Is Your Chapter Length Affecting Your Novel’s Pacing?

One of the most powerful tools at your disposal when it comes to pacing is also one of the most fundamental building blocks of writing a novel: the humble chapter. Chapters are what move your story forward–they contain the events of the story’s plot as well as the emotional charge of the characters. They are where the action happens, and you can use them to craft a compelling narrative that readers won’t be able to turn away from. In this article, we’re going to look at one particular aspect–chapter length–that you can use to control your story’s pacing.

While there is no across-the-board standard for how long a chapter should be (this will vary according to the story’s age level, genre, and intent) shorter chapters can speed the pace of a novel and longer chapters can slow it down. But while it may seem tempting to simply make all of your chapters short chapters, this is like asking the reader to maintain a breakneck sprint throughout the entire duration of the book–which can be both stressful and tiring! Instead, you want to use chapter length strategically.

Longer chapters (approximately 12-25 pages) can be useful when you’re looking to draw the reader in, such as in the first act or else after the events of the larger plot points (midpoint, dark night), when you’re re-setting the board and/or re-establishing the rules of the game. You’ll want to spend time allowing the reader to get to know the character and their state of mind, or adjust to new rules and circumstances. They often contain more than one scene, and may include a number of them. While these chapters are slower, they allow the reader to settle in and get comfortable in your story’s world–which is crucial for making them want to stay there.

Shorter chapters (approximately 4-7 pages), on the other hand, can be used to pick up the pace. They tend to be more active with a direct and obvious action-and-consequence sequence. Sometimes, they contain just a single scene. These are best used for action scenes leading up to a point of climax, be it the end of act one, the midpoint, the dark night of the soul, or the story’s grand finale. 

Medium-sized chapters (approximately 8-12 pages) are effective when transitioning between shorter chapters and longer ones, or when building towards those shorter, more impactful scenes that occur at grand climactic moments. They help provide variety and keep the flow of your story feeling natural and not too wandering or staccato.

Most novels will require a blend of short, medium, and long chapters to reel readers in, keep the pace moving, and hold their interest for the duration. Personally, I tend to gravitate to medium or longish chapters, so lately I’ve been keeping this information in mind! What about you–do you have thoughts on how best to use chapter length in fiction?