Day 23: #AtoZChallenge
One of the most frequent questions asked by writers is : “What is an acceptable word count for _________” (fill in the blank). Most magazines, contests, or websites will define the type of fiction they’re looking for and the required word count or word limit. In my research, I found a number of sites with slightly different word counts, but all were generally within these limits.
Basic fiction classification and the associated word counts:
- Flash Fiction – under 500 but some accept up to 1000.
- Historical Fiction – 90,000-100,000.
- Literary – 80,000-120,000.
- Memoir – 80,000 – 90,000.
- Middle Grade Fiction – 25,000 -40,000.
- Mystery, Thrillers & Crime – 70,000 -90,000.
- Novella – 10,000 – 40,000.
- Novelette – 7,550 – 17,500.
- Picture Books – standard 32 pages (500-600 words).
- Romance Fiction– 50,000 – 100,000.
- Science fiction & Fantasy – 90,000 -120,000.
- Short Story – typically between 1,000 – 8,000.
- Women’s Fiction – as low as 70,000. Standard is around 80,000.
- Young Adult Fiction – 50,000 -70,000.
Remember, it’s recommended not to rely on your software program for an accurate word count, especially when words are limited as in a contest.
Shortcut for determining word count: Change document to Courier with one-inch margins, count the number of pages, multiply by 250. This is the adjusted number of words in your manuscript.
Want more info on word Counts? Check out these resources:
- Manuscript Appraisal Agency
- Litreactor.com
- The Write Practice
- The Editor’s Blog
- The Writer’s Workshop
I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story and look for me on Facebook at SheilaMGood, Pinterest, Bloglovin, Twitter@sheilamgood, and Contently.
Reblogged this on ARHtistic License and commented:
Did you ever wonder how your work-in-progress compares to others in your genre in terms of word count? Many thanks to Sheila M. Good of Cow Pasture Chronicles for this week’s guest post.
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Thanks Andrea for the reblog!
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Great information, Sheila…thanks! Pressed to reblog!
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Thanks Patrick for the reblog. I’m so glad you liked it and thought to share it. Glad you stopped by. Please do again.
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Thank you for sharing this. I always question the appropriate word length for novels. Thanks.
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My Pleasure!
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Reblogged this on Don Massenzio's Blog and commented:
Here is a helpful post on determining word counts
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Thanks Don for the reblog. Much obliged.
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You’re welcome. It was worth sharing.
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🙂
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Very good guidelines to consider. Thank you!
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Thank you Ann. Glad you found it helpful. Thanks for stopping by.
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Thank you for this informative list. Saving it for sure.
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Thank you Marjorie. So glad you liked it and found it helpful. Glad you stopped by.
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That was informative. Micro fiction has word counts too. For example a 55 word story with a twist is 55 Fiction and a 100 word story is called a Drabble.
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Thank you Shilpa, for adding to the list and the conversation. glad to see you in the Cow Pasture.
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I’ve always believed that a story is as long or as short as it needs to be but your list is a good one for helping to decide what to call it.
@Kathleen01930
Meet My Imaginary Friends
#AtoZchallenge
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I agree Kathleen, however, like everything else, guidelines within genre’s kinda of dictate. thanks for stopping by and adding to the conversation.
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Great post! I was constantly looking up this kind of information when determining how long the books I write should be. For the A to Z Challenge, I wrote a post for O on Overshooting Your Word Count, if you’re interested: http://blog.jhwinter.com/a-to-z-challenge-o-is-for-overshooting-your-word-count/
Julianne
Ink & Stitches – http://blog.jhwinter.com
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I read your post. It was excellent. As always it’s good to see you in the Cow Pasture.
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I didn’t have this list but now I do. Thanks. I also did not know about the shortcut. That is something I will keep in mind.
Have a great day.
Visiting from the A to Z Blog Challenge.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
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My pleasure and the same to you. It’s always good to see you.
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Thanks for the list of word counts. Very helpful!
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You’re welcome. Enjoy.
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