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An novella opportunity.

manuscriptx

manuscriptx

New Member
I applied to an employment advertisement listed in a writing and editing forum. The individual who responded was more a recruitment tool for writers asking those interested to write novellas for their newspaper/magazine circulation.

When I asked for specific imformation, that was what I got, nothing directly specific to me and what I would be required to do. So I sent them four examples of my work writing poems in the Writer's Showcase Forum here on this website. Book&Reader

Being an amateur writer, I'm unfamiliar with novellas, what are they?
Can I write a sizable ( 25 - 200 page ) amount of work or is there a universal standard to novellas?

Another question I have is, can this opportunity be arbitrary in terms of negotiating salary and deadlines for my work?

I spent last night determining what I would want as payment which I think is reasonable given the amount of work I would have to come up with #1 and the overall uncertainty of what material I'll have to decide on #2, though I have some ideas ready to use.

The only thing that could potentially mess me up is time constraints.
I could write as many as 100 ( 2 paragraph ) pages in roughly three months time. If it's standard practice for professional writers to do that
mere weeks, then this opportunity is not for me.

Only if I can be given the latitude I need, I can do it - no sweat.
 
Sounds extremely dodgy. Wouldn't touch it at all.

manuscriptx said:
Being an amateur writer, I'm unfamiliar with novellas, what are they?
Click to expand...
A novella is the less than favourable middle ground between a short story and a novel. They come at around 10,000 to 40,000 words. There's practically no market in them, although there are no doubt some niche speculative fiction (scifi,fantasy,horror) websites that may seek them out. Emphasis on niche.
 
10 - 40,000 words.

You say 10,000 to 40,000 words. But that doesn't register in my head.

What does that translate into pages of work?

I suspect at least 100 +/-.

If that's the case, then ok.

If not, then at least from my perspective, I would agree this is isn't much of an opportunity for me.
 
Not far off.

160 pages is a little dicey, especially if there is a time constraint of only a few weeks. My own manuscript will be roughly 350-400 pages, but I've been writing, editing and ' evolving ' it's shape since the first words I typed in November 2003 not to mention a few nitches I want to add in which will require a computer to do.

I suppose I can write 160-200 pages using three past poems I've been thinking about the last few days. But it will take me AT LEAST three months to do.

If I'm starting cold with my mind a total blank, it's mission impossible.
 
Novella 2007

I mentioned before a magazine/newspaper entity responded to my application a few days ago. Today I sent a second e-mail saying if they hadn't made a decision yet, I was going to write ( starting next week ) a 50-100 page Novella based on three poems I've written on this website in Writer's Showcase.

I haven't thought of a title yet, nor do I know when I'll finish it, presumably in three months or more.

The three poem/passages they will be based on are these :

http://www.bookandreader.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13206
http://www.bookandreader.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12713
http://www.bookandreader.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12423
 
Post manuscripts of your story in bulks of ten. So after your first ten pages are typed up, send them here. Do this for the first forty or so, get some feedback, comments, etc.

Though most people here are already biased towards your character and may refuse to help you simply because you're "Manuscript."

But yeah, good luck.
 
If only I were that stupid.....

The only thing I'll post on the internet is the title.

People can see it on my Myspace.com picture page.
After all the criticism of literature theft, and the likes of James Frey, I'd have to be brain dead or completely under the influence of every mind-altering drug known throughout the universe to WANT to expose my work.

That's not an indictment against any of the members here, or anyone in particular, I just always keep thinking to myself :

" No, I will not end up like some poor sap who has to go to some lawyer hoping to sue because lo and behold someone does use my writing somewhere. "

People can scoff all they want, but what do you say to someone you try so hard to convince exposing their work is worthwhile only to know something does happen and they think it is bad and wouldn't have done it otherwise if only they had kept it to the vest.

" Sorry " ? Saying " Sorry, " or " Oops, my mistake I guess I was wrong "

- doesn't cut it my friend.
 
You saw through my master plan. But yes, I know where you're coming from, which is exactly the reason why I don't show anything I actually have put effort into on here. But ah...show it to some of your co-workers. Friends. Whatever. You're the writer, so naturally you have a third insightful eye to the plot. Feedback from people completely new to the world you're providing helps. And since you know them offline, the benefit is that if they try and pulll some sneaky shit with you, you can beat their ass into the floor.
 
I agree with Stewart on the fact that this seems dodgy. I think it may be a hoax to steal identities, but whatever floats your boat.
 
I thought this was going to be a competition to meet Novella.....extremely disappointed on this end :(
 
Sic Luceat Lux

Sic Luceat Lux = " Does the light shine? "

Johnny Depp is in a movie called " The Ninth Gate "
In the movie he plays a book dealer tracking down information regarding
a book called " The Ninth Gate / Kingdom Of Shadows "

Inside on the book's preface artwork there lies that phrase.

Not to say that my novel will be based on anything similar to what's in that movie, but I found it an appealing title to the story I'm going to write.
 
Can't we all just get along?

Are you purposely trying to be disagreeable or what?

And people whine and complain about all the political partisanship that's tearing this country apart.
 
A thousand pardons. I thought that if you were going to use a phrase from a foreign language you don't speak as the title of your book, you might want to get the meaning right from the beginning - because otherwise, a LOT more people will call you on it. (Remember "All your base are belong to us"?) But I promise, you'll get no more constructive suggestions from me in the future.
 
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