If you need more words, they should come from more well-written scenes. Make every word count and never let your total result from needless words. Most important, especially if you’re worried about your manuscript being too short, is to still keep your scenes tight, direct, well edited, and well honed. Publishing house guidelines vary, so check their website or contact them directly to find out what they expect lengthwise. On the high end are novels like Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (119,394), Schindler’s List by Thomas Keneally (134,710), and War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy (587,287). Scott Fitzgerald, and Old Yeller by Fred Gipson all range between 35,000 and 50,000. Sometimes they’re shorter - The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S.
NOVEL PAGES TO WORD COUNT DOWNLOAD
Want to download this infographic to share and reference whenever you like? Click here.Īverage novel word counts are generally around 85,000 but they can range from 50,000 to 120,000. Nevertheless, you would be wise to come close to these suggested manuscript lengths. I’m just saying that some things are more important than word counts. Obviously, my point is not that you should submit a first book of anywhere near 200,000 words. The first alone has sold more than 120 million copies, and the rest have sold at least 65 million each. Those titles also obliterated sales records. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - 198,000 words Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - 168,000 words Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - 257,000 words Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - 190,000 words Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - 107,000 words Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - 85,000 words Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone - 76,000 words
NOVEL PAGES TO WORD COUNT SERIES
Rowling’s record-breaking series began with two titles on the high end of that spectrum and finished with five that left the guidelines in the dust. The Harry Potter books are Young Adult titles, and YA publishers generally look for manuscripts in the 50,000 to 80,000-word range.
But rules are made to be broken, and the most successful publishing phenomenon in history did just that. That doesn’t mean you can submit a manuscript twice the length a publisher recommends. Just be careful not to get too far afield, and remember that a great idea and good writing trumps all. But it’s important to know that these are not hard and fast rules. There ARE general guidelines, which I’ll list below. Well, different publishers look for different lengths for different genres. One of the most common questions writers ask me: “How long should my manuscript be?”
And I’ve never found a bad book short enough. As a reader, I’ve never felt a good book was too long, even more than a thousand pages.
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