What Is the Basic Word Count for Flash Fiction, Short Story, Novelette, Novella, Novel, Saga?

I've been working on my Short Story Collection #2 and, by some definitions, these three "short stories" are each long enough to warrant the novelette designation.

But it depends on which source you check. I went to my two mainstays, 16CMS and Web11, and neither provided me with word counts per category. And you'll find variations when searching the Internet or while checking submission instructions online.

If you are going the traditional publishing route, by all means go by prescribed guidelines for the line best suited for your work within that house. For instance, a quick search finds at least twenty-one imprints under the Simon & Schuster publishing umbrella.

However, if you are going the Indie route, then research the offerings out there and pick your own standard to go by. After reading several sites, I compiled what I thought was the best of the best with my gut as the official tiebreaker, when needed. Here's my working theory to date:

3–1,000 WC = Flash Fiction	~4 pp. "He died alone" tells a story, brings forth emotions, has the reader asking questions; so must have ≥3WC to start a tale.
1,001–7,500 WC = Short Story	~4–30 pp.
7,501–20,000 WC = Novelette	~30–80 pp.
20,001–40,000 WC = Novella	~80–160 pp. MG readers
40,001–60,000 WC = Novels, category	~160–240 pp. Genres like romance, western, etc.
60,001–90,000 WC = Novels, singles	~240–360 pp. YA, paranormal, fantasy/sci-fi, etc.
90,001–150,000 WC = Novels, mainstream	~360–600 pp. Thriller/horror, mystery, crime fiction
150,001+ WC = Sagas	~600+ pp. Michener's Hawaii, Rand's Atlas Shrugged, Mitchell's Gone with the Wind

As I mentioned above, this is my current working theory, subject to revisions as I refine it. But it works for me. And there are always exceptions, so we can agree upon that.

Oh, and I estimated page counts based on 250 words/page.

One thing to always remember when e-publishing anything other than a novel/saga, be sure to clearly mark same on your cover, in your online description, in your title even. Not all people check the page-length info given on amazon.com and other venues. So readers get understandably upset when purchasing what they think is a full-length novel and getting shortchanged with only fifty pages' worth. Better for them to purchase what they think is a midsize novel of three hundred pages and get one of five hundred pages instead.


LEGEND:
16CMS = The Chicago Manual of Style, Sixteenth Edition
Web11 = Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition
WC = word count
MG = middle grade
YA = young adult

"If your vocation isn’t a vacation, then quit, leap, change careers."

Denise Barker, Author, Blogger, Copy Editor
Books that Build Character(s)

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What lies behind you and what lies in front of you pales in comparison to what lies inside of you. Ralph Waldo Emerson
When you give someone a book, you don’t give him just paper, ink, and glue.  You give him the possibility of a whole new life. Christopher Morley
The best inheritance you can leave your kids is an example of how to live a full and meaningful life. Dan Zadra

Do You Have WIPs or a Backlist?

"Backlist" refers to older traditional published works that are still available, not new releases (per Web11, but paraphrased in my own words). In this post, however, I'm using it more for an Indie's stockpile of stories not yet published.

For me, as of March 25, 2013, I had twelve WIPs (works in progress). In my mind, each was designated as a novel that I would finish when I had "free time." I had printed them all out earlier this year as a backup procedure mostly, but then I three-hole punched them, arranged each in its own notebook, noting the number of pages and the WC (word count) along with its working title on the spine.

Thereafter I ordered them per increasing WC. The shortest was twenty-five DS (double-spaced) pages, with the second longest my category of 50K and 285 DS pages (my 2011 NaNo project) and the longest being my mainstream of 92K WC and 432 DS pages.

Then it hit me. Those two finished first draft projects are designated by their length: category and mainstream. What if my shortest stories are actually that? Short stories.

As an Indie, there is nothing to stop me—OR YOU—from uploading a short story now and later turning it into a full-length novel if it tempts me/you so.

So that is what I have been doing. From 03.19 to 03.26, I spent forty-five hours finalizing my first three short stories (the shortest of my WIPs) and uploaded my first collection of them.

Now my WIPs total nine.

Beginning 03.28, I started working on my second collection of SSs (short stories). Yesterday, I reviewed the first one, found another notebook further down my stack that is actually more of this one but under another name (which brings my WIP count down to eight). Went through both the original story and its addenda, have a handle on what I need to accomplish to merge the two.

Today, I read through the next WIP. It needs more work to have a beginning, middle and end. But my subconscious mind knows to deal with that while I'm doing other things.

The last SS for this second collection, I plan to look over later today.

I've already prepared the cover for this one, and the front/back matter. My first collection had a total of 125 DS pp. This next one will incorporate 142 DS pp (as they currently stand; that page count may increase as I add stuff in, take stuff out).

The next three projects down the list (with 98, 140 and 162 DS pp, respectively, as is) may each be released as stand-alone novellas.

If it takes me forty-five hours for each 125-page segment (the length of the first collection and the time it took for that e-book compilation), then I need 9.5 weeks to finalize my WIPs.

Remember, I'm ALL INDIE. So that forty-five hours, while not including the original creation time involved for any of these writings, does count copyediting, proofreading, a "reader" read-through, design/production work, cover art work, front/back pages and actual uploading onto my three main platforms (Amazon, B&N and Kobo).

I am so looking forward to having all my WIPs moved over into the "completed" column.

Denise Barker, author + blogger + copy editor

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