: Re: Is it OK to add chapters to slow down the pace of the story? Example: I'm writing a story where the protagonist is searching for some information. She searches for it at her university, and

@Mendez196

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You're actually asking 2 different questions:

Is it OK to add chapters to slow down the pace of the story?

When you say 'slow' that's not a good sign. You want to generate excitement and keep the reader engaged. Anything that slows the pace risks causing your reader to lose interest and stop reading. Keep in mind that given your characters, plot arc, and themes, the questions you need to ask are does your chapter/passage give the reader new information that enhances the aforementioned and will it be interesting to the reader (funny, enlightening, insightful, entertaining, etc.) so they are compelled to keep reading. Note that in your case you can most definately add a red herring that goes off on a tangent from the main arc as long as it serves some other purpose like character development, is entertaining, and you're able to transition back smoothly.
Can you add chapters just for the sake of adding them?

Don't ever add anything just for the sake of making something longer. It has to serve some purpose such as contribute to your main theme, develop your characters in a way that advances your plot and themes, add suspense (suspense novel), be funny (comedy), etc. You get the idea.

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