Words To A Great Novel

November is National Novel Writing Month. It’s where writers commit to writing their novel in one month. Although, I know colleagues who have participated in NaNoWriMo, I didn’t this time around because I enjoy writing at my own pace, but I know the point is to challenge you to actually complete your novel! I don’t know if I could do it because I’d probably spend more time counting the words, instead of actually writing:)

I’m overly concerned about how many words I have to write, in order to finish my WIP. I think this concern might have me taking writing classes, instead of executing what I already know onto the page of my book. So, I’m wondering about this dilemma and have done research into how many words makes for a great novel and one that feels complete.

The general consensus is that publishers are interested in the word count of a completed manuscript. If published authors or publishers can add to the dialogue on this, please enlighten us. Because I want to go the traditional publishing route with my WIP, I wouldn’t feel comfortable with less than 50,000 words, although I read an 80 page eBook recently and enjoyed it! Still, eBooks could be the exception, instead of the rule.

I’m in agreement with the quote that says, “Easy reading is damn hard writing.” I want to know what’s going to make the writing process easier for me at this point with my WIP. I want to know how many words it takes before a book is complete?
30,000 words equal roughly 100 pages of a manuscript. Granted if you’re writing an e-book, finishing at this point could suffice and satisfy the reader.
I’ve reviewed books up to 300 pages and I’m not trying to hear that:) but popular opinion amongst writers is that you write until you know you have nothing else to say.

Here’s what I found from doing a bit of research on the acceptable length for writing a novel.

Novellas could equal up to 20,000 words
Novels are 40, 000 to 60,000 words and above
Memoirs are debatable personal works. I once read a memoir with only 80 pages and enjoyed it. The normal length seems to take shape around 30,000 to upwards of 50,000 words.

I want to hear from published authors and those writers who are still doing the hard work, leading to the road to publication. How many words did it take for you to get to the sweet end of your Novel?