Faithful readers might recall that a couple of weeks ago my blog post revolved around how books were once sold on display racks or shelves in drugstores, bookstores, and department stores. As a young reader back in the 1960s, the length of a novel wasn’t high on my somewhat limited radar.
I still have paperbacks purchased off those racks with the price tag of 35 cents stamped in the upper right-hand corner. Prices changed though the years. They rose to 75 cents, 95 cents, and ultimately cracked the one-dollar ceiling. At the same time, the length and page count of those pocketbooks didn’t seem to budge.
For full disclosure here, ninety-nine percent of my reading material came from libraries and was in a variety of genres from science fiction, history, anything else that caught my eye. Most of those novels I spent money on and collected back then were westerns by Louis L’Amour and a stable of similar artists.
Cranked out in a matter of weeks, or months, the vast majority of these books ranged from 28,750 words for Shalako, to 60,000 for one of his most popular releases, Hondo. Despite their length, both books, and many more by this prolific author became successful movies. In his later year, L’Amour’s novels became heavier and some even broke that 124,000 mark.
Short novels back then weren’t limited to paperbacks, or westerns. Like most boys, I finally got my hands on those wonderful hardboiled books by Micky Spillane and absolutely absorbed them. One I, the Jury comes in at slightly more than 53,000 words, and the hard-hitting sequel, My Gun is Quick is slightly longer.
My point here is that the length of a novel doesn’t determine the quality or success of the work. Take a look at the length of these million-selling books from years past that were eventually filmed.
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald, 208 pages, 47,094
Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie: 336 pages, 58,514 words
Double Indemnity, by James M. Cain: 115 pages, 30,072 words
Rosemary’s Baby, Ira Levin: 245 pages, 56,044
The Postman Always Rings Twice, James M. Cain: 116 pages, 35,000 words
The Big Sleep, by Raymond Chandler: 234 pages, 56,955 words
The Hound of the Baskervilles, Arthur Conan Doyle: 128 pages, 57,689 words
The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger: 234 pages, 73,404
A Farewell to Arms, Earnest Hemingway: 332 pages, 74,240
Carrie, Stephen King: 320 pages, 61,343
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J.K. Rowling: 309 pages, 77,325
Things, they are a-changin’. My first manuscript weighed in at 140,000 words before my editor at Poisoned Pen Press, Annette Rogers, suggested (no, ordered) that I cut 50,000 of those little gems. I did, crying great crocodile tears, until The Rock Hole was 90,000 words, the length of the average novel. When I was finished, I didn’t miss a thing and the work read much better.
My contracts today specify the work’s length from 90,000 to 100,000 words for all mysteries, westerns, and contemporary thrillers. Some authors struggle to reach the lower end, while others routinely crack the 110-120,000 ceiling or more without breaking a sweat.
One of my publishers recently told me that he prefers a novel to register at 90,000 words, because it’s only fair to the reader, since the price for paperbacks have increased and they want to give readers their money’s worth.
That also works great for those who embrace technology, because there’s no printing cost in this new media and readers don’t have to lug around doorstops that can be ten times the length of a Stephen King novel. In a similar vein, I’ve talked to consumers who say that because hardcovers are more expensive, readers tend to gravitate toward meatier publications. More bang for their buck(s), I guess.
But is it length that makes a successful novel? Those listed above, and millions more, fall well below the average length and to me, that’s just fine. I recently finished writing a novel that originally topped out at 80,000 words. At that count, the fast-paced story was told, complete with plenty of tension, red herrings, and a satisfying plot that surprised even me.
But my contract required that holy grail of 90,000 words, so I went back and lo, the count rose and the novel came in at the appointed amount. Did those extra words make it better? Were they a determent to the finished product? That’ll be up to my readers to determine.
Maybe those additional pages filled out some descriptions, or detailed the five senses we should all include. I wonder.
On the other hand, I recently sold a short story that was too long, more of a novella, and the publisher is going to serialize it, because the new up and coming magazine is looking for something completely different in westerns and that story filled the bill. Here’s an interesting point, the story is the first act of a short novel I wrote decades ago that finished up at 50,000 words.
As I dug around the internet to find titles and their length for this piece, I came across the website, Book Riot, that asks this question that I couldn’t phrase any better. “Have consumer tastes and habits changed that much in 100 years? Have authors themselves changed in the last 100 years? Why has the big book come to outweigh the short book in the hearts and minds of readers? Is the short book dead? Or just on a reprieve?”
So I wonder about this magic 90,000-word target. What do you think?
I find 90K too long. When I see a book that long I think there’s going to be too much description about people, emotions, weather, and places for my taste.. that said I’ve had a few readers complain the story was over too soon. Oh well.
Some tomes end before I’m ready, like Lonesome Dove. Others are short wall bangers full of characters too stupid to live.
I prefer quality over all else.
Great post, Reavis. I’d say it depends. Many of the cozy mysteries I’ve read recently have been in the 50-60K range. By comparison, my own “A Shush Before Dying,” weighed in at a “hefty” 75K. I have another indie author friend who writes 90-100K plus novels and does very well by them, while many others say short novels (50-60K) is what many readers want.
It comes down to the story to me. I’m currently reading an excellent science fiction mystery. Curious about the word count, I looked it up on kobo.com, which lists word counts, and discovered it was far longer than I’d imagined, coming in at an actually hefty 133K. But the book reads very fast, is quite engrossing. I’m a 1/3 of the way in, and am surprised to learn I’ve already read over 40K.
The story is the reason for my “it depends” because I really think that’s the case. Absolutely you can shorten or lengthen a book for effect, but to my mind, the story must warrant a longer length. The novel I’m reading does.
Thank you, sir. It’s interesting to see how others feel about this subject. Thanks for weighing in.
When I was buying books (pre digital days), I looked for the big, fat ones on the shelf. More words per dollar that way. My first manuscript was 140,000 words, but an editor said 100,000 was the ceiling for a first novel. My earlier works were in that ballpark, but newer ones are more like 75-90K.
Since I’m an indie author, I don’t really pay much attention to word/page count, although I might check length out before I buy. Not a hard and fast “rule” of mine, but paying in the $10 range for a 60K length book wouldn’t fly for me.
I recall the days when word count was rigidly adhered to because the books had to fit 4 to a slot in the supermarket shelves/revolving racks.
I wish we could still brows books at the grocery store.
I haven’t taken the e-plunge as a reader. I prefer books on my shelves, but I see your point of cost per unit.
Great to hear from you.
Interesting discussion, Rev.
I’m of the school that a story is as long as it needs to be. I don’t really care about length as long as the characters, plot, voice, and pace engage me. If the book falls down in any of those areas, it doesn’t matter if it’s 20K words or 120K words.
However, I confess a bit of prejudice against doorstop books b/c of the massive Russian tomes I had to read during college. Also, with arthritic hands, heavy hardbacks and thick paperbacks are not comfortable to hold. For long works, e-versions are better.
I just live the feel of a thick book in these hands, but I understand the issues we endure as we age, believe me.
I used to put my hands on the side of a truck and jump into the back. No mas. And now it even hurts to hope out.
You will enjoy this: https://www.facebook.com/1657399495/posts/10228476279086152/
Patricia, the video needs an addendum for those over 50–don’t kneel on that hard metal tailgate as you get down. 😉
You bring up a really good question for both authors and readers and I wrestle with it from both sides of the coin. I’ve never wanted to regularly read 587,000 word books like “War and Peace”, but have historically tended to read books in that sweet spot of 75-100k. I tried to google average book length of a Zane Grey novel but didn’t see results–I assume he was 100k+, not sure. And I LOVED those books.
Yet in the last few years with focus & attention being constantly pulled to other things, I think my tolerance for lengthy work has lowered.
As an author, the first mystery I’ve written comes in just under 60k. My as yet unpubbed historical fiction comes in around 69k.
Bottom line for me is I want to be engaged as a reader regardless of length. While it could have happened & I just don’t remember, I can’t think of an example where I felt cheated by a work of fiction that was too short. On the other hand, I frequently look at book length on Amazon when considering a work of non-fiction, as I do tend to have an “I feel cheated” reaction if I see a not-so-cheap non-fic title for high $$ but low wordcount/page length.
And since now my purchase of books is almost exclusively in e-book form, I’m probably less prone to consider size of a novel then I would be if I were physically picking a book up off the shelf.
Is just prefer to write the story and ignore word counts. Maybe someday.
Much obliged.
When I first started indie author/pubbling, I was inspired by Hugh Howey and his Silo series. So I did 4 novellas in the 40k range (each). The first one was First-Paged right here (remember: man and “his woman” in the canoe?). Then I realized I could put them together into a 160k 578-page Omnibus novel. That’s the one Hollywood optioned.
Now, I like the 50k-60k range for my novels in SciFi and Thriller genres. My stories just sort of end up there.
Speaking of Hollywood. I just wish they’d make films from more original books.
I can’t STAND these superhero flicks.
Congrats on the option!
Even though my contracts are for romantic suspense novels have been 85,000 words, the books have run around 95,000. I have a fabulous editor and she and the publishing house have never required me to cut the stories to meet a particular word count. If it’s flab, it goes. I like to read books that have well developed characters, including secondary characters, themes, and plots. That includes mysteries by authors such as Elizabeth George (Inspector Lynley) and Robert Galbriath (J.K. Rowling’s Cormoran Strike mysteries) that can run over a 1,000 pages. I like the shorter ones too, like the James Scott Bell’s Romeo mysteries. It’s not the word count, but what the writer does with the words that matters to me.
Thanks for the good word, Kelly. I’m of the mass market originals of the 1950s mindset.
One of the most famous bad reviews was one line, written by Ambrose Bierce: “The covers of this book are too far apart.”
I do understand that traditional publishers need to push physical books, and also the reluctance of buyers to buy when a hardback is “too thin.” I remember when Parker’s Spenser books got shorter and the publisher responded by making the margins wider. It felt like a con.
No such restriction on ebooks. I love the freedom to end a novel when, well, it ends.
As a traditionally pubbed author, my contract until recently called for 90K-100K. It’s 80K-85K now and we’ll see how that works out. Most of the romantic suspense books I read run that length–I figure it’s because of printing costs.
You have to have a big idea for the bigger books. A gifted author once told me don’t try to put a 100K-word idea into a 20K-word story or the other way around.
For traditional publishers, there’s a sweet spot for the number of pages and printing prices. One or two pages past or short of that sweet spot, and the printing price changes. That’s why there’s a number of blank pages or a preview in some books. Publishers like Harlequin/Silhouette that send a certain number of books each month to booksellers also factors in the size of the books so they fit into a shipping box at a certain weight. It’s all very soulless and logical but necessary.
Thanks for this post! This is encouraging to me. I’ve only published 2 novels. The most recent one was about 63k words. I worried a little that it wasn’t long enough but I had nothing more to add. I was satisfied with the story. Seeing the list of classic books above is confirmation that, IMHO, size doesn’t matter. I like what Kelly said above, “It’s not the word count, but what the writer does with the words that matters to me.”