How long do oyu think a story should be before just making it two parts?
Should you split it in two to make it easier for the reader?
Leave it on a cliff hanger? How to leave the first part...
Opinions? Thoughts?
"Do you want to live to work or work to live"
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing"
"Always hold you head up high, never come off weak"
Michael
I recently wrote my first two parter, in hindsight I'm not sure that it needed it really. I'm not sure that part one left you hanging on for more, and part two was where all of the passion was.
Ah well! A lesson learned I think.
It came up in one of the threads DirtyMartini linked, but it bears repeating:
DO NOT start a multi-part story unless you intend to finish it.
I would actually go a little further. DO NOT post part 1 until you have written the whole thing. Lush lets you keep unpublished drafts. You don't need to submit them until they're ready. This also give you the ability to make changes to the earlier parts, for example, to maintain continuity.
Some more things I learned:
1. You can publish as many stories as you like at a time, but they will only hit the front page once per day. This does not, however, mean they are unavailable. Post links in your profile blog so your followers can get a jump on reading them. Link to part 2 from the end of part 1 so people can keep reading. The benefit here is that when the subsequent parts DO show up on the front page, they'll already have some views and votes.
2. Do not submit more than one story part for review at one time. The review system is not a queue. The reviewers do not necessarily review stories in order. If you submit multiple stories for review at the same time, then if they're reviewed in the wrong order, then the "wrong" one will wait 24 hours for the "right" one before hitting the front page. This is awkward. Submit part 1, wait for it to be approved, then submit part 2, wait for it, etc.
long stories tend to put readers off because most lush readers are looking for fast food porn. They are not exactly 5 course diners sooooo as writers, you gotta look after the demand. I break my stories up into shorter parts so readers can view them separately if they want, which boost readership. 