Novella Writing Project
The Basics
The Novel or Novella:
A bit about
published novels you see on bookstore shelves:
-
They begin around 50,000 words – average
is 85,000 to 100,000
-
The average Novella (a smaller version of
a novel) is about 20,000 words
-
Anything under 20,000 words is considered
a short story
Genres:
This is a French word that we use to describe the types of novels or
novellas that we read or want to write.
Popular genres include: mystery, romance and science fiction.
Each category has its own set of rules.
Telling
the story:
As a writer you are an artist.
You use the pen (or computer) as the brush and the paper as the canvass
to create emotions and characters.
You paint a background and then introduce your reader to the world within.
The reader becomes a part of everything that is going on in the book.
Recognizable Elements: Every
novel, novella or short story has a beginning, a middle and an end.
Additionally every novel, novella or short story follows a few ground
rules about plot, characters, settings and dialogue.
Conflict: Conflict is what
keeps your characters on their toes and keeps your plot moving forward.
Conflict shows readers what characters are made of.
Read more about conflict by clicking on the link.
Characters:
The
Writing Begins: Essential questions and answers
to read before you begin.
Get on to Writing Templates
Painting a Picture With Words Graphic Organizer
Character Table
Setting Graphing Organizer
Summary Organizer
Chapter Outline Template