Meredith Mansfield, Author

It looks like BLOOD IS THICKER is going to end up being short. I’m at just about 40,000 words with only about three chapters left to go. Of course it will grow some during the second draft when I add in some missing descriptions, the missing background from BLOOD WILL TELL, and delve deeper into the characters thoughts and emotions in some of the early chapters.

But I doubt it will double in length. It’s not likely to make the 97,000 words of BLOOD WILL TELL. More like, about 60,000 would be my best guess at finished length for this one.

That’s outside the novella range (17,500 to 40,000 words), but still very short for a traditionally-published novel intended for an adult audience. A few years ago, this would have been a major concern. There’s no market for novella’s unless you’re a name author and next to no market even for novelettes (7,500 to 17,500 words). Very short novels (outside of certain genres) run into as much trouble (at least from unknown or debut authors) as extremely long novels.

However, the publishing world is changing. There’s e-publication now. And I’ve been seriously considering this for BLOOD WILL TELL and its sequels anyway. (Look for a final decision on that early next year.)

In e-pubs, the artificial limits set by traditional publishing don’t have to apply. That’s very freeing. It’s one of the great benefits I see from the rise in e-publication.

It would just affect the price I choose to set on the work. Less for a substantially shorter story. Or, I could choose to bundle. Maybe add a short story (or novelette) into the bargain. Or both, and give the reader the option. There are any number of choices I could make.

 So, I’m not going to worry about it. I’m going to tell the story the best way I can and the length will be whatever it is.