Friday, June 15, 2012

Quick Tip: Book Length

Today's Quick Tip is about book length.  Different publishers, companies, authors, etc. have varying opinions about how many words a book should be, which can cause some confusion when you're looking for a book based on length.  Here are the *rules of thumb* when it comes to book lengths.

Short Story ~1,000-7,500 words (shortest length)  VERY quick read
Novellette ~7,500-20,000 words (second shortest length) Quick read, but not too quick.
Novella ~20,000 - 50,000 words (middle length) Perfect for a weekend trip.
Novel ~ 50,000 -110,000 words (average length) Plan to invest some time in this depending on how fast you read.
Epics, Sequels and anything incredibly long ~ 110,000+ words (longest length)  Often some of the best books, definitely not something you pick up and plan to read in just a couple days.

It's hard to designate a page length to these book lengths since everyone uses different font sizes, types, paper size, headings, etc.  When you're searching for a book based on length, look for books that are similar to something you have already read and liked or pick the length you have the time to read.  Don't start an epic when you only have the time for a novella.  Happy Quick Tip day!

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