LitRPG Preferred Book Length

Come on, @Paul Bellow you're supposed to tag me into those kind of posts. Didn't you get that memo?

 

This poor thread. It has been derailed, smashed into the side of a mountain, and gone up in a glorious fireball.

 

Huh. Backing down so soon, huh? Maybe I'll keep going unless I get more gold! I'm joking.

As to length, I'm dubious about the short story market. I think today's readers-- especially the really voracious ones who read a book a day-- want long books. They'll settle for 60-70k, but they'd prefer ones that are over 100k. At least, that's what my gut tells me.

 

I had this long discussion point about this not long ago. Yes the reader wants a longer book, but the longer the book the longer it takes for the next one to release. Look at your larger fantasy authors, it takes years between books. Your typical LitRPG writer is putting them out every 3-6 months. It ends up being cheaper for the reader per word count in the long run and is a win/win for the author because they can keep people interested for a longer duration.

Take Game of Thrones, I've waited for the next books so long I don't care anymore. I did not read the last one, and probably won't finish the series. I know, I know, my loss. There is a debate to be had about keeping your reader interested over a longer period of time. George RR Martin averaged a book every 4 years, after that much time I have to reread to figure out what the hell is going on. I don't want to read the series for the fifth or sixth time, so I won't.

There is nothing wrong with longer books and bigger gaps, but these days people want things now. With shorter attention spans and hype, I think a longer turn around is more dangerous than a quicker one. Media is a fickle market, one day something is hot and the next day it isn't.

 

So, are you advocating people switch to novellas? Or are you talking about shorter novels like in the 60-70k range?

 

I'll always think of Media as Gillian Anderson now, thanks to American Gods.

 

I want to make a joke about Mr. World, but I can't think of anything witty. <insert witty joke here>

 

I believe, technically, 40k is considered a novel. I think if you are serious, you can easily write 70-80k in a month.

If you're writing 140k books, it's going to take twice as long. So, the question is, more books, or longer books? More books makes you more money, releases more often, and keeps the attention of your readers. IMO.

BTW, I found a great place to split my novel. I have to re-plot some of it, and plan an additional 20 chapters for the second book, though I think it'll work out well.

 

Great! Congratulations. When's your release date?

 

I'm going to write all three books before I publish. Then I'll have them set to publish every 25-30 days. After the first book, I'll probably write the novella reader magnet that I will give away for signing up to my newsletter.

When I do publish, I'm going to throw a world of marketing at the book. I'd very much like to do that this year. Still working through my process, schedule, and stages of development.

 

Good luck, man.

 

Will you be doing pre-orders for all three?

 

Probably. And each book will have a link to the next book's pre-order at the back.

Then, while those books are being published, I'll have 3 months to get my next series underway. With any luck, one month after the third book is published, my first book of the new series will become available.

 

Awesomeeee