Chapters

[Nat6999]

I started writing a story originally just for fun, but it has grown & grown out of all proportion. I'm not even 20% of the way through & I'm now thinking of turning it into a book. How do I divide it into chapters? Do I write the whole thing & then divide it up or write it straight into chapters. The story means a lot to me as it comes from all the stories my dad told me of him being a child during the war & all of my family, my Uncles, Aunty & my grandparents. It's kind of a living tribute to them all as they are all no longer with us.

Is there a natural break in the subject every 1000-3000 words? Also is it fiction or non-fiction? If it’s fiction then it’s often good to end a chapter on a cliffhanger of sorts to get the reader to read on. Good luck!

End a chapter at the end of a scene. If you're retelling anecdotes and they're not very long, maybe group a few together. Find a subject matter for one chapter that's a bit different from the next. I'm sure a wartime memory will be interesting to readers but don't let it ramble. Do lots of editing and pare it down as much as you can - but only when you've finished it. Don't go back and do it before you get to the end.