Kids books length?

Baryonyx · May 30, 2010

So, pretty much msot websites I've been on say that for first time writers most publishers won't accept anything below 70 thousand words.

Does this apply to kids books aimed for kids around 9-11?

My WIP is in line to be around 30 thousand words, kinda worried that I won't stand a chance of getting it published because it doesn't reach the old 70 thousand recommended word count

Will it really matter since it's a kids book and they usually seem to be alot shorter than other novels?

Thanks

C.T. Richmond · May 30, 2010

Hi Zelfiris!

I don't think you need to worry.

Colleen Lindsay wrote a fantastic post on manuscript lengths awhile ago and she stated:

Middle grade fiction = Anywhere from about 25k to 40k, with the average at about 35k

So you're well within the MG range! Good luck with your book.

Smish · May 30, 2010

Zefiris said:
So, pretty much msot websites I've been on say that for first time writers most publishers won't accept anything below 70 thousand words.

Does this apply to kids books aimed for kids around 9-11?

My WIP is in line to be around 30 thousand words, kinda worried that I won't stand a chance of getting it published because it doesn't reach the old 70 thousand recommended word count

Will it really matter since it's a kids book and they usually seem to be alot shorter than other novels?

Thanks

Children's books can be much shorter than adult novels. There's a sticky that tells you now to use the Renlearn website to find word counts of novels. It can sometimes be helpful to find the word counts of your favorite modern-day children's books.

Baryonyx · May 31, 2010

Thanks C.T and Smish

Debbie V · May 31, 2010

Hi Zefris,

The best advice I've gotten is to write the best story you can using the fewest words possible. That way every word is working hard. After that, whatever length it is, it is.

Everything else is a guideline. Wait until your final revision to worry about guidelines.

Of course, there are things like price points - if a book seems really short in the store, buyers might not feel they're getting their money's worth. But you have no idea what will happen economically between now and when you're done, or when the publisher brings it to market.

First comes story.

-Debbie

Ivan_B · Jun 1, 2010

My MG book, currently in an auction between three publishers, is 24,000 words. Two of the three publishers want me to cut it down. With something like sci-fi, you might want it to be a bit longer. But there's a myth that kids' books are better when longer. The fact is, as Debbie said above, if the story doesn't want to be long, don't you dare make it long.
It really does depend on what sort of content you have as well, just like with adult novels. Don't think that a certain age group has a certain word count, just as adult novels don't have a certain word count. It totally depends on the content.

Cyia · Jun 1, 2010

Ivan_B said:
Don't think that a certain age group has a certain word count, just as adult novels don't have a certain word count. It totally depends on the content.

No, it doesn't totally depend on the content.

Books are put into ranges for a reason, and that reason comes down to money. A 25,000 word book might work for MG, but it wouldn't for an adult novel. The cost to produce a 25K adult novel would be prohibitive if the book's in print (some e-publishers would consider it as a novella). The publisher couldn't price it high enough to recoup their investment because a reader isn't going to put out the same money for an 80-100 page novella that they will for a 350-450 page novel.

And MG can be a lot longer than 25K. Most top out around 50K, but there are writers on this board with books in print, current books with current publishers, that are 80K for MG.

shaldna · Jun 1, 2010

It's all about age range and genre.

In terms of an MG then you're really looking to 25k or there abouts, sometimes longer. Look at the MG books on the shevles in a bookshop. Most about about 100 pages long, give or take.

EagerReader · Jun 1, 2010

I'm a bit worried. My ms was at 57k and I was invited to revise and resub and now it's at about 65k. Perhaps I should trim in the areas I didn't add. (They wanted more character depth) I've read a lot of middle grade lately and some are short and some are much longer. Does it have anything to do with targeting upper vs. lower middle grade?

The agent wasn't too specific about what was expected. I don't want to jeopardize my chances by sending them a doorstop.

Smish · Jun 1, 2010

EagerReader said:
I'm a bit worried. My ms was at 57k and I was invited to revise and resub and now it's at about 65k. Perhaps I should trim in the areas I didn't add. (They wanted more character depth) I've read a lot of middle grade lately and some are short and some are much longer. Does it have anything to do with targeting upper vs. lower middle grade?

The agent wasn't too specific about what was expected. I don't want to jeopardize my chances by sending them a doorstop.

I wouldn't worry about ER. 65K is not in the "Holy cow, that's ridiculously long" range. As long as every word counts (needs to be there), it should be fine.

Ivan_B · Jun 1, 2010

Cyia said:
No, it doesn't totally depend on the content.

Books are put into ranges for a reason, and that reason comes down to money. A 25,000 word book might work for MG, but it wouldn't for an adult novel. The cost to produce a 25K adult novel would be prohibitive if the book's in print (some e-publishers would consider it as a novella). The publisher couldn't price it high enough to recoup their investment because a reader isn't going to put out the same money for an 80-100 page novella that they will for a 350-450 page novel.

And MG can be a lot longer than 25K. Most top out around 50K, but there are writers on this board with books in print, current books with current publishers, that are 80K for MG.

I suppose what I meant was that the length of MG can vary (proportionately) just as much as an adult novel can. We are often told that MG has to be so and so long, but this ignores what sort of genre, style, etc...
I'm not saying that MG and adult books should be the same, just that they both vary wildly.

MsJudy · Jun 1, 2010

Ivan B, that is very encouraging about the length of your book. I've seen a few agents saying they won't rep an MG book under 30K, which seemed like a weird arbitrary thing to me. Good to hear that it isn't becoming some sort of hard and fast rule.

Smish · Jun 1, 2010

JudScotKev said:
Ivan B, that is very encouraging about the length of your book. I've seen a few agents saying they won't rep an MG book under 30K, which seemed like a weird arbitrary thing to me. Good to hear that it isn't becoming some sort of hard and fast rule.

I wonder if there is a UK vs US difference, though. It does seem that more and more US agents/publishers are leaning toward 30k +.

Kids books length?

Baryonyx

C.T. Richmond

Sloths are awesome

Smish

Reads more than she writes.

Baryonyx

Debbie V

Mentoring Myself and Others

Ivan_B

of Rassilon

Cyia

Rewriting My Destiny

shaldna

The cake is a lie. But still cake.

EagerReader

commaholic and adverb junkie

Smish

Reads more than she writes.

Ivan_B

of Rassilon

MsJudy

Smish

Reads more than she writes.