Quote:
Originally Posted by Giovanna Clairval 
Could SC have done the same in a shorter form, and how is it possible that a first novel of that length was accepted?
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My own opinion is that the type of novel Clarke was writing needed to be a hefty tome. (
Possibly not quite so hefty on that account alone, but the length is justified in other ways.)
I wouldn't even attempt to guess at the word count.
As to how it was accepted at that length as a first novel, I think it was a combination of excellence, timing, and the fact that she had already had short fiction published.
(The fact that she also had publishing connections may have helped to bring her work to the attention of the right people, which never hurts.)