I am also having trouble with SoP brevity. My template is about 500 words with about 100 extra for fit. One school says a max of 1,000 words, another says a limit of 5 pages (doubles spaced I assume), another says not fewer than 200 words, and, my favorite, "brief". For schools with a max/limit of 1,000 words or 5 pages, is 600 too brief? Obviously if it states 1,000-2,000, than 1,000 is the minimum but for the others with no stated minimum?? I really like my succinct SoP, and I am afraid if I try to double it in size I will lose the flow.