Are Shorter Reads Better? by David Beckler
I’ve watched the growth in the popularity of novellas with interest, something you can read on your morning commute or in a couple of lunchtimes. Novellas are also a good way to discover new authors. Not only are they usually cheaper than a full novel, but you only have to invest a couple of hours.
When my new publisher announced the release of my first novel, Brotherhood, for the start of next year, I recognised an opportunity to achieve two objectives.
First, raise my profile and get more readers to discover me, and second, explore the market for novellas. I had to get to grips with a tighter style of writing, not quite the tautness of short story writing, but definitely more economical than a full novel.
Forged in Flames, my first novella, introduces Adam Sterling, one half of the Mason & Sterling partnership, which drives my novel series. Ex-Royal Marine Adam is a firefighter and I’ve used my own experiences to make the fire scenes ultra-realistic.
The second introduces Byron Mason, but after that I see an opportunity to explore some of the minor characters, flesh out their stories and see how far they can go on their own.
I’m already thinking of ideas involving villains from Brotherhood. Why should the good guys get to hog the limelight?
Forged in Flames is published by Long Stop Books and comes out 20 December. It’s available for pre-order on Amazon. mybook.to/ForgedinFlames
Brotherhood is published by Sapere Books and comes out 7 February 2019. It’s also available for pre-order on Amazon. http://getbook.at/Brotherhood
Read more about David here.
