How long is a novel? How many pages? How many words? Common enough questions for newbie writers? However, it’s one I’ve also pondered, but not for long. I don’t write to fit the word count or the page number. I write until the story is finished: beginning, middle and end.

There are publishers who specify word count. Some won’t consider a novel under 40,000 words. Or 60,000 words. Some want even more. If we write to fit the word count budget, then are we adding too much filler? Making the middle sag and drag? Fixating our goals on word count and page numbers is not a good alternative to good, wholesome writing. Writers are creating art, not word counts. NaNoWriMo is coming up again, that demanding ritualistic platform that challenges writers to write so many words a day (no challenge on quality, just on word count) and finish writing a novel in one month. In order to qualify, the final word count for the novel must be over 50,000. On the other hand, other competitive platforms classify novels as being over 40,000 words. That being said, some of the greatest novels of all time are less than 40,000 words. For example:

- C.S. Lewis’s “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe”, 38,421 words

- George Orwell’s “Animal Farm”, 29,966 words

- Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”, 29,944 words

- John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men”, 29,160 words

- Ernest Hemingway’s “The Old Man and the Sea”, 26,601 words

So, is the word count really that important? It really depends on who you want to review and consider your manuscript. If the publishing house demands a certain word count as a maximum or a minimum, it’s best to stick to the requirements or expect your work to be tossed into the slush pile.

A friend of mine wrote a Young Adult novel and was pleased to boast that it was over 200,000 words. As a newbie author, I wasn’t surprised to learn that publishing houses weren’t considering his work. Is 200,000 too much for the Young Adult genre? For a newbie author?

And, it’s not just the publishers you have to impress with your novel, word count and all. It’s the readers, your audience, your fan club. The length of your novel will affect your sales. If it’s too long or too short, it’ll turn away potential readers. For example, if it’s a cozy mystery for a summer cottage or beach read, the preferable length is under 40,000. Most traditional publishing houses put the best word count for a novel to be between 50,000 and 70,000 words.

That considered, there is another factor that determines expected word counts: it’s the genre of the novel. To simplify the guidelines, consider the following genres:

- Literary novels are generally between 80,000 and 120,000. For example, L.M. Montgomery’s “Anne of Green Gables” is 119,394 words.

- Fantasy and science fiction novels are usually longer, often exceeding 140,000 words, though it’s not uncommon for them to fall in the 80,000 to 120,000 words as with literary fiction. For example, Rachel Caine’s “Ink and Bone” is 88,000 words, while J.R. Tolkien’s “The Fellowship of the Ring” is 177,227 words.

- Romance novels usually range between 80,000 and 100,000 words.

- Middle-grade novels are usually between 20,000 and 55,000 words, with chapter books being on the lower end of this range.

- Young adult is usually between 55,000 and 70,000 words.

- Mystery novels (other than cozy mysteries) are generally between 75,000 and 100,000 words.

- Thriller novels are usually between 90,000 and 100,000 words.

- Memoirs are usually between 80,000 and 90,000 words.

- Westerns are usually between 45,000 and 75,000 words.

The bottom line is, are we, as novelists, writing for the word count? Or are we writing for the value and integrity of our writing? I would hope it’s the latter. There’s nothing I dislike more, as a reader and as a reviewer, than a book with too much filler – presumably to meet the quota word count.