Aphelion

I finished the first draft of my first (completed) novel night before last. It stands at roughly 70K words. I'm going to let it sit while I tackle a short story I've had in the hopper for the last two months. Then I will probably revamp everything about the novel, LOL.
-- david j.

<br>I've seen and heard from pros out there (at least, folks a lot more pro than me) that you may need to be 80K for a first novel. It's a marketing thing, so that the reading public--after judging its worth almost solely by the cover art--will "feel" from the thickness and weight of the book like there are enough pages for it to be worth the money to try you out. Spec fiction readers are very brand loyal, so subsequent books don't have to be that thick, but your "breakthrough" novel could need to be.<br><br>On the other hand, I made mine 80K, and it's not helped me. Two & a half years of rejections, no bites or even nibbles. That's part of why I started selling the shorts I had piled up--needed to build up that resume.<br><br>Best of luck as you finish crafting & start the sales process. <br><br>Nate

I wish I'd had Jeff as an English teacher in school, & Nate & Kate & Bob & Jaimie and the rest as classmates. I'd of been ready for this when the idea came along, rather than having to play catch-up for half my life.

All of us in a class. Hmmm...<br><br>Mr. Williams!<br>Robert is shooting spitballs at Nate!<br><br>Or maybe not. :)<br><br><br>Wouldn't it be great if history recorded Aphelion as a place where many future professional greats were all at the same time? Who knows, maybe being a Usual Suspect will someday be as prestigious as being a member of the Mañana Literary Society. Their members included John W. Campbell of Astounding, Anthony Boucher, Hugo Gernsback (for whom the Hugos are named), L. Ron Hubbard (pre Dianetics and Scientology), & future Grand Master Robert Heinlein.<br><br>Here's hoping!<br><br>Nate

... Can't remember if Rob Starr ever mentioned the word count of The Apple Lady... or if Chris Bonawandt did re: his restructured Dreamers, either. I got the impression that Stonegarden was a little flexible on things like that, if they liked the book.<br><br>Robert M.