Does the number of pages increase when printed as a paperback novel? - Writers Forum

Dan101 · 08-22-2006, 07:14 PM

That title might have been worded oddly... I didnt know how to put it for a title... lol

My question is this: If I have 100 pages (for example) of a story I wrote on Microsoft Word (12 point font, times new roman) would the number of pages increase to more than 100 pages if it was put into paperback form? Im just curious about this because Ive never really known for sure.

Thanks.

mwd · 08-22-2006, 08:08 PM

Short answer: Yes.

Long answer: I've heard that typical novels run anywhere from about 250-350 words per page, as a rough estimate which of course depends on the specific novel and how it's laid out, as well as how densely the writer packs in the words. So you can do a word count in Word, divide by 300 abouts, and see how many pages that gives you. When you format your manuscript for submission (double-spaced twelve-point Courier) that should give you 24-25 lines per page, ~10 words per line, so you should have about 250 words per page (again, this depends a lot on how tightly you pack the words, but it's usually a decent rough estimate), so then your page count will be presumably closer to what it would be if printed. At the end of the day, though, word count matters more than page count.

Ty_lol · 08-22-2006, 08:10 PM

I think it would depend on how you have your microsoft word set up. Like all the margins and stuff. But it would be safe to assume that paperback will be more pages than hardback. Just grab a novel or two and count to see how many words are on a page. Divide that by how many words your work is, and then you should have a pretty good idea.
Ty

Dan101 · 08-22-2006, 08:54 PM

Thanks guys!

I really appreciate the feedback! Ive often wondered if my chapters were too short... Im writing it in 12 point Times New Roman with 1inch borders in Microsoft Word, and my average chapter is about 5 pages of Word Documents. For a while Ive wondered if that would be too short, but I guess youre right; number of pages isnt as important as the number of words.

Thanks guys!

Banzai · 08-23-2006, 04:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan101

number of pages isnt as important as the number of words.

And the actual content and quality of the story is more important again; I can't remember which book, but I know that one book had a chaper consisting of 1 word. So I generally take the stance that if what's written is good, who cares of it's a little short/long/whatever

FrankBlissett · 08-23-2006, 10:24 AM

"Ive often wondered if my chapters were too short"

The length of your chapters doesn't really matter to the reader. Instead, your chapter breaks should be determined by the flow of the prose. If you tend to write your story in bite-sized scenes, then your chapters will naturally be shorter. If you wax on and on, then longer chapters would suit you more.

-Frank

Kane · 08-23-2006, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Banzai

And the actual content and quality of the story is more important again; I can't remember which book, but I know that one book had a chaper consisting of 1 word. So I generally take the stance that if what's written is good, who cares of it's a little short/long/whatever

The publishers will care about the size. Individual chapter size doesn't matter, but as an unpublished writer, you will find it very diffult to get anything less than a full novel published your first time.

Stewart · 08-29-2006, 06:37 AM

Urgh! I just checked out Times New Roman pt 12. I must say, I'm not a fan.

I use Courier New pt 12, double spaced. Much nicer, at least to my eye.

mammamaia · 08-29-2006, 06:34 PM

times is too small and cramped for comfortable reading of piles and piles of 300+ page mss, dan... which is why most agents and editors prefer courier... and while 1" margins saves you paper, the standard is 1.25"...

page count does NOT count... only word count does... length of chapters also doesn't matter... only the writing quality in them does...

it's a waste of time figuring out how many pages your ms will be in book form, because that will depend on how the publisher styles the book, what font is used, whether it'll be in pb or hard cover and assorted other size-determining factors... just be sure your total word count is within the acceptable range for the publishers you're approaching or for the genre you're writing in, if going to agents first... i believe the current average for a first novel is about 100k...

if anyone wants a good format guide, you'll find it here:

http://www.shunn.net/format/

shadowseer · 08-29-2006, 09:50 PM

yes. I had a novel when in regular format was 112 pages long. IN manuscipt format though, it was 145 pages. :^/
So most ;likely, you page count will increase, though that isn't what you should worry about. Editors/publishers don't care about pages, they care about the number of words.

Dan101 · 03-11-2007, 11:10 PM

Hey guys!

I just recently finished my book, and it is 25,918 words by Microsoft Word's wordcount. I think that qualifies for novella doesnt it? o_O

mammamaia · 03-12-2007, 12:09 AM

if it's for an adult market, it probably qualifies as a 'book' nobody will publish, sorry to say... novellas just don't make money... and wouldn't be included in a collection, unless the writer is well known...

you'll need to write three times that much, to have any chance of selling it as a novel... unless it's for the YA crowd... but even then, it's on the short side...

Dan101 · 03-12-2007, 01:23 AM

Hmm. Then perhaps I should think about combining the first three Books into one book, and divide the places in the stories where each book would end by calling them Parts (Part I, Part II, and Part III).

It shouldnt take me as long to write Book/PartII because I have it all planned out on paper, I just need to type it and edit it. Book/PartIII will take some time though.

What are your thoughts on that?

Thanks!!!

EDIT: Looking back at my plans for BookII, it is considerably longer than BookI (already completed), so perhaps I would only have to combine the first two books, rather than the first three.

killned3 · 03-12-2007, 01:28 AM

Sounds like a good enough idea to me... but you probably have the books laid out as though they're to be released as individual installments. Therefore, there will probably be seams between the books that are much more visible when it's a whole as opposed to when it's three differently released books. If there aren't any seams, then great... power to you. :] If there are you might have to change things around at the end of each book. Maybe. I wouldn't know nearly as much as you would.

lisajane · 03-12-2007, 04:40 AM

I would leave each book stand-alone, or combine all three into one. Having books one and two together, and then book three on its own, seems odd.