MESSAGE BOARD TOPIC #44

[Comicality]

You know, when I first started reading Nifty years ago, I kinda just went down the list, one after the other. And later, I only read the stories that caught my eye with their title or something. After reading some really bad ones, you begin to get kinda picky, you know? But, there are sometimes when I actually look to see the 'length' of a certain story before I dive into it. And I'm sure that there are a lot of folks that do the same. The question this week is...

 

=Does the actual story length cause you to read or 'not read' a certain story when you see it?=

 

How do you go about looking at a story when you know the length ahead of time? If it's really short, do you write it off as a quickie? As though it couldn't have much substance to it in such a short space? If it's too long, to you tend to skip it? Like, maybe that's too involving and too drawn out for you to really get into at that moment? What do you guys think is an 'appropiate' length for a story, in your opinion? OR....does it matter at all? Maybe it's just the content and how it is displayed in the space given, that makes all the difference.

 

We're talking about 'length' here folks! And NOT in a dirty way! ::Grin::

 

The board is open!

[Myr]

When I'm looking at Nifty stories, I tend to eyeball chapter length. If the chapters are under about 15K and there aren't many or if there are a ton of short chapters (under 10k), then I usually write off the story.

 

On FanFiction, I'm even more tough. I won't even look at a story that is not at least 10,000 words long.

 

I tend to follow the same format when looking for stories for the Story Archive. If it's not very long, it doesn't generally land on the list to even look at, let alone include.

[GoThica]

Yeah I have a similar system. I don't look at any single file on nifty (link that isnt to a Dir), and if I look in the Dir and find that the chapters are extremely short, then I write it off. On Fanfiction.net I use 20k+ word filter in the search function.

Edited April 4, 2005 by GoThica

[Whatsifsowhatsit2]

Cool whatsit, err subject, or ehm... well... discussion thingy

 

Eh yeah well although I sometimes go and find a story that is short (even on nifty) if I don't have a lot of time or dont feel like getting into a long story too deeply, but usually I want stories to be as long as possible. Including my own, unless it's a stupid short rant-thingy, or... wait that's the first time I used that word... lemme go check...

 

See, good thing I checked, it says here rant is something like a violent or extravagant speech or writing...

 

I meant as in a thing that just pops inside your head, speaking nonsense, I know there is a word for it...

 

Oh... sorry this is such a weird post ::giggles::

 

Right, where was I... so unless it's something like ehm oh yeah that story I posted earlier, "Last Letter to Isi", you know a story that's meant to be short, if I actually have a story in my head with a plot and everything, I always want it to be as long as possible, so I tend to throw in a lot of details... always afraid this might bore readers by the way...

 

Also when I'm reading a story I like, I never want it to end, and I hate open endings, if I wanted to fill in the ending of a story myself I would've written it myself For example GFD, I never wanted you to cut anything out it Comsie, I was upset when I heard whole characters wouldn't show up... but well anyway if you have to do that because of time difficulties, that's fine of course

 

I'll stop my not-rant-but-other-word thingy now byez

[reapersharvest]

I'm not realy a fan of quickies, Nifty is my only source of gay literature (ie, something I can really relate to), so I don't want to feel unproductive with the time I spend there. When I'm scrolling down Nifty I check the file size for "Dir" and go to the chapter list because what I want is an actual story. Something longer makes me feel like I can get involved more.

 

 

PS. Nice post Whatsifsowhatsit2, the terms you are looking for are "thread" and "ramble"

[Ender]

When looking for a new story to read, I generally look for something looooong. 300k+ is good, 1Mb+ is better I read very quickly, and I hate having to wait for another chapter. It's for that reason I also prefer graphic novels to comic books, but I digress. There's also something about story size that speaks to an author's dedication. That's not saying I don't read short stories by good authors though.

[Whatsifsowhatsit2]

PS.  Nice post Whatsifsowhatsit2, the terms you are looking for are "thread" and "ramble"

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Hehe... thanks yup, that's them alright

[ysd]

I feel that with 'quickies' there is a constant barrier between you and getting into the story. There's a lack of detail, a lack of character building and - usually - an overemphasis on the sex. I find it difficult to truly get involved with and enjoy a story that doesn't really have the content to sustain my interest.

 

That said, if I'm looking for a a 'quickie' - for whatever reason *cough* - then the last thing you want to do is trawl through a huge amount of 'scene setting' text. So I guess it sorta works both ways.

 

There's also something about story size that speaks to an author's dedication.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I agree with your comment Ender. I feel that if someone has taken a few hours - or more - of their time to write something of a larger volume then it shows a commitment to their characters that bodes well for what I'm about to read.

 

There's also the sheer fact that the bigger the size of the story the greater the number of words and so the greater detail, the greater depth to lose yourself in.

 

Personally I feel that there's a length on a single post that just goes too far. I prefer long stories to be broken down into chapters of around five to six thousand words. That gives me - as a reader - a natural break in the text to go get a drink or go to the bathoom without feeling like I'm leaving 'midway through' as it were.

 

I also find it a lot easier to write in that structure. I write and just let it flow and if what's coming out is too long I impose breaks in order to break it down. The longest I would allow a stand alone story to get before turning into a two or three parter would be at the eight thousand word mark. Anymore than that and I would feel that it was too long and needed chapterising.

[Ashken]

First of all, let me state that I do agree with many of the comments about story length. I would like to add a bit of defense for the other side though.

 

One of the great literary forms is that of the short story. When a short story is written every word has to be considered essential. There can be no room for the struggle to get it right. I am reminded of the "Star Wars' saga. The first movie was a masterpiece (even though none of them could act their way out of a paper bag.) Go through the movie and try to find a scene that can be cut and still leave the story intact. On the other extreme go to some of the later Star Wars movies--they are all about fluff and special effects and selling games....which is why they bombed so badly.

 

A good short story is just like that and I love it when I come across one. You are right, however, when you say that a short story is usually an exercise by some uncommitted writer too lazy to do anythign more than needed to get their name on a listing on the internet.

 

Every now and then I find that gem of a story,a nd it makes the search through all of the rest worth it

Ashken

[Comicality]

Actually, story length is usually a consideration for me as well. Anything less than 20K might be 15K worth of sex, and a story that basically adds up to, "What's your name? What do you look like? I love you, let's do it." However, there are some stories that are 500K long, and it gets to a point where I find myself skipping paragraphs to get back to something that will be more relevant to the actual story. So I think that the content is the deciding factor.

 

I do make my decisions sometimes on what to read by the length of the story. But I've been proven wrong in both cases though. I've seen some short stories that truly had some heart in them. Detailed accounts of what was leading up to this very moment, and done with a romantic edge that was really written with care. So despite its brevity, it still comes out as a cool story.

 

I've also read much longer stories, where all of that story, conflict, and detail was needed. I sometimes avoid those stories that go on forever and reach up into the 300K and 500K mark because I know I'll get locked in and be stuck reading until I finish. Time constraints don't always make that possible. But more times than not, those stories end up being the most involved.

 

So I believe that an author can bend and twist the content of a story to fit any length he chooses, if his heart is in it. Without dragging it out by repeating the same thing or filling in parts with fluff. And without cutting out all of the heart just to get to the sex. As long as there's less thought to the length, and more thought to the content, then whatever it ends up as...will be the right length.