How long is a typical nonfiction book

Its a perennial question asked by writers of all genres. To do so takes little to no marketing talent or skill, although it does require an awful lot of writing. If you have any questions about how long your book should be, feel free to contact me and we can figure out your book vision and word count together. The longest nonfiction book i know of is church dogmatics, writter originally in german, by the greatest theologian of the 20th century, karl barth 18861968.

The graph shows the average length of the top 100 bestsellers in each of the 30 main amazon kindle categories, measured in terms of the number of pages. All book publishers and book designers have a standard they go by to estimate page length. In my opinion, if your nonfiction book is fewer than about 30,000 words 120 pages, it does not feel substantial enough to be real book. Apr 02, 2012 how long should a book proposal be to capture the attention of the publishing world. Popular long form nonfiction books goodreads share book. Know your content, know your mainline pitch and some. If you are planning to write a 200page book, then at 250words per page you are aiming for 50,000 words total.

How long should an intro be typically for a nonfiction book. Jun 24, 2019 if you take the above authors and their 51 titles, they averaged 12,455 lifetime copies sold for each book published. If youre ready to start a book club, heres 40 of the best book club questions, for fiction and nonfiction alike. So then its just a matter of how much you have to say or the length your contract calls for. Considerwaking up under a dead horsecould be a bad day or bad days work. Is it okay to mention your previously published skeletons to an agent when querying. I thought id answer it for everyone, since manuscript length really is on writers minds. That extra length gives the book more heft and can be a fatter book on the shelfthereby having more perceived value. For example most short fiction runs at 200 pages about 50,000 words romance, westerns etc.

Apr 05, 2015 it word count 274,407 and page count 417. Probably too long for a first book, only go this long if youve got a best seller under. Is that length related to the average length of the chapters perhaps. Why your nonfiction book chapters are so important write. The length of your book will depend on a number of considerations. Book writing and publishing faq how long should my. Very much too long to be a short story, and very much too short to be a novel. Of course, rules are made to be broken, especially in literature.

May 11, 2009 more to the point, if the market for 5yearolds is defined by short books say, 80 pages long with a bit of simple text aimed precisely at that age group and with quite a few illustrations, then offering a publisher a book that is double the length and without a precise target age group just wont fly. Instead of writing the entire book, then trying to interest an editor or agent which is how it works with novels, you write the proposal first. This is about the length readers want for general nonfiction, and it keeps publishers happy given the high cost of paper. Writing mine helped me see more clearly what i planned to revise, reframe, and refine in my work, and that was extremely useful.

Make sure your book title answers the readers question wiifm if your book is nonfiction. Thats the level where publishers may suggest dividing a story into multiple volumes. What should be included in the introduction to a nonfiction book. Here is what kristen eckstein from the book ninja had to say about how long your kindle book should be. When talking about book length, its common to talk about word count rather than page count. The length should be determined by the story itself, and as long as you do your job. Generally speaking, traditional publishers expect completed nonfiction book manuscripts to be between 50,000 to 75,000 words. Book length average length of a non fiction book one of the questions that new writers always ask is how long should my nonfiction book be. How long should a book proposal be to capture the attention of the publishing world. For years ive thought writing short books was better than long books.

A book that appears too short looks like it wont satisfy, while a book that appears too long looks like it will bore you. Most traditional publishers will place restrictions on an author and require that the manuscript not. And for every book that sells 20,000, there is one that is a disaster. Howdy, same questionanswer as paragraphor sentence. In 2017, the downward trend has continued, with an average book length of 273 pages. If you think about the math it changes from 100 pages to one around 140 pages. A typical nonfiction book ranges between 55,000 and 80,000 words. A typical number is 12 to 18 but you might have 8 or even 25. T he indie author chris fox coined the term potato chip chapters for easilydigestible book chapters of a certain size. If you start writing without a good outline template, the process will take forever and your book will be haphazard and incomplete.

Apr 07, 2014 i get this question a lot, and its a valid oneespecially since the answer can be divided between traditionally published books and selfpublished books. Of course, its not the writing that takes a long while. Probably too long for a first book, only go this long if youve got a bestseller under. Amazon ebook page length by genre kindle page length. In 2011, the average length of a bestselling nonfiction book was 467 pages, but that dropped to 273 pages in 2017. When i know exactly what i want to say, 3k5k words a day is pretty easy. Your chapter structure needs to be in proportion to the overall length of the book. By reading quickly, learning and doing, your reader will get good value, even from what you might consider to be a shorter book. Since 2011, the average length of a bestseller has dropped steadily from year to year. And remember, keeping to word counts is important, but what makes or breaks your chances with a publisher is. As long as your book is professionally producedit has a great cover and comprehensive editingthen you have every reason to be proud that you took control and.

I get this question a lot, and its a valid oneespecially since the answer can be divided between traditionally published books and selfpublished books. So my question on this post is there like a standard rule on how long an introduction to a non fiction book should be. On one level, you could argue that word count, or length, is probably the last thing a fiction writer should worry about. That means your manuscript must be at least 3540,000 words long. The average nonfiction book is about 50,000 to 75,000 words, which is about 153 to 230 ebook pages. If you picked up a scifi or historical novel from a bookshelf, you wouldnt be surprised if it was pretty hefty and probably had a dragon on the cover. This is not an uncommon length in traditional publishing, especially in my observation for nonfiction books that are heavy on research. The easy part of this question is the writing part. But, most nonfiction publishers want to be sold the concept, and therefore be able to discuss the direction of the project, before you write the book. Concerning how to pitch it, gene, my first advice is to expand it into a novellength work at least 80,000 words. It acts as a business case or business plan for your book that persuades a publisher to make an investment. Even though ive been writing good for the most part most of my life i am finally writing a book. A frequent speaker at business events and on the radio, she has been featured in entrepreneur, businessweek, and wired magazine.

Thus i usually say that the average book sells 10,000 copies with a major publisher. However part why the new writers, the answer is difficult to identify because the answer is so difficult. For any nonfiction book, the book title or subtitle must immediately tell them what results the book will give them. Your book outline is the structure of your book, and thus incredibly important. With that in mind, ive tried to put together the definitive post on word count for fiction novels, young adult, middle grade, childrens. Each manuscript should be long enough to adequately tell its story.

But theres no reason not to have more or fewer chapters. Im not sure if im pushing the word count over, been trying cut back the word count. If thats not a possibility, then you can simply look for the few agents out there who do represent things such as novellas and short story. The introduction to your nonfiction book should clearly and concisely explain what the book is about, what the reader can expect to gain from the book, the motivation behind the book, and any background the story behind the story that may be interesting and relevant. Were doing ask the agent this month your chance to ask that question youve always wanted to discuss with a literary agent. Your guide to book word counts fiction and nonfiction. You may object that your 200,000word saga is exactly as long as it needs to be. With upper middle grade, you can aim for 40,000 55,000 words. If they want a 6 x 9 book, this is only about 66 pagesalmost not a book. That number actually lines up pretty well with the data we have on this, but again, that number should neither be. Less than 100 pages and it becomes difficult for a printer to print the title of the book on the spine. Writing a book is no small project, of course, but sometimes i wonder what took me so long to write and revise and revise and revise and revise and revise 85,000 words. Ultimately, you need to check the local bookstore to determine the appropriate size.

How to choose a bestselling book title for fiction or nonfiction. Better to have solid, clear information than rambling to make a page count. Stephanie chandler is the founder of the nonfiction authors associationand nonfiction writers conference, and author of several books including the nonfiction book publishing plan and the nonfiction book marketing plan. How long will it take to write your nonfiction book. October 7, 2010 by david 4 comments a very common question among aspiring writers is related to how much they actually need to write before their nonfiction manuscript can be considered complete. In other words no pun intended, tell your story in as many words as necessaryno more, no less. There are plenty of examples of very long books in just about every genre. Many authors want to know how long it will take to write their book.

Someone wrote me to ask, what does an average first book deal pay. Minimum realistic word count of nonfiction book writing. To find out how long should a chapter be, we examined books from a wide variety of genres and eras. Be aware that the word average means that for every book that sells 15,000, there is one that sells 5,000.

A memoir is a work of art much more than the typical nonfiction book. Oct 10, 2016 the right answer to how long should my book be. Aug 05, 2019 a novel should be as long as it needs to be same with nonfiction and no longer and no shorter. Extra long is usually around 400 pages 100,000 words although it can go beyond. This, too, like a chapter ending, gives the reader a chance to put down the book, to come back later to continue reading. What it actually takes to earn a six figure income writing nonfiction books. But if all their books only sold 10,000 copies, they might struggle financially. At the other end of the spectrum a book of 80,000 to 100,000 words has significant heft, 320400 pages. And a typical howto nonfiction book might need between 7 and 12 chapters to do this. By on 06192012 with comments 2 generally speaking, traditional publishers expect completed nonfiction book manuscripts to be between 50,000 to 75,000 words. A nonfiction book attractive to publishers of bestsellers starts at around 75,000 words. If you do not use a lot of sidebars, bulleted and numbered lists, and boxed texts, your reader may be daunted by how long a chapter iseven if you have headers every few pages.

If yours is too short, restructure it and add more tightly written stuff. Minimum realistic word count of nonfiction book writing stack. I believe your book will morph and evolve throughout the writing, and so those first few chapters, though written, will not actually be complete until youve finished the book. The glass castle by jeannette walls, mans search for meaning by viktor e. Realize it over the maximum word count for erotic, science fictionfantasy genre.

Generally speaking, traditional publishers expect completed nonfiction book. But i also know of others who have sold over 500,000 copies. How to outline a nonfiction book with free template. Christacarol asked this question of how long should a childrens book be via email. When you read a book, you may take the structure for granted. I almost hesitate to get into the childrens book length discussion publicly because it can be controversial. Id guesstimate that nonfiction books generally yes, this is very rough run perhaps 150450 pages, and at about 350 wd page that works out to something like 50150k words. I hope this information has helped you gain clarity about your book. As a writing coach and copyeditor, i see a lot of manuscripts come across my desk. Publishing a book is a long and bumpy road, but tackling the proposal is an important first step that can help clear some mental obstacles out of your path.

Oct 18, 2017 a chapter should be as long as it needs to be. Specifically, an accessible nonfiction book might be anything between about 30,000 words and 50,000 words. May 14, 2018 neither too long nor too short, this book length signals a novelists competency and knowledge of the publishing market to prospective agents and editors. If yes, then most publishers still work on specific word count lengths for books so youll probably be aiming for around 60,00080,000 words for nonfiction. As always, be sure to keep it interesting so you can justify the word length. The average fiction book is about 80,000 to 100,000 words, which is about. However, the drop in the overall average length of bestsellers over the last 7 years points to a marked. From these numbers, we can establish some guidelines. It really depends on the topics of your chapters and how much your text is broken up. I know of an author with a very large publisher whose novel has sold only 1,087 copies in its lifetime. And if we read nonfiction, we want answers, solutions, transformation right nownot 200 pages from now.

Generally, 50,000 would be considered the minimum word count, and ideally a novel should be over 70,000 words. In a typical contemporary book, you will have between 60,000 and 90,000 words. One of the questions that a new writer often asks is how long should my book be. Word count for novels and books is something i dont think about too often until i travel to a writers conference, and then someone asks a simple, innocent question. What is a reasonable estimate for the minimum length, in word count, for a nonfiction book. Like with a first novel, you are going to discover so much in the writing process. The average nonfiction book, if such a thing exists, runs about 50,000 to 75,000 words, but this can vary depending upon category. These are books that resemble young adult in matter and storytelling. It makes quite a difference whether you want to publish a childrens picture book, a 50recipe smoothie book, a science fiction novel or a technical encyclopedia.

You might be more surprised if a ya novel required olympianlevel arm strength to lift. A minimum count for a nonfiction ebook is about 10,000 words, as long as the content is solid. You can use this guideline to help you set a realistic goal for word count, based on the average word counts of the different. The next step is long fiction at 300 pages about 75,000 words. A literary agent on 6 figure book advances for first time. The graph shows the average length of the top 100 bestsellers in each of the 30 main amazon kindle categories, measured in terms of the number of. If you think of a certain kind of novel, you will probably not only imagine a certain kind of story, but also how slim or hefty the book will feel in your hand. There is no hard and fast rule for how long your manuscript should be when you selfpublish. Thus, one could say each manuscript should be as long as it needs to be. Like novels, these books fall into the 70,000 to 120,000word range. One popular example of a contemporary novel is simon vs. How many hours does it take to write a nonfiction book. Indeed, most traditional publishers limit nonfiction authors to 80,000 words for standard 6 x 9 books, between 240 and 280 pages. Book writing and publishing faq how long should my nonfiction book be.

Feb 24, 2015 a typical number is 12 to 18 but you might have 8 or even 25. How to get your book published in 6 painful steps sam harris. So should i stay with this word count, or try to bring the word count down. As long as the book is written well and keeps the readers attention, the length doesnt matter. And can you explain how money is paid on a traditional publishing. Easygoing, fairly light, userfriendly, nonfiction book for the masses. If the average length is 300 pages, youre looking at a 75,000 word manuscript approximately one reason its harder for a new author to sell a 140,000 word manuscript is the size of the book. The time we have to read has decreased, we are all in a hurry, and we are distracted. If the content is stepbystep and high quality, 15 pages is enough for a 99 cent kindle book or a freebie used for lead generation. This isnt to say that long books are no longer succeeding.

The average nonfiction book, if such a thing exists, runs about 50,000 words. A literary agent explains book advances for first time authors. Never pad your manuscript just to meet a wordcount guideline. On the upper end, a novel over 110,000 words is considered an epic. Worse, having no outline often leads to not finishing your book at all. What i look for when i read a nonfiction book is a persuasive case for why i need this book, why this book will answer all my questions, and why this author is going to do the best job of informing me in the most enjoyable way possible.

A novel should be as long as it needs to be same with nonfiction and no longer and no shorter. So my question on this post is there like a standard rule on how long an introduction to a nonfiction book should be. When writing a longer book that is aimed at 12yearolds and could maybe be considered tween, using the term upper middle grade is advisable. But a nonfiction book s chapters create a structure and a map. And even for fiction books, it can still be an important piece to choosing a bestselling title. Youll also find printable book club questions at the end of this post to bring to.