Writing goals

[orlok]

Originally Posted by kennyc

http://www.writersservices.com/wps/p_word_count.htm

Thanks Kenny. That would suggest that 350 words per page for a paperback is about right.

[James_Wilde]

Originally Posted by orlok

I'm using Scrivener v1.0.3, and in the Project/Project Statistics display it shows a number of pages your book equates to in paperback. If you then click on the Options Tab within that same display window, it gives you a Words per page field, which defaults to 350, but can be altered. I was just wondering if there was a "standard" word count for hardbacks and paperbacks, and that you may have the inside track....

That looks very like the place I found the figures I quoted, although I'm sure it wasn't here. Don't think I've seen this page before. On my current book (not finished but nearly) I have 97705 words, and it suggests 257 paperback pages and 466 printed (hardback?) pages, which comes out at 210 words per page in hardback and 380 words per page in paperback.

[orlok]

Originally Posted by James_Wilde

That looks very like the place I found the figures I quoted, although I'm sure it wasn't here. Don't think I've seen this page before. On my current book (not finished but nearly) I have 97705 words, and it suggests 257 paperback pages and 466 printed (hardback?) pages, which comes out at 210 words per page in hardback and 380 words per page in paperback.

I think the printed page count refers to printed manuscript (A4 pages here in the UK, Letter size in the US). I have changed my Scrivener default to 375 now, which seems like a good compromise between the 350 and 400 range.

[VydorScope]

I typically do not look at word counts, I think in scenes. I write in scenes. My goal is complete the scene, then first/second pass edit that scene.