Writing and Marketing the Contemporary Novella or Novelette

Apr 5, 2011
Vickie Britton

Writing the Novella - Photo by Cohdra

A novella contains all the elements of a full-length novel, but is presented in a shorter version. Here are some tips on writing and selling the novella.

Novellas have been a popular form of literature for years. The Aspern Papers is an example of a classic novella by Henry James. In contemporary times, many of the works of Stephen King, such as The Shawshank Redemption, are cateorized as novellas. Because of their shorter length, the novella is often more easily adapted to film than a full-length novel.

Defining the Novella or Novelette

A novella is typically defined by length rather than content. A novella can be of any genre. Literary, mystery, science fiction, and romance novellas are a few examples of popular novella genres.

A novella is also often called a novelette. In contemporary times, these two terms are used interchangeably. A novelette may be perceived by some publishers to be a long short story, while the novella is a more like a short novel. In it’s most rigid definition, like the short story, the novelette centers around one event or a single incident. By some publishers, it may be considered a slightly shorter work than the novella. In contrast, the typical novella might be a bit longer and contain a tightly-woven story that may have many scenes and subplots, just like a regular-sized novel.

Novella Word Length

The average novella is between 20-50,000 words. A work of fiction that falls below 20,000 words is usually considered a short story. Any fiction work longer than 50,000 words is considered a novel.These novella word length guides may vary slightly according to publisher’s individual guidelines.

Some publishers may classify the novelette as a shorter work than the novella. According to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America , for the purposes of the Nebula award, the novella submissions category is between 17,500-39,000 words, and the novelette is from 7,500 words to 17,499 words. (SFWA)

Marketing the Novella

Because of their unusual length, the novella may require special care in marketing. Most traditional fiction publishers do not publish novellas because they are too short to make a decent-sized bound novel. However, sometimes two novellas by the same author or works by different authors but in the same genre are offered back to back to produce a full-sized book.

Novellas are also often purchased by print magazines. Romance or science fiction magazines may feature a monthly novella. Electronic publishing has also given a new life to the novella, as many eBook readers prefer to download a shorter story. Many online publishers accept novellas, and authors also have had luck publishing their own works in electronic format.

Though not as popular as the novel or short story, many successful authors have included novellas in their body of work and proven that they can be successfully marketed.