READER’S FORUM

September 13, 2022 at 11:54 am Reply

Jade

How many words are usually in your books for MG? Specifically, chapters, if you know. I just re-wrote a chapter that was previously 5,797 words and now it's 2,976. So what's your average word count per MG book or chapter? Wish me luck. I've got so much more to write, but now I've got a plan!
September 14, 2022 at 04:07 am Reply

Gordon Korman

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Hi, Jade, working on something fun, as usual!

My books average between 50,000 to 60,000 words. I should mention that my first novel, THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING AT MACDONALD HALL, was a little over 25,000 words. There were opinions in literary circles back in the early days that considered any book less than 25,000 words was not a novel. With today's literary styles and the way they vary, I'm not sure what the rules are. I just keep plugging away, and the word count usually comes out more or less the same, which may even be a tribute to my planning skills! Who can say? My advice is to do the same and count the words later.

OK? -----GK-----
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Hi, Jade, working on something fun, as usual!

My books average between 50,000 to 60,000 words. I should mention that my first novel, THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING AT MACDONALD HALL, was a little over 25,000 words. There were opinions in literary circles back in the early days that considered any book less than 25,000 words was not a novel. With today's literary styles and the way they vary, I'm not sure what the rules are. I just keep plugging away, and the word count usually comes out more or less the same, which may even be a tribute to my planning skills! Who can say? My advice is to do the same and count the words later.

OK? -----GK-----