To be a novella, or not to be. That is the question!
My friend, the lovely Amber Lynn Perry, posed the question onย Facebook recently asking if readers liked novellas or not, so I’m brazenly stealing her question today ๐ I’ve not always been a big fan of the shortened story but I’ve been quite taken with the recent push from a number of publishers ~ Bethany House and Howard Books come to mind ~ to introduce readers to a new author by way of a novella, often free, before their full length debut novel releases.
In addition, I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying some very impressive novellas recently, including Joanne Bischof‘s This Quiet Sky, Amanda Dykes‘ย Bespoke, Beth Vogt‘s You Made Me Love You, and Lynne Gentry‘s A Perfect Fit. In addition, Zondervan has been releasing monthly digital wedding novellas last year and this year, some have been terrific and others didn’t really grab me.
I’d love your thoughts on novellas. Are you thumbs up or down? Or does it depend?!
March 30, 2015 at 10:07 pm
I guess it kind of depends. For example, a novella by Ronie Kendig would be high impact and fast paced. I have yet to read her novellas, but desperately want to because I adore her writing! I’ve not read many novellas, but generally find they don’t grab me. I am happy to be convinced otherwise, though.
March 31, 2015 at 2:15 pm
I think it is definitely a difficult task for a writer to get a novella right in the short space allowed but the ones that do are certainly worth it ๐
March 30, 2015 at 11:15 pm
I usually don’t. But with Jody’s An Uncertain Choice, I devoured The Vow since I knew it would be awesome. ๐ When it’s one introducing a new series of an author I’m a fan of, I think I’d be more likely to read it.
March 31, 2015 at 2:16 pm
I agree, Jamie – I think there needs to be an enticement, so to speak, for a novella to really appeal. As you say, an intro to a new series by an author you know or the hook to tempt a reader to try out a new author. Melissa Tagg’s Three Little Words introduces her new series and it’s a little gem, well worth the read.
March 31, 2015 at 12:45 am
Rel, Interesting that you should ask this question. To introduce new readers and remind prior ones (my previous novel came out a year ago), I’ll be posting a novella soon. Will it work? We’ll see.
March 31, 2015 at 2:17 pm
Excellent, Richard – I hope it works well for you ๐
March 31, 2015 at 2:03 am
I enjoy novellas. Sometimes I like a break in between full length novels and these are the perfect fit. Also, if they are a prequel or an addition to other books in a series that involve the same characters that don’t necessarily warrant a full blown book I’m still invested in them enough to seek it out (i.e. Susan May Warren’s “Evergreen”).
March 31, 2015 at 2:17 pm
Great thoughts, Amy – I agree with you.
March 31, 2015 at 2:10 am
An interesting question indeed. I think I asked about this on FB as well, when I was toying the the notion of writing a novella–my first, ever.
It seems like the yays and nays were about equally split, mostly with the claim that “if it’s an author that I already love . . .”
It appears that I will see because, like Dr. Mabry, I also have a novella coming out in May.
It’s called “The Recipe” and especially fun since I got to indulge a bit of my foodie passion along with the drama, AND because Tyndale House has included it in the “Chance of Loving You” romance collection along with novellas by Susan May Warren and Terri Blackstock. What great company!
Last year I volunteered to the judge the novella category of the Carol Awards and had a lot of fun reading these shorter stories.
March 31, 2015 at 2:18 pm
Looking forward to reading THE RECIPE, Candy – you are one of those authors readers “already love’!!
March 31, 2015 at 7:17 am
I never was much of a novella reader, but I really do like the freebie novella idea to kick off a series(one of the reasons why I did it) but you have to be certain your novella is good otherwise it won’t serve your purpose, of course, but I feel that free books aren’t a good thing, that’s a lot of work and a writer should be rewarded with some profit, but a loss leader is always good and unlike a sample chapter (though I pretty much can tell if I’ll like a book by the first few pages) a free novella can tell you if the author can do a whole story well, not just a set up. And the writer took less time/money to get it out there, therefore an easier thing to throw up for free.
And because I contemplated writing some, I read more than I normally would, and you know, they aren’t half bad! ๐ Should have taken the advice I always give to my kids…just try one! But I find that they are either really good or they’re really not. There doesn’t seem to be much mediocre/all right ones because the form is too short, you either do it well or you don’t.
And I can tell you that my first novella is one of the BIGGEST reasons I’m still selling the next in the series really well.
Some standouts – Mary Connealy’s Sweetest Gift, Regina Jennings An Unforseen Match
March 31, 2015 at 2:21 pm
Hey Melissa, I think your novella was a terrific launching pad for your debut series, for sure. And I agree that novellas are either great or a little lame!!
I think authors have it pretty tough given the effort and time it takes to write a story (even a novella), and the expectation now that sometimes readers should get that hard work for free. Not many other industries would ever think of such a thing.
Appreciate your thoughts, as always.
March 31, 2015 at 7:50 am
What a blessing it was to see your kind words, Rel! You sure know how to make a girl’s day. To jump in on the conversation– I love your thoughts and everyone’s input here. It’s so interesting to look at the trend of fiction length over the years… many of the classics having been first published either in chapter-length installments, or in short form (a la Edgar Allen Poe, O. Henry, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, etc.) that it’s such a neat thing to delve into an age-old tradition and try to figure out what makes it tick. On a more practical note– and this sort of accompanies your observations on publishers using novellas to introduce readers to new authors or series– I read recently that “Readers of e-books tend to favor quick reads.” (here’s the article– http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/3-reasons-consider-writing-novella-right-now/ ) Since e-readers are the main avenue used to get free or discounted fiction into readers’ hands, if readers of e-books do tend to favor quick reads, it seems like a good fit for that format. That said, I do absolutely also agree that novellas are not the right format for every story. But they sure are a fun option! ๐
March 31, 2015 at 2:22 pm
Great points, Amanda. Thanks for sharing your wisdom ๐ Yes, serialised stories were once very common, weren’t they?
For me, if a story is of excellent quality, I’ll love it regardless of length!
March 31, 2015 at 9:31 am
Good question, Rel
I think novellas are a great way to ‘meet’ a new author and keep the seat warm between novels. I think these will become part and parcel of an author’s armoury going forward. They also really suit the digital world we live in. I’m reading one now where 4 authors take a different character each and develop a story from the 4 different POVs. It’s called The Harbingers and the authors are: Bill Myers, Frank Peretti, Angela Hunt and Alton Gansky. It’s different. My only gripe is they distribute them a month apart and since you can read each one in an hour, a week apart would probably have been a better way of receiving them.
March 31, 2015 at 2:23 pm
I think you are right, Ian. I have The Harbingers on my Kindle but am yet to get to them. Need more reading time!!
Great thoughts, too.
March 31, 2015 at 1:39 pm
I don’t like novellas unless they are more than 100 pages or provide a “fix” of a favored series midway between releases. I don’t read many magazines, either,just like longer stories. More than that, people without eReaders miss the “fixes” between novels in tye series. Personally, I don’t want to pay 2 to 3 dollars for 30 or 40 pages. Even if I could afford all the in-between novellas for the series I like, I would still rather get a full novel that a handful of pages. It is too costly for my budget now, as I can usually only get used books or on-sale ebooks.
March 31, 2015 at 2:24 pm
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Jeanie – much appreciated!
April 1, 2015 at 1:22 am
I am not a novella fan, even from some of my favorite authors. I have tried to read them, but there just isn’t enough of a story for me, everything feels rushed. I really enjoy full length novels rather than a book with three novellas in it. For me getting into a story only to be disappointed isn’t worth spending the money.
April 1, 2015 at 12:32 pm
Novellas for me have an up side and a down side. Such in the case of Joanne Bischof’s “This Quiet Sky”. This was a new author for me. The up side is that it was an excellent story – I loved it!! And because I loved her writing, I would be inclined to buy more books from this author. The down side is that it was an excellent story – – so excellent in fact that I wish it had been longer and had developed more. But such is the case with almost every book that I love – I wish it were longer and wouldn’t end. I guess it’s a “catch 22” situation – lol.
April 1, 2015 at 2:27 pm
Interesting question! I’m not a fan of novellas. I prefer the full novel. I find novellas to be higher priced generally for the number of pages you get. On the flip side, I must admit to very much enjoying Lynne Gentry’s A Perfect Fit novella. In general though, novellas are not for me.
April 11, 2015 at 3:42 am
I’m liking the novellas that are continuations, or fill ins of another story.