How long should a self-help book be?

[rosepetal720]

How long are most self-help books?

I can't find a good place to get advice on my weight loss book, so I figured Nonfiction might be the way to go.

[thothguard51]

Any book, in any genre should only be as many words as it takes to tell the story. Even in non-fiction.

Just don't fluff it up to get a higher word count.

[rosepetal720]

Come on, that's the most non-commital response ever! You make a good point, of course, but self-help books are different from fiction: it's easy to add in or take out a chapter or two of advice without hurting anything. I'll stay true to the message and say what I want to say, but it would still be nice to know generally what's appropriate and accepted.

[adtabb]

I've read a minimum of 80,000 words. I am finally almost at 90,000 and in edits now, hoping to add another 400 as I go along.

[thothguard51]

Look at Chicken Soup for the Soul...

[Shadow_Ferret]

Originally Posted by rosepetal720

How long should a self-help book be?

To quote Lincoln, when asked how long a man's legs should be, "Long enough to reach the ground."

[Stijn Hommes]

Originally Posted by rosepetal720

Come on, that's the most non-commital response ever!

That might be true, but it's the right answer. I've seen self-help 'books' of just a handful of pages and I've seen thick ones similar in size to the Dummy books.

But if you want to take a different approach to the answer it would be: as long as your intended publisher wants manuscripts to be.

[thothguard51]

Originally Posted by rosepetal720

Come on, that's the most non-commital response ever!.

I thought for a generic question, it was a rather pointed non-commital reply...

How can you honestly expect someone to give you a pointed reply of xxx amount when there is so little info given?

What kind of self-help are we talking about, spiritual, technical, or autobiographical experiences? Do you include pictures, charts, graphs, or scratch-and-sniffs?

Most non-commital respnse ever? Really.

[scarletpeaches]

Originally Posted by rosepetal720

How long are most self-help books?

Try reading some.

[veinglory]

Self help books have to be big enough, including words and pictures, to profitably bind and distribute in book form. If you go to the self-help section of a bookstore it is apparent that is a pretty wide range. probably anywhere from 40,000 to 90,000 words.

[rosepetal720]

Originally Posted by thothguard51

Most non-commital respnse ever? Really.

Geez, I didn't mean to offend you. I usually write fiction, and they have very specific word counts that you have to reach for publishers to accept the book, usually between 80,000 and 100,000 words. I guess I just assumed that self-help books would have the same requirements.

[rosepetal720]

Veinglory, thank you. That was very helpful.

[Paps]

Originally Posted by rosepetal720

How long are most self-help books?

I can't find a good place to get advice on my weight loss book, so I figured Nonfiction might be the way to go.

I think you should worry about content and not length. Most non-fiction books are padded out and that detracts from the core message (which can usually be summarised in afew sentences).

There is the need to make it a "credible" length in order to make it "serious." Often, this is done by using case studies.

Think of Covey's Seven Habits - seven sentences padded out to a $500m dollar business.

[rosepetal720]

That's so true that most self-help books can be summarized in a few sentences. I hate that.

[EmpoweredOKC]

The most insightful book on weight issues I ever read was Mary Pipher's "Hunger Pain," which is only 144 pages and a small-size paperback. Something doesn't have to be as massive as "The Courage to Heal."

[TopSecret]

I personally believe a book like that could take many years. I have a great deal of knowledge in weight loss (over 100 lbs), studied to be a personal trainer, and technical school for leadership, so I could write a series on it. I sure wouldn't make it a hollywood cookie diet book, it would be purely motivation, organization, will power, self awareness, exercise and health knowledge, food knowledge, cooking, easy cooking tips/tidbits, so you could see how this could add up to 1500 pager! As long as you got your message along well, and the reader learned anough to change their life then it is ready. If it can't change a few lives yet, don't publish it. One good book from the heart is so much better than 4 little books.

[rosepetal720]

TopSecret, do you have any book recommendations for me, since you're so knowlegable? I'll definitely look into "The Courage to Heal," thanks Empowered.