How long can a first novel be?
I am writing my first novel, which has gathered about 150000 words. I guess it will be around 170-180k words when it is finished. Assuming that it will loose 20% after the first draft, it will have around 150k words when it is finished.
Is this too long for a first novel?
It depends on the quality of the writing, on the story and on a thousand other factors, but I am worried that publishers will think the book is too long for the market, especially if there is no known name on the cover.
Edit: The genre of the novel is soft science-fiction.
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1 answer
It probably is, but what you can do instead is rework it as two books, and then when shopping for an agent, present it as book-plus-sequel. Science fiction (and fantasy) in particular are forgiving of long works and love series, so length and sequel would be features, not bugs.
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