Comments on a start please.

[Allanon]

I'm going to start writing and not sure if its a short story or a novel i want to write, how do i know if my idea would work as either of the above?

[Culhwch]

How much material have you got? How many characters, how many plotlines? If it's one story thread with a couple of characters, it's probably gonna be a short story. If you've got a handful of plotlines revolving around a number of characters, it's going to be longer, a novella or a novel.

[Allanon]

i have a couple of lines to go down and maybe 8 characters, i dont know if its enough tho. what's a novella?

[Culhwch]

A short novel. Maybe twenty thousand to thirty thousand words. Someone with more experience in the industry could probably give you a more definite definition.

[Rhuidean]

A common length is about 50 to 100 pages, or around 20,000 to 40,000 words. The extra length is generally used for more character development than is possible in a short story, but without the much greater character and plot development of a novel.

"[The novella] is one of the richest and most rewarding of literary forms...it allows for more extended development of theme and character than does the short story, without making the elaborate structural demands of the full-length book. Thus it provides an intense, detailed exploration of its subject, providing to some degree both the concentrated focus of the short story and the broad scope of the novel." (Silverberg, vii)

[Allanon]

thankyou, i think i might aim for this and see what i get

[pandora ravenwood]

A good idea is to start with some idea and go from there. You don't have to write in sequence, though it helps to. I know people who started with the last chapter(s) and have worked backwards, or connected the two ends in the middle. I do it myself, and it helps me to see where I want to go...

[flynx]

My advice would be to simply start writing. Sooner or later you'll either get to the end or get fed up with it.

Seriously, I'd advise you to try your hand at short stories first. Short is anything up to 10,000 words. If you set out with a word count to achieve before you've practiced characterisation or plotting or scene setting then you set yourself a formidable task in a novel sized work and can easily become discouraged.

[Hawkshaw_245]

Originally Posted by flynx

Seriously, I'd advise you to try your hand at short stories first. Short is anything up to 10,000 words. If you set out with a word count to achieve before you've practiced characterisation or plotting or scene setting then you set yourself a formidable task in a novel sized work and can easily become discouraged.

Mmmm....That might be a problem for me. My 'creative brain' thinks on the epic scale, but my 'working brain' gets flustered on big projects.

Maybe novellas and short stories are where I belong.

[Dean F. Wilson]

I usually have the problem that all my short stories start gnawing at me 'til they become novels, but honestly it is really just a matter of sitting down and letting it go where it needs to go. If you enjoy writing it (for the most part), then it can be a novel in no time. Novellas are probably the best of both worlds in this case, however, so I wish you the best of luck!

-D