When I’m writing a book, getting those first 10,000 words under my belt is a Big Deal. Capital B. Capital D. It’s the first time I feel like I’m working with something substantial instead of a hapless collection of paragraphs.

The next Big Deal is 50,000 words. At that point, the story starts to crystallize and I have feel for what exactly I’m working with.

After that comes 100,000 words.

And 100,000 words? That’s a Biggest Deal.

For the uninitiated, 100,000 is the standard number thrown out...