You ever wonder how many words you need to have for an acceptable novel? Well, it varies depending on the genre. I pulled the following list from Writer’s Digest and The Manuscript Appraisal Agency. There are slight differences in their numbers, but they are within the following range.

•  Flash Fiction                                                   500
•  Novella                                                           10,000 – 40,000
• Adult Mainstream Novels                              80,000 – 100,000
• Adult Mainstream Novel     70,000 -110,000
•  Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy              90,000 – 120,000
•  Romance                                                         50,000 – 100,000
•  Mystery/ Crime/ Horror                                 70,000 – 90,000
•  Historical Fiction                                             100,000 +
•  Young Adult                                                     50,000 – 80,000
•  Upper Middle Grade                                       40,000 – 55,000
•  Middle Grade                                                   20,000 – 55,000
•  Picture Books                                                   32 pages; 500 – 600 words

Hope this helped.

– Jan R