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Question... Novella vs. Novellete



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Thu Aug 31, 2006 1:49 pm
Dream Deep says...



Um. Hi. Does anyone happen to know exactly what the difference it between a novellette and a novella? Or are they merely synonymous?


Thanks folks. :wink:



~Dreamy
  





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Thu Aug 31, 2006 4:39 pm
smaur says...



They're synonymous.
"He yanked himself free and fled to the kitchen where something huddled against the flooded windowpanes. It sighed and wept and tapped continually, and suddenly he was outside, staring in, the rain beating, the wind chilling him, and all the candle darkness inside lost."
  





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Thu Aug 31, 2006 7:24 pm
Dream Deep says...



Ah. I thought so. Much thanks. :wink:
  





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Thu Aug 31, 2006 7:41 pm
Poor Imp says...



...impertinent note: Italian and French. Not that it matters for meaning...I suppose the French and Italians can fight over which sounds best. ^_~
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Thu Aug 31, 2006 7:44 pm
Dream Deep says...



One would think... heh, thanks Imp. :wink:
  





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Fri Sep 01, 2006 12:21 am
Wiggy says...



I've never heard of a novellete before! lol Lemme guess-novellete=French; novella=Italian.
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Fri Sep 01, 2006 1:56 am
Rei says...



I think I prefer the way "novella" sounds. Hmm. I'd always thought that a novelette was just something too long to be a short story, but not quite long enough to be a novella. Shows what I know, don't it?
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Fri Sep 01, 2006 10:37 am
smaur says...



Hah, clarification. According to Wikipedia:

A novelette (or novelet) is a piece of short prose fiction. The distinction of novelette compared to other literary forms, like a novella, is usually based upon word count. The Nebula awards for science fiction define the novelette as having a word count between 7,500 and 17,500 in length.


And this supports it:

Epic: A work of 200,000 words or more.
Novel: A work of 40,000 words or more.
Novella: A work of at least 17,500 words but under 40,000 words.
Novelette: A work of at least 7,500 words but under 17,500 words.
Short story: A work of at least 1,000 words but under 7,500 words.
Flash fiction: A work of less than 1,000 words.


Mind you, I've always read that they're synonymous, so I suppose it depends where you're looking.
"He yanked himself free and fled to the kitchen where something huddled against the flooded windowpanes. It sighed and wept and tapped continually, and suddenly he was outside, staring in, the rain beating, the wind chilling him, and all the candle darkness inside lost."
  





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Fri Sep 01, 2006 12:32 pm
Dream Deep says...



That's a useful article you found, smaur. Thanks a lot. ^_^

~Dreamy
  





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Fri Sep 01, 2006 5:24 pm
Rei says...



Okay, so I was right. *shrugs* Don't suppose it really matters how it's classified. Publishers and literary journals generally tell you the word count they want, not if they want novels or novellas or novelettes.
Please, sit down before you fall down.
Belloq, "Raiders of the Lost Ark"
  








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