I’m pounding away at the next book in Ulfrik Ormsson’s saga. I’ve come up with some working titles, most of which make me laugh. (I’ll have to share some of these stinkers after the book is out.) I’m trying to do more planning before writing. I realized that I should plan what I would consider to be an ideal book. Doesn’t that just make sense?
Of course it makes sense. But the larger problem, for me anyway, is defining my ideal book.
I started reviewing writer’s resources for guidance on things like word length, chapters, etc. I had some revelations about these resources that I’ll share in a moment. I stopped looking outside myself and just considered what I’ve read and liked. Here’s what I came up with.
- Book lengths between 275 -300 pages (somewhere between 80 -100k words)
- Short chapters and/or scenes
- First person narrators
- Lots of physical action
- Good cover art (hell I judge a book by its cover ALL THE TIME)
- Part of a completed series
I felt that was a telling list. Half of what makes an ideal book for me is the physical aspects of it. Otherwise, I like action told from a first person viewpoint. This was all I came up with, at least at the macro level and without getting into the details of genres. Genre specifics might be another topic one day.
Well, it is what it is. I like shorter books. I get bored by page 500 of an epic fantasy, reading about how the Snail People settled the plains of Dingolbutz over the course of the last century. All while the hero surveys the landscape grimly. I like short chapters and scenes because I feel like a genius covering all that ground while I read. I also read in short sessions throughout the day. Ending on a new scene is convenient when picking up again.
I could go on justifying everything in my list. But I discovered that those are my macro-level preferences. As such that’s how I’ll probably write and publish books as well. I can’t do much about completing the series yet. (I’ll get there.)
Now as for those resources, I found that most of the stuff came from publisher “guidelines” on what certain genres were supposed to be like. I found out that historicals need to clock in at 100 -120k words. I found out first person narration was discouraged for new writers. I found a lot of rules that shoehorn books into prefab forms.
My ideal historical novel by a new writer can’t really exist according to the “guidelines.”
This is where self-publishing really shines. You can write serious historicals that are “only 90,000 words.” A new writer can write in the first person (and hopefully be successful at it). Those guidelines that publishers demand now don’t count at all. Writers can tell the stories they want to tell, and readers can enjoy some variety. No more will I have to read a 600 page fantasy novel puffed up with a guide to the runic language of the Beard-lords of Gumpgar, just so it can hit page requirements.
What do you think? Are you seeing some changes in your favorite genres?
Very nice post today thanks. I really enjoyed reading it very much. Have a great day.
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[…] 33,000 words, which represents about 97 paperback pages. So this is a great milestone for hitting my ideal book length. Even thought the real celebration comes when I hit that “publish” button, it’s […]