Blog • Understanding Publishing
Last updated on Dec 22, 2025
How Long is a Short Story or Novella? (Updated for 2026)
Martin Cavannagh
Head of Content at Reedsy, Martin has spent over eight years helping writers turn their ambitions into reality. As a voice in the indie publishing space, he has written for a number of outlets and spoken at conferences, including the 2024 Writers Summit at the London Book Fair.
View profile →In book publishing, the average length of a novel will be influenced by its genre (sci-fi epics are much longer than romance novels, for example). Those averages are a reflection of publishing norms rather than any hard-and-fast rule. But with novellas, novelettes, and short stories, word counts are crucial as they’re the only defining features of these formats.
In this post, we’ll show you how long a novella, novelette, and short story are — and reveal the word counts for popular examples of all three. But if all you're after is a quick answer, here they are:
- Novella: 17,500 – 40,000 words (according to the Nebula and the Hugos)
- Novelette: 7,700 – 17,500 words
- Short Story: Generally 1,500 – 7,500 words, but can range from 500 to 10,000 words
- Flash fiction: Less than 1,500 words
Why is word count so important?
‘Too long’ and ‘too short’ are rarely criticisms of a story's length but a comment on how well-written the piece is. There are 150,000-word epics that readers will effortlessly breeze through, and we’ve certainly read our fair share of short stories that seemingly drag on forever.
Q: How important is it for first-time authors to adhere to standard word counts, and what flexibility do they have based on genre or target audience?
Suggested answer
In a very loose way, it's important to adhere to genre standards in word count simply because they've developed over time in response to what works best in the market. There are always exceptions, but those are usually backed up by an established author or sweeping support from retailers, librarians, or the media backing the book.
BUT FIRST: write the book you want! This is your book, and you can always edit it down or beef it up. It's important to write for yourself first, because the best story will come out of that. And if you change it later, so be it. Don't let market expectations stop your drafting or creative process!
Grace is available to hire on Reedsy ⏺
It's incredibly important, not because authors shouldn't be able to bend or break the rules, but because these "standard word counts" are systemic. It isn't agents insisting on word counts for no reason; it filters from book buyers to internal publishing salespeople, then to editors and agents.
Having too few words can be worse than having too many. Think about the end goal: you want readers to buy your book. If they feel like they're getting less than they paid for then they won't buy the book. For example, if you wrote 30,000 words when most books in your genre are more like 60,000-70,000 words, then readers looking at your book compared to a competitor might be inclined to think the book that has more words has more heft and therefore is more worth their money.
When it comes to too-high word counts, then you run into a different issue and that's with publishing costs. it costs money to print pages, and if you've written 500,000 words, then that book is going to cost even more to produce (not only the paper in such an extreme case, but also in the binding of that book to make sure it holds up). If it costs more to create, then that can negatively impact publishers' profits. If a publisher is evaluating your work that's 500,000 words versus a similar work that's only 125,000 words, why wouldn't they choose the shorter book? It also takes up less physical space on a bookshelf, so bookstores might be able to keep more copies on the shelf.
Genre and target age range here are the great determining factors. Epic Fantasy, for example, which takes place in a world not our own, usually requires a higher word count for the simple fact that the world has to be built. Nonfiction business books, on the other hand, are usually around 60,000 words, as those readers don't need to be transported to another world, but instead need to have points clearly articulated.
Matt is available to hire on Reedsy ⏺
If you're planning on querying agents and going the traditional route, then adhering to standard word count expectations is essential. Are there exceptions to the rules? Sure, but you never want to plan on being the exception to the rule when you're already going up against long odds.
Querying is incredibly competitive, and an agent seeing that your manuscript is already in the target word count range for your genre tells them that you're probably aware of market expectations and have given real thought to your project's development. On the other hand, if they see a word count that's 20k outside the realm of expectations, that tells them they're either going to have to work with you to get the word count down/up, or potentially have a more difficult time selling your project to publishers.
On the other hand, if you're planning on self-publishing, word count isn't all that important. You don't want to write something the length of a short story and call it a novel, but the important thing in the self-publishing world is to tell a good story. Whether your mystery novel is 30k words, 60k words, 90k words, or even 130k words, your readers won't care as long as the story is great, whereas an agent would likely say no immediately if they saw a query for a 30k or 130k mystery novel, without even getting past that first sentence of your query where they'd see the word count.
If you don't know whether or not you plan to publish traditionally, the best way to set yourself up for success is to research the target word count range for your genre/audience, and then adhere to that expectation as closely as possible. Do be aware that word count expectations can change over time, so you want to make sure that your source for target word count is fairly recent.
That said, if you don't want to put extra pressure on yourself to meet industry standards before you're even done drafting, then there's no reason to focus on anything other than writing the best story you can; then, once you're done, you can take a look at word count expectations, hire a developmental editor to get expert eyes on your novel, and decide from there what makes the most sense for a publication plan.
Jennifer is available to hire on Reedsy ⏺
In writing a story, recommended word counts only really come into play when you’re weighing up your publishing options. For example, literary magazines typically have strict limits to the length of short stories they will print. After all, they have a limited number of pages for each issue (and their editors only have so many hours in the week to edit manuscripts).
Publishers can be fussy about word count
Novellas are usually sold at a lower price point than novels. This (combined with the fact that a 30,000-word book and an 80,000-word one cost roughly the same to edit, design, and market) means that editors at major presses are generally reluctant to take on novellas — and even less likely to seek out novelettes. The exception, of course, would be those written by established writers with an existing readership. For this reason, authors with traditional publishing aspirations are often discouraged from putting all their eggs in the novella basket.
In the world of indie publishing, where readers overwhelmingly buy ebooks, the distinction between a novel and novella, for example, is less crucial. As prospective readers can’t see how thick the spine of your book is, you don’t really have to label it as a novel, novella, or novelette.
In the next few sections, we’ll dash through the generally-accepted word counts for novellas, novelettes, and short stories.
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How long is a novella?
A novella is a work of fiction with a word count between 17,500 words and 40,000 words. This range is commonly cited by literary organizations such as the Hugo and Nebula awards — both of which celebrate novellas in the science fiction genre (as well as fantasy, in the case of the Nebulas.
Q: Is there a viable market for novellas written by debut authors, and what factors contribute to their success?
Suggested answer
Generally, for big US publishers, no. Novellas are a marketing tool to attract readers to the author's other books under contract. That's why you'll often see novella collections with one big name author and several smaller ones--they're trying to expand the reach of those smaller authors. So it doesn't make a lot of sense for publishers to by a novella from a debut author with no other books under contract. However, novellas do exceptionally well in self publishing, e-publishers, and smaller independent publishers. Gear your queries/submissions towards those outlets.
Megan is available to hire on Reedsy ⏺
Mainstream publishers, at least in the UK, are not keen on short fiction of any type. If an established money-making author wants to do a novella, it will be published, to keep the writer happy.
There may be a market for online self-publishing. Have a look at sites like Amazon where people put out their own stuff, look for novellas and see if you can find out how they're doing. It may even be possible to contact writers to ask this - I don't know.
Vicki is available to hire on Reedsy ⏺
Novellas are extremely hard to place with the traditional Big 5 publishers. Debuts, in general, are also becoming hard to place with such a competitive market. However, there is still a hungry market for them. Self-published authors frequently publish novellas and readers love them! Independent publishers often take chances on novellas and debuts, especially if you're writing in specific genres like horror and fantasy. If you're having trouble getting an agent to take on your novella, try self-publishing or researching independent publishing houses. The latter are more likely to take risks and develop your career, and you might not even need an agent to query them.
Ariell is available to hire on Reedsy ⏺
How long is a novelette?
A novelette is a work of fiction with a word count between 7,500 and 17,500 words. This range is also cited by the Hugo and Nebula awards criteria.
Many prominent works into this category were initially published in magazines of the late 19th and early 20th century. Perhaps considered short stories at the time, the most popular examples have since been reclassified and re-published as standalone books.
How long is a short story?
A short story is a work of fiction with fewer than 10,000 words. This word-count ceiling is somewhat fuzzy, however, with many major writing prizes and magazines requesting submissions of no more than 7,500 words.
In addition, there are subsets of short stories with even more restrictive word counts. For example, works under 1,500 words are commonly considered flash fiction.
Pro-tip 💡: Unsure about getting your word count right? Hire a writing coach to get the inside track. You can find the best coaches — ones who have worked with bestselling authors and beginners alike — on Reedsy below.
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Examples: How many words are in popular short stories, novelettes, and novellas?
Word count is merely a number. Many shorter works of fiction have made a cultural impact that far exceeds their modest length. In the sections below, we’ll reveal the number of words that make up some of the most popular books of all time.
Note: the listed word counts are approximate. In addition, there is also some debate around which category a few of the books belong to. As you’ll find out when you do your own research, what constitutes a short story, novelette or novella is not always cut-and-dry.
Novelettes
🏚️ The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe (11,000 words)
👹 The Call Of Cthulhu by H.P. Lovecraft (12,000 words)
🌕 The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (17,000 words)
🗡️ The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson (17,000 words)
Novellas
🪲 The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka (21,000 words)
💍 Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote (26,000 words)
👻 A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (28,000 words)
🐁 Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (29,000 words)
🐖 Animal Farm by George Orwell (30,000 words)
🚣♂️ Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad (38,000 words)
Short stories
🐘 “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway (1,500 words)
🎟️ “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson (3,000 words)
🐑 “Lamb to the Slaughter” by Roald Dahl (4,000 words)
🗣️ “Woman Hollering Creek” by Sandra Cisneros (4,500 words)
💧 “Sweat” by Zora Neale Hurston (4,700 words)
🏊 “The Swimmer” by John Cheever (5,000 words)
🌼 “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (6,000 words)
👱🏼 “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor (6,500 words)
📍 “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates (7,000 words)
🐈 “Cat Person” by Kristen Roupenian (7,000 words)
🌎 “The Third and Final Continent” by Jhumpa Lahiri (7,700 words)
👒 “The Husband Stitch” by Carmen Maria Machado (8,000 words)
And there you have it — the long and short of how long and short these three types of story should be!
