I think this varies from person to person tbh, but my general advice I'd give that works for me is
since i write longer fics (my longest is still ongoing with 75k words) i divide chapters into sections so theyre both easier to write and easier to consume as a reader
i make every section propionate to each other, if one section is 5k words but it's 6 sections long then the other 5 have to be equal or greater than 2.3k words to balance it out and not seem as intense
if youre not willing to type up 2.3k words for something like dialogue, then maybe touch up around the plot to either merge sections (so now you have 5 instead of 6) and make it 2.3k or add something to it that wasn't originally supposed to be there
if you want longer fics you have to be willing to drag out days! hours! put into perspective, the average person experiences life not in a blur and not in a moment that disappears immediately.. using my type of amnesia as an example, conversations in the moment can feel like it goes by QUICK, but once im left in silence minutes feel excruciating long, even if i have something to entertain myself, which is why i have music on my laptop always playing so i feel 'right'
uhm but i know that one is a bit hyper specific...
if you're a naturally creative person who doesn't need to write all little details down then i'd do notes around each sections, for example:
this is my notes for one of my sections, it's just to remind me of an event that i have been building up to, and im supposed to just let roam
however in some more serious moments, i plan out a lot more
(same fic, just more detail) it's still sporadic but it keeps my ideas there, sometimes if i think of a line i want used i'll type it out, and its okay to type out an idea as you write to go look back on it
this is a screenshot from an earlier section that has already been finished, but these are what my notes looked like as i took breaks
these notes are a life saver!!! i swear man!!!
and this applies to shorter works, anything under 2k i never write a note for, but thats just because im used to that being light work!!!
i say if youre just now starting to try and write fanfic and you want to impress someone or yourself or feel proud or write characters correctly- PAUSE! take things step by step, when i was younger and first starting i just wrote whatever came to mind and never cared about characterization
listen man! you need to write 100 shitty pieces before you make one mediocre one, and then you need to 1000 mediocre pieces before you make one good one! so have a fic dump, just a location where you spew out ideas, try to work with them, and if you cant then you cant, post them or don't up to you
trust me, someone WILL read it, always!
and if you're like 'well what if i think its good but i post it and it flops' hey that happens! sometimes i make something i hate and next day i go 'i did that?', we can always change our opinions later, but having a friend to overlook stuff (as a beta reader or just checking stuff) can help greatly
im one of my friend's beta reader for his fanfic for Nikke, and while i have no idea whats happening, im there for spelling mistakes and continuity- and thats all you really need a beta reader for (you can always reach out to me if you need this too ;))
