Word-Count Norms
These ranges are rough industry conventions for debut novels in the English-language trade market. They vary by agent, publisher, country, and year. Always tell the user the manuscript's count and the range, and ask them to confirm current norms for their market and the agents they are querying. Never pad or cut a manuscript to fit a range without the user's direction.
| Category | Typical range (words) |
|---|---|
| Adult literary fiction | 70,000-100,000 |
| Adult commercial or upmarket fiction | 80,000-100,000 |
| Mystery | 70,000-90,000 |
| Cozy mystery | 60,000-80,000 |
| Thriller or suspense | 80,000-100,000 |
| Romance (single title) | 70,000-90,000 |
| Romance (category lines) | 50,000-75,000, set by each line |
| Science fiction or fantasy (adult) | 90,000-120,000 |
| Epic fantasy (adult) | 100,000-130,000 |
| Horror | 70,000-90,000 |
| Historical fiction | 90,000-110,000 |
| Young adult (contemporary) | 60,000-80,000 |
| Young adult (fantasy or SF) | 70,000-95,000 |
| Middle grade | 30,000-55,000 |
| Middle grade fantasy | 45,000-65,000 |
| Novella | 17,500-40,000 |
| Novelette | 7,500-17,500 |
| Short story | Under 7,500 |
The novella, novelette, and short-story bands follow the SFWA award categories, a common reference for short-fiction markets. Magazines and anthologies publish their own limits; follow those.
How to report
- Take the count from
story wordcount .and round it to the nearest thousand in submission copy. - When the count is well outside the range (roughly 15% or more), tell the user, name the likely objection (printing cost for long books, thinness for short ones), and let them decide.
- Sequels and established authors are judged differently; these ranges are for a first submission.
- If
story.mdhastarget-words, also report the count against that target.