Novel word counts by genre
| Category | Usual range | Aim for |
|---|---|---|
| Literary fiction | 70,000 to 100,000 | 85,000 |
| Commercial and upmarket fiction | 80,000 to 100,000 | 90,000 |
| Fantasy (adult) | 90,000 to 120,000 | 100,000 |
| Epic fantasy | 120,000 to 160,000 | 130,000 |
| Science fiction (adult) | 90,000 to 120,000 | 100,000 |
| Thriller and suspense | 70,000 to 100,000 | 85,000 |
| Mystery and crime | 70,000 to 90,000 | 80,000 |
| Cozy mystery | 60,000 to 80,000 | 70,000 |
| Romance (single title) | 70,000 to 100,000 | 85,000 |
| Category romance | 50,000 to 60,000 | 55,000 |
| Historical fiction | 90,000 to 120,000 | 100,000 |
| Horror | 70,000 to 100,000 | 85,000 |
| Young adult | 55,000 to 80,000 | 70,000 |
| Young adult fantasy or science fiction | 75,000 to 110,000 | 90,000 |
| Middle grade | 30,000 to 55,000 | 45,000 |
| Chapter book | 5,000 to 12,000 | 8,000 |
Ranges reflect what agents and editors commonly expect for a book being sold into the trade market. These ranges are conventions rather than rules, and they may shift over time or between publishers.
Short story, novelette, novella, novel
If you are working below novel length, the boundaries become quite precise (mostly because awards need to draw the lines). These are the categories that the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association uses for the Nebula Awards, and the rest of publishing has largely adopted them.
| Form | Word count |
|---|---|
| Flash fiction | Under 1,000 |
| Short story | 1,000 to 7,500 |
| Novelette | 7,500 to 17,500 |
| Novella | 17,500 to 40,000 |
| Novel | 40,000 and up |
A book can clear the 40,000 word bar and still be too short to sell as an adult novel. The award category and the market expectation are different things.
Why the ranges exist
None of these numbers are actually about art, but instead are mostly about cost and shelf space. A longer book takes more editing, more paper, and more shipping weight, but it takes up the same slot in a catalogue as a shorter one that costs less to make. A publisher betting on an unknown writer would rather that bet be cheap.
Readers exert their own pressure. Someone picking up a cozy mystery has an expectation that they will be able to finish the novel in a few days to a week. Someone picking up epic fantasy is likely buying a few weeks to a month, and would feel shortchanged by 80,000 words. The ranges are roughly where those two pressures have settled.
Debuts get less room. An established author can turn in 180,000 words and be trusted. A first novel at the same length reads as a manuscript nobody has edited yet. If you are querying, aim for the middle of your range rather than the top of it.
When your draft lands outside the range
If your finished draft falls outside the typical range, it could mean a few things.
Too short usually means the story is thinner than it looks. For example, there may be a subplot that never developed, a supporting cast doing very little, or a conflict that resolves too easily. Padding a 55,000 word draft up to 85,000 with description and exposition will not fix it. Find the missing threads to build a richer, deeper narrative.
Too long is more often a structural fix. A draft 40,000 words over its range usually has a whole narrative thread that could be removed, two characters who could be one, or a first act that begins a chapter (or three) before the story actually gets going. Line editing will recover a few thousand words, but cutting a superfluous subplot could recover tens of thousands.
You could start by counting the scenes before you count the words. The reverse outline is the fastest way to see which parts of a draft are carrying their weight.