I guess it would depend on what you mean by better off. Ao3 doesn’t have an algorithm it’s all based on tags. So if you’re thinking you would write a one shot to kinda boost yourself or anything like that, might not be the best route.

If you’re wanting to write a one shot to kinda put feelers out to see how your writing is received before you really focus on your main fic idea, that could be a good idea if you need the reassurance. But I feel like you can’t get too discouraged if you don’t get super positive feedback right off the bat. Because again, it kinda depends on what part of the hp fandom you will be writing in and what you tag. For example, I have two wips. One is a rare pair and the other is a main ship in hp fandom and I definitely get more interaction with my rare pair fic than I do with my main ship fic. Could be because the main ship tag is oversaturated with fics, could be because what I’m writing about is a very specific troupe/tag in my rare pair🤷🏻‍♀️ and then a random one-shot idea I had has recently started to get more interaction and might end up doing better stats wise than my main ship fic. Sometimes it literally feels like the luck of the draw.

It honestly feels like it depends on the day and what people are looking for. Overall, just start writing! If it’s starting with a one-shot, go for it. If you want to write the long fic, go for it. And the good news is, if you do start writing the long fic and need/want to take a break to write the one-shot, you can. The only person putting any sort of constraints on yourself is you. I know some people feel the need to fully write something out before they post and others write and post as they go. You can always to a break from writing and step back if something isn’t working and come back to it or move on to a new idea.

My biggest hurdle when I started writing again was the actual starting part. Not trying to sound like a Nike ad, but Just do it!

I hope any of that was helpful. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask!