How many words should manuscript have for a publisher to consider it?

Question

I'm (trying) to write a book and so far I have roughly 11,000 words. I know that currently isn't enough, but I'm just curious to know how many words is considered a standard amount in order for a publisher to consider it?

I'm writing what I think can be considered a romance novel..

it's kinda, but not very, religious as well.

Answer 1

Word count varies by genre. Since you've said this is romance, that helps a lot. The industry standards (set by Harlequin/Silhouette) are anywhere from 55,000 words to 85,000 words. Historical romances can go longer with other publishers.

Contemporary American romances with no explicit sex are featured in the main Harlequin line. These are 55,000 words. They have very specific guidelines, though. The hero and heroine must meet by page ..... and there must be a relationship by page .... and a reversal by page ..... and so on. Very strict formula. That's why books in this line all read alike.

Anyway, 55,000 words is the shortest a romance can be and still get published as a book. I believe that answered your question.

Now you need to know that the word count the computer gives you is not the industry standard. In order to get an industry standard word count, you need to take the character count your computer gives you and divide by 5.

If you want to estimate word count, you must use 12 pt font and have 1" margins and doublespace. Start the chapter 3" from the top. If you follow that guideline, then you can safely say that 50 pages equals approximately 10,000 words. That's what most experienced authors do.

Answer 2

About the shortest book a publisher will consider is 50,000 words. The classics which are shorter would probably not find a home in today's publishing world.

Different genres have different standard lengths, and unknown authors are advised to aim for the lower end of the span of acceptable word count. Find books in your genre on Amazon, then go to text stats for their word counts.

Answer 3

One common question asked by many writers is: "How long should my story be?"

The simplest answer is: As long as it takes to tell the whole story.

However, there are certain word lengths that editors prefer to see when submitting work.


Here is an approximate guideline for story lengths.

Micro-Fiction

up to 100 words

This very abbreviated story is often difficult to write, and even harder to write well, but the markets for micro fiction are becoming increasingly popular in recent times. Publishers love them, as they take up almost no room and don't cost them their budgets. Pay rates are often low, but for so few words, the rate per word averages quite high.

Flash Fiction

100 - 1,000 words

This is the type of short-short story you would expect to find in a glossy magazine, often used to fill one page of quick romance (or quick humor, in men's mags) Very popular, quick and easy to write, and easier to sell!

Short Story

1,000 - 7,500 words

The 'regular' short story, usually found in periodicals or anthology collections. Most 'genre' zines will features works at this length.

Novellette

7,500 - 20,000 words

Often a novellette-length work is difficult to sell to a publisher. It is considered too long for most publishers to insert comfortably into a magazine, yet too short for a novel. Generally, authors will piece together three or four novellette-length works into a compilation novel.

Novella

20,000 - 50,000 words

Although most print publishers will balk at printing a novel this short, this is almost perfect for the electronic publishing market length. The online audience doesn't always have the time or the patience to sit through a 100,000 word novel. Alternatively, this is an acceptable length for a short work of non-fiction.

Novel

50,000 -110,000

Most print publishers prefer a minimum word count of around 70,000 words for a first novel, and some even hesitate for any work shorter than 80,000. Yet any piece of fiction climbing over the 110,000 word mark also tends to give editors some pause. They need to be sure they can produce a product that won't over-extend their budget, but still be enticing enough to readers to be saleable. Imagine paying good money for a book less than a quarter-inch thick?

Epics and Sequels

Over 110,000 words

If your story extends too far over the 110,000 mark, perhaps consider where you could either condense the story to only include relevant details, or lengthen it to span out into a sequel, or perhaps even a trilogy. (Unless, of course, you're Stephen King - then it doesn't matter what length your manuscript is - a publisher is a little more lenient with an established author who has a well-established readership)

Page Counts

In most cases, industry standard preferred length is 250 words per page... so a 400 page novel would be at about 100,000 words. If you want to see what size book is selling in your genre, take a look on the shelves. If the average length is 300 pages, you're looking at a 75,000 word manuscript (approximately)

One reason it's harder for a new author to sell a 140,000 word manuscript is the size of the book. A 500+ page book is going to take up the space of almost two, 300 page books on the shelves. It's also going to cost more for the publishers to produce, so unless the author is well known, the book stores aren't going to stock that many copies of the 'door-stopper' novel as compared to the thinner novel.


Remember, these word- and page-counts are only estimated guides. Use your own common sense, and, where possible, check the guidelines of the publication you intend to submit your work to. Most publishers accepting shorter works will post their maximum preferred lengths, and novels are generally considered on the strength of the story itself, not on how many words you have squeezed into each chapter.

For lengths more specific to Children's books, please refer to Laura's article "Understanding Children's Writing Genres"


© Copyright Lee Masterson. All Rights Reserved.

Answer 4

What kind of story are you writing? Novella, Short Story, Novel...

All these have different word limits. Look it up on google, and it'll say what the limits are. Then you can sent it to the publisher under one of those titles.

Oh- and don't worry about the word limits until you've finished writing.

Just write. Otherwise you'll find that you're writing more to finish, than to enjoy your characters and words.

Answer 5

Its approx. 70,000 to 100,000 BUT - I'd find the specific submission guidelines for the publisher you are submitting to. It may vary. Try the book Writers Marker 2007. It lists hundreds of publishers, there genres, formats, and guidelines.

Publishers can be very picky and will be impressed if you give them exactly what they are looking for.

Answer 6

Don't listen to the people who say that your book has to be 70,000 words for a publisher to consider it. Your book needs to be as long as it takes to tell the story. There are a lot of classics that are under 70,000 words. If your writing a young adut book, 70,000 words should be about the maximum length, but again, lenght isn't really that important. Publishers buy books becuase they are good, not because they are long.

Answer 7

i think of it quite is the area of an agent. they help bump up your manuscript to the writer. look on the author's industry 2008 on suggestion, suggestion, and modern-day itemizing for brokers and publishers on your writing. there is even the Agent's industry e book you will come across to boot.

Answer 8

Anywhere from 70,000 to 100,000. Some will consider longer books, but not by too much. Less than 70,000 is too short.

Answer 9

One. And its a name: JK Rowling. And I'm guessing that's not you.