Down Under Wonderings: Elected Blog Tour Guest Post: Category and Genre Word Counts

Today I'm sharing an upcoming release. This is one book you

don't want to miss! The kickstarter to this book will be available

today on Kickstarter. You will be able to get a copy of

ELECTED in hardcover and/or paperback with a free ebook, a lot

of special limited-edition items and other free books from best-

selling sci-fi authors who wanted to help ELECTED succeed.

Don't wait; get your copy today!

Curious about how long your favorite authors' books are?

Below are the industry standards for each genre. ELECTED

started at 100K words in its first draft, but my agent

encouraged me to get it down to 90K so it would fit into

publishing submission guidelines?

What do you think? Is it right to stick to these numbers or

should writers just write down a good story, no matter the

word count?

Average Word Counts

Micro-Fiction - up to 100 words 

Flash Fiction - 100 - 1,000 words, usually no more than 500. 

Short Story - 1,000 - 7,500 words 

Novellette - 7,500 - 18,000 words 

Novella -20,000 - 45,000 words 

General Novel - 50,000 -110,000

Genre Guidelines

Picture Books -200-500 words 

Early Readers - 500-2000 words 

Chapter Books - 5,000-10,000 words 

Middle Grade - 25,000-45,000 words, most averaging 35k.

 Young adult - 55,000-90,000 words  - YA contemporary
tends to be on the shorter side, 60-70k  -

YA fantasy, sci-fi, and paranormal tends to fall on the longer side due to world building, 70-90k 

Adult - 70,000-115,000 words  -

Romance - 85,000-100,000 words  -

Cozy Mysteries - 70,000-85,000 words  -

Mysteries, Horror, Crime - 75,000-95,000 words, most averaging 90k  -

Sci-fi and Fantasy - 80,000-120,000 words, most averaging 100k-115k  -

Literary and Women's Fiction - 80,000-100,000 words

Divergent by Veronica Roth was long at about 105,000. And the first Harry Potter book was about 77,000.

ELECTED by Rori Shay

Silence in the Library Publishing

YA Sci-fi

April 22, 2014

Blurb:

It's the year 2185, and in two weeks, Aloy will turn eighteen and take her father's place as president of the country. But to do so, she must masquerade as a boy to avoid violating the Eco-Accords, four treaties designed to bring the world back from the brink of environmental extinction. Aloy hopes to govern like her father, but she is inheriting a different country. The long concealed Technology Faction is stepping out of the shadows, and as turmoil grows within her country, cryptic threats also arrive from beyond the borders.

As she struggles to lead, Aloy maintains her cover by marrying a woman, meanwhile battling feelings for the boy who knows her secret - the boy who is somehow connected to her country's recent upheaval. When assassination attempts add to the turmoil, Aloy doesn't know whom to trust. She understood leadership required sacrifice. She just didn't realize the sacrifice might be her life.

Author Bio:

Rori Shay is an author living in the Washington, DC area with her family, black lab, and cat - just not quite in the same exciting circumstances as ELECTED’s main character, Aloy. She enjoys running, gardening, reading, doing yoga, and volunteering with the Dwelling Place non-profit. Rori is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).

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