How long will that take?
Reading
121 min
at 238 WPM · midpoint
Speaking
205 min
at 140 WPM · midpoint
Drafting
~58 hr
at ~500 words/hour · midpoint
Structure template
Novella — roughly 30,000 words
- Opening & hook5,000 words
- Rising action12,000 words
- Midpoint shift7,000 words
- Climax & resolution6,000 words
Novellas lean on focused conflict — one protagonist, one arc, minimal subplots.
Where this range comes from
SFWA Nebula Award prose category definitions (17,500–39,999 words = novella) · Last verified 2026-04-20