How To Easily Write a Novella

I had no idea there were so many categories of stories. I have read novellas before, but always considered them short stories. This was fascinating Bill!

billy, I was doubtful what the term novella meant before I read your post. You clarified lots of my doubts. Thank you!

Entertaining and informative, just how I like it. Thanks, Billy, for another piece of the puzzle.

Thank you for defining this term. A novella may be the best route to when writing a first book.

I'm playing catch-up, bill!

These details are so useful. I knew a novella was a small novel but that's all I knew. The word 'spark' meaning event is also new to me but it describes so well a catalyst to get you writing.

Interesting information and great inspiration here, bill.

Ann

I read e-books as well as paper ones and the novella is a powerful marketing tool. The novella is free, then the first of a series heavily discounted... then you are hooked... you have to read the next seven books as you are caught up in the characters and the whole world they reside in.

Interesting and helpful hub.

Anna :)

I thought novellas were dead in the water as well. This is heartening as I often like to write stories that are too long to be categorized as “short stories” and not lengthy enough to qualify as a novel. I’ve bookmarked this wonderful hub, Bill. Thank you!

I've always wondered how they were different from novels. Thanks for sharing about Novellas.

Thanks for this very good overview of the novella form. It has always been my favorite literary form. Among my favorites: Hesse's JOURNEY TO THE EAST; Melville's BILLY BUDD; Steinbeck's OF MICE AND MEN; Conrad's HEART OF DARKNESS.

Ha! You still do EPIC work. Amazing person you are. You inspire and I'm so glad we met when we started our careers here at HP. It feels so good to be writing articles here again. I admit: I like this so much better than blogging. It just feels right. :)

You're right, hehe. Husby accuses me of having a hard time "just being" - but I DO "just be" - early in the morning, before the world wakes up, I sit down and do some meditating. Maybe it's the ol' Catholic guilt, but if I'm not contributing to my household, my school, or otherwise doing something for/with friends, the planet - to generally make a difference, I feel too guilty. Rarely do I just sit. Even in the evenings: husby has to twist my arm to watch a movie. But we make a point of doing just that on Friday nights. :)

I always learn a lot from you, Bill! Thanks for spreading your knowledge. I'm definitely sharing this hub.

Thanks for breaking down the number of words for novellas, novels, etc. I've always wondered that. I need to get back in the swing of things and write more eBooks myself. Thanks for the information!

Oh my goodness! Thanks for sharing this. Actually, I DIDN'T know about novellas and you know I've been thinking about what you said with finding your writers' voice. Now that I have some time this summer, I want to try some of these shorter pieces - I have those unfinished novels, but I really, really feel like they're amateurish and too simple. I might try this style and see if that resonates. :)

Thank you Billy you have so inspired me to make The Self Employed Housewife a series of Novellas! My other novels are all near the 140.000 word count, but now that I've learned something about the word count of a Novella, and I've started to re-edit my first 10 chapters, I now know what to do. Publish the housewife story as an ebook is probably far more suitable anyway. Voted up and tweeted!

As you always do, dear Bill, you have clearly explained how this works. It is something I may embark on one day if I ever take the time.

Meanwhile, I will read the works of others ...

Take care of you and Bev and the CHICKS...you still have them, right?

Many Angels are winging their way to you this early morning hour ...ps

Thanks for the tips, i would certainty use them when writing my first novella. who knows...maybe you'll get a credit also in my first page :)

Ah, yes, a novella! Now, that may be doable at the present time. Thank you, Bill, as always, for sharing your insight here.

Peace and blessings

Thanks for the information, Bill. I'm not really interested in writing a novel, but a novella sounds appealing. This is a project that I might try!

Dear Billybuc,

I figured if I read you long enough I'd find what I'm looking for, and this is it. You see, I actually wrote a novella which for me is an inferior piece of writing compared to a real book. This article of yours produced clarity. Now I know there is no need to expand my book but to just stick to the novella and work it out and improve it. Thank you, Billy Buc. I owe you big time. Looking forward to your book Resurrecting Tobias.

Hi Bill. Some novellas can cross over into movies I believe. That seems odd if they are short. Thanks for explaining the novella so thoroughly. You must have been a great English teacher and have taught many skills on this site and are so easy to read. Sharing. Blessings. Audrey

Though I'm not into writing either novels or novella, the way you teaches this art like a true teacher, it can turn even an ignorant like me into a novella writer ! Lol.. Bill, I love your style and words you use. You make stones speak. Voted up.

Hi bill, I suppose my ebook would be classed as a Novella, but funnily enough I hadn't even heard the term before I had written it! lol! great advice as always, nell

Love Muaghams quote. I like the Novella, they generally make an easier read for the time poor and are far easier to write (from my experience). My Novella Truth to Tell, was the most enjoyable of the books I've written. Everything is simpler, as you said, and I like simple. Voted up and interesting.

Yes, we are lucky to have you, Bill here on HP. You define a novella quite well and it is a good starting point to the final goal of writing a novel. Reading is so important to writers and to affecting their style and novel ideas. I learn something new about writing from every author so read. It could be something good or something I would never do, but I learn from every writer. I was and continue to be a voracious writer. Nice article!

Bill, I totally agree - and as you say, it is a good start and not insurmountable. I shouldn't talk anyway, I haven't written even a short story in years!

Hey Billy.....very interesting hub....I believe the novella is a nice bridge between the novelette and the novel if the author isn't able to create any more characters or other sub plots. Voted up and shared.

This was really helpful Bill. Trying to write a novel really can be overwhelming for some of us novices, but the novella format seems a little more simplified and might not be a bad place to start! Plus, I have also noticed that many ebook authors start off with a novella which they offer free or very cheap, hoping to draw readers in for future novellas or novels.

FYI, I think your spell check corrected your book title to "Resurrection Tobias" instead of "Resurrecting Tobias".

Good information. I enjoyed publishing my novella, "Murder by the Homeplace," last year. It was the perfect format. Hope you and your readers check it out! ;-) Available on Amazon.com... ;-)

It was very helpful how you broke this down. It was almost -- dare I say it -- like a recipe!

Bill, if you keep pumping out all these great ideas, one of us might come up with a great idea for a story that will be published!

To me, though, a novella is a novel-wanna-be. Sorry, but I can't get past that. It's sort of like reading the condensed versions in Reader's Digest, which I seldom did. If you're going to go through all the work of developing a plot and the characters, why not just write a novel? Why not either write a short story or a novel?

But then, that's me. I still enjoyed reading this and it did encourage me to write more!

Good information on the novella and various lengths of other kinds of books. I appreciate you pointing out the differences. No doubt, the novella is the right length for some. Thank you.

Hey Bill,

Please excuse the punctuation errors on my last message. My server crashed during the 5 minute editing window. Yikes.

Also want you to know that I Tweeted and Pinned your hub...and "Liked" it on my book's Facebook fan page. :0)

Hi. Sounds great - I never thought of doing that and maybe that is the way to start developing that serious idea. a full novel is such a daunting task for an ordinary aspiring writer

Great, useful hub about the word-count breakdown of book lengths and their names....and great description about what works for each. Thanks so much! If I can write a 65,000 word gardening guide, I can write a novel....and even a novella, depending on my goal....but I'd want to do it at a saner pace than the publisher had me do it. Your hub was very encouraging.!

Thanks for the low down on the various categories and word count depicting each. This is very useful information, as usual!

I knew what a novella was and the word count, but I've never heard the term 'novelette' before. Learn something new every day. XD

Anyway, this is a great overview of a novella, and definitely inspiring for those intimidated by writing full-out, epic novels. I myself never plan to write anything specific; I just sit down and write, and however many words it turns out, so be it. (^o~) For reading, however, I find myself drawn to the shorter books. My attention span isn't what it used to be and I prefer a quicker pace.

Thanks for another thoughtful and useful hub, Bill!

Useful hub Bill! Thanks for such a useful and interesting information.

Great Stuff -- I think I could handle a Novella.

Novella sounds a better task and you say it so perfectly in your well written hub than you

So a novella is different than a novel? How come i didn't know that? Hee, so much to learn and thankful we have a great teacher to lead us on. Thank you again...

Great hub and interesting information. I've written both novellas and novels and I like them both for different reasons. Sometimes when I'm reading, I enjoy shorter stories and for that reason, novellas are great. I read/write novels when there is a lot more detail needed.

Hi Bill, this is such an interesting and informative Hub. I am pleased you have a writing website, and will join you there ASAP!

I can at best think of producing a short story or an essay but to go for a novel gives me a real fright. But your tips may be a shot in the arm to give our creative brains a bit of a stretch. Thank you for the excellent hub.

Hi Bill,

Thanks for the low down on what constitutes a novella. Someone once said that I write novellas, but I had to disagree, (just over 80K words). According to your definition, I was right. I think that novellas have become more popular now that digital books have reopened that door. Great article by the way! As usual, I love your work!

Hi, Billybuc, this is very useful hub. Many writers are writing novellas instead of novels without even realizing it. I see a novella as a stretched-out short story, so I use the guidelines of a short story. I am curious to visit your writing blog.

Voted up and very useful!

I totally understand what a novella is thanks to your excellent hub. As always voted up, useful, interesting and awesome.

I have never really thought of writing a novella, since my stories sometimes blossom once I start writing. But you have provided enough information and guidelines to make it easier to attempt, if I decide to do so. It might be a nice project for me to work on when I have time.

As usual, I enjoyed your article, and look forward to reading (and gleaning information from) more over time. Thank you for sharing this with us.

I hope you had a very pleasant weekend. It was gorgeous in my neck of the woods, and I went to the park to relax, read and write.

Have a great week!

~ Kathryn