Estimating the Length of your Book
I was sitting on my fat ass the other day, lending a blank stare to my first draft when I wondered, how long is this thing going to be if I ever publish a physical copy?
I am not sure how important it is to know this, but I know I wanted to know it. This is also something that you should not worry about in Draft numero uno.
You are probably writing your draft in either Word or Google docs (some of you might be using whatever hipster crap is on Mac) and doing the whole manuscript format thing. Courier New with double spacing between lines, etc.
Thus, the page count doesn't tell you shit.
There has to be a simple way. Right?
Not really, because you got to do some math stuffs and a little research.
I know what you are thinking...Ugh, more research...But it is not that bad. In fact, I went to Quora and asked others how it is done.
What Quora Said for Book Length
According to Michael R. Worthington, "You can estimate the printed length of your novel based on 250 words per 5x8 page. So, divide your word count by 250 to compute an appropriate page count. This is only a rough estimate because the font size, page size, gutter width, the way chapters end, etc."
I tested this and my 12o some page draft would be 300 some pages in a 5x8 format.
The other answer I got was very similar to this, but it did not specify the printed page size. Which leads me to...
Estimate Length Based on Page Size
Novels can be anywhere between 40,000 and 120,000 plus words (sometimes less and sometimes more).
For thrillers, the average seems to be 70-90k words. Take a step up into science fiction and fantasy, then a novel can reach into the six figure ranges. I'm talking epic fantasy like Brandon Sanderson novels.
Then you have to consider the font size and type, chapter breaks, line spacing, word spacing, and character spacing.
The above have to be factored in to figure out what trim size of your book will be.
Mass market paperbacks are about 4.25 x 6.87” and bookstore trade paperbacks are between 5 x 8” to 8 x 10”. This is the trim size, and it will determine your final page count and whether your printed book will be a brick or a board. Bricks, i.e., thick ass small books, are a pain in the ass to read. Kind of like getting clocked by a brick...
You will also have to consider the industry standards for your genre. Some are more flexible than others. For example, comic books are always about 6.6"x10.25".
These are just some factors to consider and mull over while you write and finish up the drafts of your novel. I know it is definitely too soon for me to be writing about this subject, but I am always looking ahead so when I get to the bridge, I will be ready to cross.
Unless it's the "Bridge to Terabithia"...I'm not going to that abyss of tears.
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