The 190 Page Novel - Page 2 - Writers Forum

SeattleCPA · 07-07-2007, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mammamaia

the pros don't count pages... they don't have to,

This is not what mamma meant... and I'm not sure she'd agree that I'm a pro... and this only really applies to non-fiction...but a related concept is that experienced writers know if an idea/concept/approach really represents a book or not.

I.e., after you've learned the hard way how to fill up 300 pages, you instinctly know which ideas have enough weight or meat for a good book... and which don't.

I commonly see journalists--sometimes pulitzer-prize winning journalists who I really like as writers--do a book that should really be a long article. And I think the problem is that the journalist hasn't learned how big the concept needs to be to warrant, e.g., 300pp.

Even more tangential: I advise people (when you're talking non-fiction) to write a couple-three chapters... and then see if you've still got some truly unique content for another couple of chapters.

NOTE: You often sell nonfiction not as a complete book but as a concept and an example chapter. I.e., you don't sell a complete manuscript.

Neo · 07-08-2007, 07:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mammamaia

sorry, but while that does seem to be true for many amateur writers and newbies, it's not with seasoned authors...

the pros don't count pages... they don't have to, since they know about how many their ms' word count will equal from experience... and they also know that their publishers take care of the 'book' end of things, leaving them free to only churn out the words...

Thing is that if I spend six months on a book and get it pubished, only to find that once bound it's only about 89 pages long, I'm gonna feel like crap! Page count is important for the author, the publishers need only worry about word count.

mammamaia · 07-08-2007, 06:05 PM

of course i agree... you're as 'pro' as it gets, steve!...

Quote:

Thing is that if I spend six months on a book and get it pubished, only to find that once bound it's only about 89 pages long, I'm gonna feel like crap! Page count is important for the author, the publishers need only worry about word count.

if a writer doesn't have a clue to how many pages the total word count is likely to come out as, before the ms is submitted, he/she's probably too much of an amateur to even have a chance to get it published...

at roughly 250 words to a properly-formatted ms page, the number of pages in the book won't be that far off from the number of pages you submit!

and why would you care how fat or thin the book is, as long as the publisher's advance check cleared and your name is on the cover?...

the main point here is that 89 pages is such a 'short' book, that if it's not for little kids, you wouldn't be getting it published, anyway... unless you have it vanity/self-published, that is...

valeca · 07-08-2007, 07:04 PM

What is it about the thickness of the book that is so important to you?

SeattleCPA · 07-08-2007, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mammamaia

of course i agree... you're as 'pro' as it gets, steve!...

mammamaia · 07-09-2007, 07:25 PM

hey, what's with the tongue-out, amigo?... or was that a sloppy kiss?

Dawnstorm · 07-10-2007, 08:57 AM

I've seen very slim books with large letters, wide fonts and narrow margins. I've sceen fat books with tiny letters and almost all the page covered in letters. Some books have illustrations, others don't. Some books start a chapter on a new page, others don't. As a new author, you won't have any influence on page layout. Publishers want your word count so that they can plan how many pages they will make your book.

Neo · 07-10-2007, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by valeca

What is it about the thickness of the book that is so important to you?

I'm just concerned about my novel being "a novel," if you see what I mean.

mammamaia · 07-10-2007, 11:08 PM

what will make it a 'novel' is the word count!... not the size of the book when it's printed... and novels are usually over 75,000 words... the 'official' breaking point between novella and novel is down around 40k, but most book publishers want 80-100k for a first adult market novel these days...