Convert inches to words

I've written for papers that have had 30, 32, 33 and 37 words per inch, and that's just off the top of my head. It all depends on the paper.

Since you bring this up, sportsfan, I assume you've got a stringing gig lined up somewhere. You're probably best off using 34 words per inch as a benchmark. That's right in the middle of that range - unless, of course, you ask the paper what their standard is.

 

I've also heard that 200 characters = one inch. That's somewhat easier to remember -- when I get to 2,000, I know I've reached the 10-inch mark.

 

Unless you're converting to Celsius.

 

Zebra's right. If you're stringing, ask what the words-to-inch number is. That way you're sure to file what they're looking for.

 

Thanks for all of the responses.

 

What are the general word to inch counts for tabloids? Broadsheets? Berliners?

At my shop, I've never used inch counts; rather, word counts.

 

Somebody page Slappy. He had this worked out in his head a few years back. I worked in the same press box as him a few years back and he could tell the average number of words for anysize story.

 

35 is a better estimating point (easier to calculate), but either way that's a good idea. If you're within an inch or two of your target, you're good because the desk can always make that fit. It's when you're more than 2 inches off target that it becomes a matter of chopping/stretching, which on deadline is a major hassle (especially if you write it so we can't cut from the bottom. )

By the way, my shop right now is 36 words/inch, as was my last place.

We're narrowing widths in about three weeks, so I'll have to recalculate it then.

 

That's a damn good line. Too bad I'm stuck between 60 and 80 words.

 

i = w/35

 

If you type a document in Microsoft Word, divide the number of characters with spaces by 200.

For example, if a story has 3000 characters with spaces, it's roughly 15 inches long. It works out almost exactly as words/35, but it's easier to calculate on the fly.

 

I got to use that line..