Novel Word Count: How Long Should Your Book Be? We Answer for Fiction and More. “My memoir is 270,000 words long.”
I heard these words during a breakout session I led at a local writers conference. An editor friend of mine, Shayla Eaton with Curiouser Editing, was sitting in on the breakout. We gave each other knowing glances, and because I didn’t want to break this poor memoirist’s literary heart, I nodded at Shayla to take the lead. As nicely but as directly as she could, she explained to the memoirist that a 270,000-word memoir was excessive. Even if she self-publishes, the cost per copy would be high, and few readers would slog through such a tome — particularly for someone who’s not famous. And no agents or publishers would even look past that number.
The prose could be as fleet-footed as Fitzgerald’s. So, how long should a memoir be? For that matter, how long should any book be? The short answer is: long enough to tell the story but short enough to consistently hold the reader’s interest. The long answer is, well, longer. Why does novel word count matter? Nonfiction. Writers Treasure Chest Bundle.
Find the Agent Who Will Find You a Publisher. Query letters?
Do literary agents really read them? Agents take queries very seriously, and yes, they really do read them. It’s not some universal rumor that agents have perpetuated because they all have a secret fetish for being bombarded with mail. Sure, agents make it sound like digging through the slush pile is the last priority of their day. Some agents even relegate the ambivalent task of reading unsolicited queries to an assistant or intern. So write a professional, intelligent, concise, intriguing query and not only will you entice an agent to ask for more, but you’ll move yourself one step closer to a book sale. Query Letter Basics A query letter is a single page cover letter, introducing you and your book. A query letter has three concise paragraphs: the hook, the mini-synopsis, and your writer’s biography.
Paragraph One—The Hook: A hook is a concise, one-sentence tagline for your book. Here are a few examples of hooks for well-known novels: Other Great Ways to Start Your Hook: Duotrope: Promotions (Promo Codes) Duotrope is an award-winning resource for writers and artists.
We help writers and artists find places to publish their work quickly and simply, so you can focus more on creating and less on submitting. See for yourself what writers and artists are talking about.Photo by Mohamed Nohassi. Limit one free trial per person. Modern Manuscript Format. William Shunn (he/him) about 1,500 words 12 Courier Place Pica’s Font, NY 12012 (212) 555-1212 format@shunn.net Active member, SCHWA Proper Manuscript Format by Bill Shunn.
Home - Winter/Spring 2020 - Lunch Ticket. Top 24 Magazines for Flash Fiction. It doesn’t matter what you call it — flash fiction, sudden fiction, micro fiction, short-short — stories under 1000 words offer a quick zing of literary delight.
But have you ever wondered whether anyone actually read your flash fiction piece you published online? This list gives you a good idea of how many eyeballs it reached by ranking the markets. I used the analytical program SimilarWeb to estimate the number of monthly visitors each literary journal receives [UPDATED SUMMER 2016], and then I averaged the last three months together. Does this tell you which is the best magazine? Duotrope: Our Features for Writers & Artists. Duotrope was made by creators for creators.We'll help you find publishers for your work, so you can get right back to creating.Photo by Thought Catalog.
Duotrope is the ultimate resource for writers and artists. Here's an overview of our main features: We list over 7,200 active publishers and agents, covering the full spectrum of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction — literary, genre, and academic — as well as visual art. Our listings are comprehensive and regularly maintained by a dedicated staff. Learn more Our advanced search feature includes over 20 search criteria to help writers and artists narrow down our thousands of listings into a manageable number. Start my Free Trial! Duotrope's Listings There are other market resources available to writers and artists.
Our listings are comprehensive. Back to overview Our Search Features Finding the right publisher or agent for your work doesn't need to be like searching for a needle in a haystack.Photo by Calvin Aman. Run powerful custom searches. Current Issue - Flash Fiction Online.