Find the correct edition and category
Stories, novels and collections can have different limits within one prize. Record words, characters, battute, lines of verse, pages or cartelle, spaces and included material. Cartelle require a size; pages may require settings or a character definition. Keep the official organizer’s link and applicable edition. Listings help discovery but do not replace official conditions.
Both boundaries matter
For a hypothetical 12,000–18,000 range, 11,950 is fifty below minimum; 18,240 is 240 above maximum. “At least” and “greater than”, or “not over” and “less than”, treat the boundary differently. Ask about conflicting table/prose definitions instead of choosing the favorable interpretation. Do not replace a character maximum with estimated words: long words can pass an estimate while exceeding the actual limit.
Only stated tolerance
Misteri d’Italia excludes tolerance; Scrittori FVG explicitly allows one in its own rules. A concession cannot be transferred between competitions. Hypothetically, 10% expressly allowed on an 8,000 maximum adds 800, giving 8,800. If the percentage’s basis is unclear, multiplication cannot settle it. Keep ordinary maximum and permitted margin separate, and never hide an overrun behind rounded cartelle.
Set scope
Title, epigraph, notes and synopsis may share a file without sharing a limit. Ask about uncertain components. Independently limited synopsis and biography need separate counts, sometimes separate files for anonymity. Retain subtotals without altering the original and record excluded notes. The guide to counting notes and bibliography distinguishes editorial requirements from software extraction defaults.
Count the actual delivery
After a changed title or sentence, recount the identifiable final copy, not an older window. Check exports for lost or duplicated paragraphs. Pagination can change while character measurement must still cover the same text and scope. An independent character counter helps show remaining margin; prescribed software/method remains final. Investigate even small unexplained discrepancies.
Other conditions
Length compliance does not prove a complete entry. Track format, anonymity, attachments and submission procedure separately. Check visible content and any file-property instructions; do not put your name in a manuscript merely because it belongs on an administrative form. A checklist can record quantity, format, filename, required documents and rules version. The counter cannot validate all prize conditions.
Revise the exact excess
18,240 against 18,000 requires removing at least 240 characters under the same method. The number does not select sentences to cut. Preserve necessary spaces and readable punctuation; recount the entire revised story because replacements add signs and separators too. There is no magic safety margin: consider remaining revisions and observed method differences rather than inventing a percentage.
Final sequence
Fix version and scope, count in the required unit, compare boundaries, then apply only declared tolerance. Save total, included material and tool in the text delivery count sheet. If requested in the manuscript, state unit and space convention. Recheck after the last change immediately before sending. Entry receipt and prize outcome remain separate from the counter’s role.
Check a hypothetical 12,000–18,000 range
| Measured characters | Arithmetic result | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 11,950 | 50 below minimum | Revise or clarify the requirement |
| 15,600 | Within the range | Check other requirements |
| 18,240 | 240 above maximum | No automatic tolerance |
Sources and checks
- NPS, regolamento Misteri d’Italia · The cited competition’s explicit rule on tolerance.
- Scrittori FVG, regolamento · The cited competition’s explicit rule on tolerance.