Got a question – or advice for one of these readers? Email [email protected]
Q
I have a second draft of a romcom
novella that I’m fairly happy with.
Several years ago, I sent the fi rst version
to a respected literary agent. I received
positive feedback but there was no
request for a re-draft. It has also won a
‘First 200 words of a novel’ competition
and on Twitter another literary agent liked
the fi rst few lines.
It’s just under 15,000 words. I can’t
really expand it to novel length as it’s not
a strong enough plot. Self-publishing
doesn’t appeal as I wouldn’t generate
any income from it. I’ve been searching
for novella comps but they don’t seem to
cover the romcom genre. Do you think it’s
worth editing it to 10,000 words for a long
story competition? I’m reluctant as I feel
it would lose its sparkle.
Sharon Boothroyd, via email
A
Congratulations; the agent obviously
thought it had merit. But she will
know, as you have discovered, that there
isn’t as big a demand for novellas. The
website Bookfox has a section on markets
for novellas, including comps (thejohnfox.
com/journals-accepting-novellas).
Certainly lots of authors do publish (or
self-publish) novellas, making money from
ideas that don’t stretch to a novel – see
the interview with romcom author Sarah
Bennett in the March issue, for example.
They seem to work especially well as a
bonus standalone story within a series. If
you don’t want to try self-publishing, you
could wait for a market to come along.
Someone may well decide novellas are the
next big thing.
Your story is on the short side even
for novellas. Would it make a serial? My
Weekly publishes serials, as does People’s
Friend. Or would you be able to get it up
to 50,000, the length My Weekly require
for their pocket novels? This isn’t such a
mammoth task as aiming for 90,000.
You say the story will lose its sparkle if
you cut it to 10,000 words, but you might
be surprised. Why not have a go? As long
as you keep the original, you have nothing
to lose. Particularly as you love the story.Q
I am eight and I’m entering a short
story competition but I think I have
writer’s block, although I did start off
with loads of ideas. Do you have any
suggestions to help me get past this stage?
Mia Drury, FromeA
Writer’s block can be another name for
fear of starting. So try the following.
Choose a random fi rst line: The car was
racing towards the cliff; or ‘Don’t you dare do
that,’ he said. Or pick three random words
to use in a story, eg silver, piano, disaster.
When you’ve chosen, set a timer for six
minutes and simply start writing. Don’t
worry about how to fi nish the story, simply
begin it and see what happens next.
This exercise should be fun and exciting.
I use it with my students a lot and I do it
myself if I am stuck. After the six minutes
has gone by I usually fi nd I’m inspired
enough to carry on and fi nish my story.
Good luck with the competition.Q
How far into a short story should
you be before you introduce a
character? A member of our writing
group writes at least a page before she
brings in a character. I think this is too
long. It’s mainly scene-setting but she
thinks that’s atmospheric.
Sarah-Jane Haywood, BournemouthA
I think that in a short story it’s best
to introduce a character as quickly as
possible. You can be atmospheric through
a character’s eyes just as eff ectively as you
can be using a narrator’s voice. Compare:It was just after midnight. The room fl ashed
with white light. Thunder crackled. Rain was
pouring off the glass and hitting the tarmac of
the street below. The houses across the road
were in darkness. Lightning fl ashed again,splitting the sky like the white forked tongue of
a snake.It was just after midnight when Suzanna was
woken by her dog. Missy gave a soft whine and
then the room fl ashed with white light, outlining
the spaniel’s head. Thunder crackled and now
Suzanna could hear rain pouring off the glass
and hitting the tarmac of the street below.
Lightning fl ashed again, splitting the sky like
the white forked tongue of a snake and Missy
trembled violently. Suzanna stroked her head.
She knew she would never sleep now.I personally think that the introduction
of a character (and her dog) can be much
more interesting and adds more tension.Q
How many edits should you give
your novel before it’s considered
good enough to submit for publication?
Travis Taylor, EssexA
It very much depends on your writing.
Simply put, it must be as good as you
can possibly get it. I’ll try and quantify
that by giving you a checklist.■Are you happy that the story works?
This includes all of its elements, ie plot,
characters, pace, structure, dialogue.
■Is the manuscript as fl awless as you can
make it in terms of presentation?
■Do you believe your novel is as good as
you can get it? This is diffi cult as writers
tend to suff er from a lack of confi dence.You may then want a second opinion
from a beta reader – usually a trusted
friend who can give constructive feedback.Need advice on writing and publishing? Novelist
and short story writer Della Galton can help
What can I do with a 15,000-word romcom?
ADVICE PAGE
Della’s books on
writing, The Short
Story Writer’s
Toolshed and The
Novel Writer’s
Toolshed, are available
from Amazon