Reading Novellas in Paris
and 7 contests accepting novella submissions
When I lived in Paris, I got in the habit of carrying a novella around in my purse everywhere I went. Every time I stepped into Librarie Galignani on Rue de Rivoli, I would buy a couple of novellas from the beautifully curated English language section at the back of the store. I had taken to the Parisian habit of carrying a very small purse, so only a slim book would fit. I also found novellas to be the perfect length for reading on the metro or while waiting in line at SVR (the internet company prone to lengthy outages).
My family has been back on the West Coast for nearly three years now, but I still find myself drawn to novellas far more-so than to longer fiction. In my role as publisher of Fiction Attic Press, I recently published a serial novella-in-flash by Chris Wiewiora (I hope it will be the first of many novellas-in-flash at Fiction Attic). I’m also in the process of writing a serial novella on my author newsletter.
As both reader and writer, I enjoy the low time commitment of the novella form. By writing 1,000 words per day, one could write a first draft of a 30,000-word novella in just one month. (Although the idea is alluring, I’ve not managed to complete my novella in such a short time, not by a long shot, but one ostensibly could).
Weatherglass Books, whose inaugural novella contest will be judged by the critically acclaimed author Ali Smith, elegantly describes the nature of novella:
It's most likely that a great novella will take place over one delimited time period, it will feature one small and isolated set of characters, it will take place in a finite number of spaces: there's only room for one story…from within their tight confines, an intimation of something much greater, darker and stranger than its constituent elements promise.
Perhaps this is what draws me to the novella: the saturation and focus. I rarely enjoy novels with a large cast of characters to keep track of. I love to be immersed in one person’s story. I love the idea of writing a book that will fit into one small notebook.
How long is a novella?
At 20,000 words on the short end and 50,000 words on the long end, a novella is longer than a short story but much shorter than a novel. Length varies depending on the organization or publisher, but 40,000 tends to be the cap for most novella contests.
The inaugural Weatherglass Books Novella Award accepts novellas of 20,000-40,000 words. The deadline is August 31, 2023.
The Wolfe Pack Novella Award, sponsored by Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, keeps it short, accepting novellas of 15,000-20,000 words in the traditional crime genre. The deadline is May 31, 2023.
The Miami University Novella Prize accepts novellas of 18,000-40,000 words. The deadline is August 31, 2023.
The Katherine Anne Porter Prize, sponsored by UNT Press, is more lenient with word count, accepting fiction of 27,000-50,000 words. The manuscript can include any combination of flash fiction, short fiction, and novellas. The deadline is June 30, 2023.
The Clay Reynolds Novella Prize, sponsored by Texas Review Press, takes a longer view, accepting novellas of 20,000 to 50,000 words. (This year’s submissions closed on March 31, but that gives you plenty of time to prepare for next year).
The long running Nebula Awards for science fiction define a novella as 17,500-40,000 words. (The deadline for 2023 has passed).
A novella can lend itself to lyricism or suspense, or both. It should have one central character and be limited to one or two subplots (preferably one).
6 novellas worth reading for pleasure and studying for form:
Good Morning Midnight by Jean Rhys
Too Loud a Solitude by Bohumil Hrabal
Camp Olvido by Lawrence Coates
The Death of a Beekeeper by Lars Gustafsson (one of my favorite books of all time)
Cabo de Gata by Eugen Ruge
The Lost Sketchbook of Edgar Degas by Harriet Scott Chessman
Michelle Richmond is the New York Times bestselling author of six novels, two story collections, and no novellas (yet). She mentors writers at Fiction and Memoir Master Class.