How long should my book be?

No matter how hard I try, I don’t seem to be able to get to the 80,000 words that is the minimum word count that one would normally expect for an historical fiction novel. I am an underwriter. I managed to tell the story for my first book Conflict at Hanging Rock in 55,000 words and my new novel Breaking Free is looking like it will only be 65,000 words.

Does that matter? To me, not really. As an independent publisher, I am at liberty to make these decisions myself. I know that traditional publishers may not even consider anything with fewer than 80,000 words. But if I can tell the story in less words, with all the detail the reader needs, then why would I want to add more words just to get to 80,000.

The other benefit of a shorter novel is that, with the cost of paper and printing I can offer my book for a lower price, which will surely appeal to some readers.

On the contrary, other readers prefer longer stories and might feel disappointed upon finishing mine quickly.

What do you think about this topic? You can leave your comments below.