Well, it's really hard to pin down a specific word count for best - selling novels. Some epic fantasy best - sellers can have word counts in the hundreds of thousands, like 'A Song of Ice and Fire' series which has books with very high word counts to accommodate the complex plots and numerous characters. On the other hand, contemporary romance best - sellers might be shorter, perhaps around 50,000 - 80,000 words. It all depends on what the market and readers are willing to embrace at a given time.
In the mystery genre, best - selling novels often range from 60,000 - 90,000 words. For instance, Agatha Christie's novels usually fall within this range. Her works are known for their concise yet engaging mystery plots. In science fiction, some best - sellers can be much longer. Take Isaac Asimov's 'Foundation' series. These books can have word counts over 100,000 words as they need to build complex futuristic worlds and concepts.
One of the best methods is to use the built - in features of your text editor. Many popular text editors such as Scrivener have a word count function. It's convenient because you can directly access it while working on the novel within the editor.
The best word count for fanfic really depends on the type of story you want to tell. If it's a quick drabble or a short vignette, maybe 500 - 1,000 words is sufficient. But if you're aiming for a more in - depth, novel - like fanfic, 20,000 - 50,000 words could be a good range. Also, consider your audience. Some readers prefer shorter works they can finish in one sitting, while others enjoy getting lost in a long, detailed fanfic.
Well, it really varies. Novels aimed at a more literary adult audience might be on the shorter side, say around 50,000 - 70,000 words. But if we're talking about commercial adult fiction, like romance or thriller novels for adults, they often range from 70,000 - 100,000 words. Longer, more complex adult novels can be 130,000 - 180,000 words or more.
We can learn about the pacing. For example, shorter word counts might suggest a faster - paced, more plot - driven story. Longer word counts could mean more in - depth character development or complex world - building.
There's no one - size - fits - all answer. However, generally, a short story can range from about 1,500 to 30,000 words. For very short ones, like flash fiction, it could be as few as 500 words. If you're aiming for a traditional short story for a literary magazine, around 3,000 - 5,000 words is often a good target. It gives you enough space to develop characters, plot, and theme without getting too long - winded.
There's no one - size - fits - all answer. However, a novella in literary fiction might be around 20,000 - 40,000 words. A short story could be as few as 1,500 - 5,000 words. For a full - length novel, it can range from 80,000 to 120,000 words on average. But some literary masterpieces have been much longer or shorter. It really depends on the story you want to tell and how you tell it.