How long is a novel?
And perhaps more importantly, how long should your novel be?
You might think this doesn’t really matter. After
all, surely what’s important is that your novel is well-structured and well-paced; that your protagonist has an engaging character arc, and that your ending satisfies the reader.
However, if you’ve written something that’s 20,000 words, readers will feel cheated if you describe it as a novel. Similarly, if it’s 500,000 words, that’s probably a whole trilogy (or more) of novels.
Whether you’re aiming for traditional publication or planning to self-publish, you want your writing to fit in with what readers expect.
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