Maybe it's a silly question, sometimes those 2-5 words in the title make all the difference!
Posted by TaleSpinner (Member # 5638) on :
I've always assumed title, genre, author and word count not included. Certainly, that's how we'll count the 2000 words for the Sudden Fic contest.
Cheers, Pat
Posted by tchernabyelo (Member # 2651) on :
In my understanding, the title is NOT included, though there are those who differ in that opinion (it's a real bone of contention with drabbles).
Genre, word-count, bio, cover letter, etc are DEFINITELY not part of word-count. The word-count is about what the magazine will publish.
If I run wordcount on a final-format submission MS, with name and address and so forth, I select from the first word of story text to the last. That means I DO include # scene breaks, if included, and also mini-chapter titles, if included. That's because they take up room and space, which is what a market is interested in.