Fiction Writing - Adressing Manuscript lengths

There are several classifications to consider when writing fiction. It is important to understand what they are when you begin to write your story in order to capture the right amount of tension in the story under the right classification of its length.

For our purpose we will be discussing the following length type novels/fiction:

1. Flash Fiction
2. Short Story
3. Long Story or Novelette
4. Novella
5. Novel

It should be noted that the following discussions of the aforementioned forms and their lengths are for fiction writers. There are different criteria lengths for non-fiction and Internet forms. Also, Poetry is excluded from this list and is in its own category.

Lastly, while discussing each of these categories further, the suggested lengths of each those classifications are general. Every Publisher or Editor may have specific guidelines as to the lengths they except in each of these categories but, knowing the general lengths within each of the previously mentioned categories will help you hone your craft. You may discover that you have a talent for writing Flash Fiction, or maybe you cannot keep anything under 45,000 words (the top end of the Novella length).  

 

Flash Fiction: Under 1,000 words. Range 500-1,000. Approximate page length is 2 to 4 pages.¹

Flash Fiction is a new classification that seems to have gained name popularity with the internet and pod-casts. That said, short stories can fall under 1,000 words as well. Or another name could be Vignette. It seems that Flash Fiction is the leading title for this word classification and length.

Flash Fiction Challenge: Macro Fiction. ²

Write a story of 50 words or less. It needs to have a beginning, middle and end. Once you complete it you cannot change it for the next part. Set it aside for a day or week and then come back to it.

Using the original 50 words expand the story to the length of 1,000 words without changing the original 50, which should already have a beginning, middle and end. In meeting this challenge you have already created Flash Fiction. To change up the challenge try making it fit into a specific genre like Romance, Science Fiction, Fantasy, etc...

Short Story: Range 1,000 to 6,000 words. Approximate page length is about 4 - 24 pages.¹

Now that Short Story length has been redefined by length, giving way to Flash Fiction. There is still more leeway in this category. There is a big difference between writing 4 pages or 24 pages. How you shape a short story is important and how much impact it will deliver in the space of 4 pages is vastly different to 24 pages.

Some of the best Short Stories I remember reading had a surprise twist at the end of them like, Shirley Jackson's The Lottery. The surprise, the twist at the ending of a short story is the thing I find synonymous with this form, which is why I believe the length of the piece is made more effective by the twist at the end. That isn't to say it needs to be this way

Short Story Challenge: With a Twist

Write two sentences that contain opposing ideas. Spend the length of a short story trying to bring those opposing ideas together. One example: Jack was 7 and smart, really smart. Jack was executed because he was too intelligent and intelligence would not be tolerated. Conflict and a twist are a defining characteristic of the short story. Use it to your advantage by revealing the twist until the right moment.  

The literary form the Novel is just that, new, well relatively new that is. It is a form that has depth and complexity. It goes beyond the singular form of a short story, which tends to include a singular focus but, instead contains a breadth that reaches beyond a small scoping story to create whole worlds of characters and places new, familiar or unfamiliar.

In essence the Novelette, Novella, and Novel are the same conceptually. They are differentiated by length. For the most part they contain a larger world of detail than both the Short Story or Flash Fiction contain. There purpose is slightly different as well because, there form can stand on its own where, Short Story and Flash Fiction tend to work well for either Internet, Pod-casts, Magazines or Anthologies, the Novel forms are the small, medium, large books found in the Bookstore.

Novellette: Range is 6,000 to 15,000 words. The approximate page range is 24 to 60 pages.¹

Novella: Range is 15,000 to 45,000 words. The approximate page range is 60 to 180 pages.¹

Novel: Range is 45,000 - 120,000 words (average is 50,000 to 80,000). The approximate page range is 180 to 480pages (average is 200-320 pages). It should be also noted that it is suggested that word counts over 120,000 words might need to be made into a series.¹

Novel Form Challenge: Outline a story idea. Decide what length you want accomplish and see if this changes the outline you began with. Does deciding on the Novella length make you reconsider a chapter, or do you feel like you need to add additional material to stretch out into the Novel form?

Whichever form you decide to write it does help to know the length in which you want to work. Sometimes it is more difficult to write short concise pieces but, with each form there is an art. Appreciating the art and knowing the parameters will always help. Good luck and write on!

“I have only made this letter longer because I have not had the time to make it shorter.” ~Blaise Pascal~

_{1. Brewer, Robert L. and Chuck Sambuchino Eds. 2008 Writer's Market. 87th ed. Writer's:Cincinnati, 2008.}

_{2.Denver Writers' Workshop, via Meet-up inspired challenge.}