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"Do I still need to follow these arbitrary word count limits". Firstly, no, you don't have to -as a self-pubber, you're the publisher and you do what you want with your book. Secondly, as a reader,...
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#3: Attribution notice added
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/12191 License name: CC BY-SA 3.0 License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision
"Do I still need to follow these arbitrary word count limits". Firstly, no, you don't have to -as a self-pubber, you're the publisher and you do what you want with your book. Secondly, as a reader, the reader decides whether your book suits his tastes, his expectations price-wise, quality-wise, length wise, etc. Thirdly, as a publisher of some 18 years standing, although I also started with similar feelings to yours, I can assure you that such limits/guidelines aren't arbitrary; they grow from experience and the realization that the reader's opinion is all that counts, if you want his money. The saying "customer is king" applies to books as well as other products. Ebooks are much less restrictive than paper books but the reader is still the final arbiter, so it's well worth doing all one can to get the formula right.