Episode-like

Not certain where to put this.

If I were to try to write a truly episode-like story, about how many words should I shoot for?

Comments

[Lapis-Lazuli and Stitch]

You could probably boil most 22 minute MLP episodes down to around 6-7 thousand words for the most basic premise and events presented in the third person. If you wanted to do it from a perspective, or include more inner monologue / action stuff, you'd probably need closer to 10-14k words.

Personally, I wouldn't try to represent an episode like story without at least 10k words, but I'm notably wordy in my descriptions.

Remember, most episodes encompass a single conflict arc from beginning to end. There's rarely a side story, and when there is it's frequently used as a foil to the main story. So a tight focus is absolutely key.

[Spark of Inspiration]

Considering that it takes about ten to fifteen words to descriptively show something in writing compared to about two seconds on television, and that the show lasts about twenty-two minutes on average, the numbers come out to about 6600-9900 words.

But in all honesty, just write however much you feel like. It's only finished when you can safely say that the conflict is resolved.
-SoI