limit, but why only 10k?

Quote by DirtyMindedMom
Is there a technical reason for the 10,000 word maximum? I realize there has to be an upper limit, but why only 10k?

Quote by Liz


Because every story submission is read by a moderator prior to approval. 10k words is a long story, and we have to draw the line somewhere.

It is rare that someone writes a story over 10k words where there is no suitable point in the narrative to break it into a second section or chapter.

Quote by clum


In addition to what Liz said, this is a place for people to post short stories, mainly. At 10000, it's already stopped being short, hasn't it?

Quote by DirtyMindedMom
Ah, okay - this is what I suspected. It's for the convenience of the moderators, not for the benefit of the readers or authors. Thanks for acknowledging that. ;)

Quote by Wikipedia
A classic definition of a short story is that one should be able to read it in one sitting... In contemporary usage, the term short story most often refers to a work of fiction no shorter than 1,000 and no longer than 20,000 words.

Quote by DirtyMindedMom


Perhaps in your opinion. But, technically, no.

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short_story

Determining what exactly separates a short story from longer fictional formats is problematic. A classic definition of a short story is that one should be able to read it in one sitting, a point most notably made in Edgar Allan Poe's essay "Thomas Le Moineau (Le Moile)" (1846). Interpreting this standard nowadays is problematic, since the expected length of "one sitting" may now be briefer than it was in Poe's era. Other definitions place the maximum word count of the short story at anywhere from 1,000 to 4,000. In contemporary usage, the term short story most often refers to a work of fiction no shorter than 1,000 and no longer than 20,000 words. Stories of fewer than 1,000 words are sometimes referred to as "short short stories", or "flash fiction."

Quote by DirtyMindedMom


Ah, okay - this is what I suspected. It's for the convenience of the moderators, not for the benefit of the readers or authors. Thanks for acknowledging that. ;)

Quote by DirtyMindedMom


I'm concerned because I want as many people as possible to read what I write (I know, I'm weird like that). There's no chance they'll enjoy it if they don't read it! I don't want a potential reader to give my story a skip because it has an artificially low rating (or because it's visibility is compromised). My point being that readers are less likely to enjoy my work and stay to the end if it's artificially broken up in spots that serve an arbitrary word limit rather than the flow of the story.

My longest story consists of 9,931 words. Before I tore into it, it was well over 12,000. Even with its edits, I was still accused of over-indulgence in my scene creation and character development.

In general, it is my shorter stories that generate the votes and re-reads. Perhaps I'm just better at writing shorter stories. Or maybe I'm crap at longer ones. Either way, I chose to publish on Lush, and agree to fit into the guidelines, rules, policies and preferences of the site, regardless of how I prefer to write my stories.

One of the things I've learned here is having control over my words (only in stories, not in forums), and the power less or more words can have. There are other places to publish one's stories that have no boundaries, or more "acceptable" boundaries, but Lush's standards are a great way to gain control over one's writing skills. If it doesn't fit the guideline format, have you the skill to make it so? Harsh editing can be a great thing.

However, if you're so great a writer that you mustn't deign to compromise and find natural breaks in your stories (as is your right), then you ought to properly publish and sell the whole thing for your readers to wank over all at once. If you're a great writer, then pubLushed story readers will click the link for when it gets to the sex. They'll be absolutely gagging for that next installment with all the promise of juices and squelching, and you won't need to worry.

Being restricted to 10,000 words per submission here, I re-submitted my first publishing here as Intro - Chapter 2 which basically takes the reader through the background before the main character starts interacting with other women, some of whom become future wives of his, which happens in later chapters that will be part of additional submissions due to word length and content.

Also, I have started using the following template to create clearly delineated plots to each chapter in my novel. If I'm unable to realistically fill all the sections with something meaningful, it might mean that I have too many chapters.

Characters:

Location:

Setting:

Crucible:

Goal:

Stakes:

Motivation:

Music:

Resistance:

Tension:

Suspense:

Climax:

Resolution:.