I need some opinions

[Galia Volkov]

I have an idea for a fanfiction, I know how I want it to go.
The thing is I'm having a hard time deciding if it should be a chapter fic or a long one-shot.
It can easily work for either one, but I'd like to know what you here in the writers forum prefer.

[terradi]

In that situation I think I'd just start writing it and see how long it needed to be. Most of the time that problem works itself out, for me anyhow.

[I_Write_Ivre]

Most of the time when I have this problem, I just start writing and see if it'd be better broken up or whole as I develop it.

[Umbre]

Chapters may work best, that way the audience has a natural place to pause should they not have a long period to read it in a single stretch. Not to mention it allows individuals to read a little and decide whether or not they want to continue on, without feeling overwhelmed.

[ChelseasDeadSmile]

For me, I'd have to say anything under 10k words is good for a one-shot, because I've read one-shots that have 83k words and they are just...ridiculous. So I make sure all of my one-shots try to stay above 10k words as, then, I'd have to make it chaptered instead of the intended one-shot I was aiming for.

[Slash is Doctor Death]

As others say I really think it matters on how long you make it. If its shorter then I don't see the need for chapters but if you make it longer chapters are a nice break up. But either tend to work find depending on content and how it draws people in.

[wolfwoman09]

With me, it's more a question of how many pages a particular story is. Most of my stories are more than fifteen pages, and when I post them, I'll usually break them up into chapters. That said, the question becomes, where is a good place to end a chapter?

[Ehres]

It depends. Some stories feel 'wholesome' as a one-shot and that vibe can be thrown off if you separate them into chapters. If your story has multiple stages and you want to give apt, equal attention to each phase of the tale, I'd advise you to apply chapters. I don't think it's a question of length so much as it is about the manner in which you want your story to be read. I think most people want short-term commitment and so would opt for one-shots, so if you're gonna make it a chapter effort then the best thing to do is make the reader want to continue on.

[Archimedes Vic]

Many of the previous responses are right. You have to take a few things into mind when writing fanfiction. The first thing to keep in mind is the attention span of your readers. Depending on the dedication of the readers, most people who decide to read your fanfiction are going to start judging it as soon as they start reading it. So try to imagine you are a new reader and does this story catch your attention enough to want to continue. If you are an already established writer with a few successful stories that have been well received, well it doesn't really matter how you write it, because your fans are going to want to read it.

Another thing is the length. I agree that 10k words is good for a single piece, but if you know your story has setting changes or multiple arcs, I would break it up.

Hopefully my ideas make sense and help.