I recently came across a term I hadn’t heard before.
Micro-fiction. Also known as Flash Fiction.
A few minutes of research later revealed the following:
Micro-fiction is a VERY short story, often 500 words.
Featuring strong imagery and emotional impact, this type of writing is often found in magazines and online platforms.
This type of writing forces writers to convey character, emotion, and plot in only a smattering of sentences.
At one time or another, we have talked about word count for short stories, novellas, novels, non-fiction, etc. However, if you missed one of those blogs, here they are for you. All in one place.
These are averages because almost every article I read on this subject reported different word counts. Each publisher or contest will furnish writers with guidelines, including minimum and maximum word counts.
Fiction
Novel: 55,000-300,000
Novella: 30,000-50,000 (Average: 17,500)
Novelette: 7,700-17,500
Short Story: Less than 7,500 (The “perfect” S.S.= 6,000)
Flash Fiction: Works under 1,500
Non-Fiction
Biography: 80,000-110,000
Memoir: 60,000-90,000
Business & Money: 40,000-80,000
History: 60,000-100,000
Self-Help & “How-to”: 20,000-70,000
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