Australian Novel and Novellan Poems
- D. M. Wright
- Jan 28
- 6 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
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WHAT ARE AUSTRALIAN NOVEL AND NOVELLAN POEMS?
Poetry is not always about rhyming. It can also be about paragraphs, sentence structures, word-counts and syllable-counts, like Haikus.
THE AUSTRALIAN NOVELLAN POEM
is a novella
with a set amount of chapters
with a set amount of parts
with a set amount of words.
THE AUSTRALIAN NOVEL POEM
is a novel
with a set amount of chapters
with a set amount of parts
with a set amount of sections
with a set amount of words.
Not a word more.
Not a word less.
NOVEL OR NOVELLA?
Regardless of the general distinction between novels and novellas:
Australian Novellan Poems are less than 80,000 words.
Australian Novel Poems are 80,000 words or more.
The required structure alters at 80,000 words.
WHY WOULD I USE THESE STRUCTURES TO WRITE MY OWN NOVEL/NOVELLA?
1.
It showcases your talent for writing a well-structured book.
2.
It's a challenge in itself to be able to write an exact amount of words for sections, parts and chapters, while adhering to the required character tensions of the parts, and the story outline set for the chapters.
3.
The challenge is being able to pull it off without the reader even noticing.
4.
Well-structured books are well-read, well-understood and well-loved.
While authors love to tell you that outlines can hinder the creative process, your readers will thank you for not wasting their time on useless plots, for keeping the pace, and for using every single word economically and with intentionality.
To keep the required word count, you won't be able to fluff about. Every single word counts, so jam pack it full of meaning and keep the story charging forward.
CHAPTERS
The Australian Novel and Novellan Poems must consist of 18 chapters.
Regardless of genre, each chapter in your book must correspond to the structure of the generic detective story.
Opening image
1. Theme stated
2. Set up the story
3. Set up the story II
4. Catalyst
5. Reluctance
6. First attempt
7. Establish facts
8. Fun and games
9. Begin midpoint
10. Bad guys close in
11. All is lost
12. Dark night of the soul
13. Deepen the backstory of the MC (Main Character)
14. The big change
15. Find the mistake
16. Solve the crime
Final image
ACCEPTABLE ADDITIONAL CHAPTERS
Additional opening and closing chapters are allowed when the genre you are writing in requires more elaborate world-building and concluding.
The following can be added to their respective ends of the book:
Opening image II
Final image II
A second can be during the TITLES sequence.
Litter the TITLES credits between the paragraphs.
The following is the full list of the chapters with the acceptable additions:
Opening image
Opening image II
Titles
1. Theme stated
2. Set up the story
3. Set up the story II
4. Catalyst
5. Reluctance
6. First attempt
7. Establish facts
8. Fun and games
9. Begin midpoint
10. Bad guys close in
11. All is lost
12. Dark night of the soul
13. Deepen the backstory of the MC
14. The big change
15. Find the mistake
16. Solve the crime
Final image
Final image II
NOVELLA CHAPTER WORD COUNT
How many words per chapter is dependent upon the overall word count chosen.
For a Novella of less than 80,000 words
- Divide the total word count chosen by 90.
- Round down to the nearest whole number.
- Then multiply by 5.
E.g.
A 25,000-word novella must have
1,385-word chapters
(277*5)
A 10,000-word novella must have
555-word chapters
(111*5)
NOVEL CHAPTER WORD COUNT
How many words per chapter is dependent upon the overall word count chosen.
For a Novel of 80,000 words or more
- Divide the total word count chosen by 90.
- Divide again by 8.
- Round down to the nearest whole number.
- Multiply the answer by 8.
- Multiply by 5.
E.g.
A 100,000-word novel must have
5520-word chapters
(138*8*5)
An 80,000-word novel must have
4440-word chapters.
(111*8*5)
THE AUSTRALIAN SHORT-STORY POEM
The shorter the overall word count,
the more chapters turn into paragraphs,
which turn into sentences,
which turn into phrases.
Calculations are based on Australian Novellan Poems.
E.g.
A 1,000-word short story must have
55-word paragraphs
(11*5)
A 100-word short story must have
5-word lines
(1*5)
The challenge then is, how small can you make a story while ensuring the chapter-story structure remains intact?
WHAT ABOUT THE WORD COUNT IF THERE ARE ADDITIONAL CHAPTERS?
Additional chapters will inflate the eventual word count.
E.g.
For an approximately 80,000-word book,
there will be 4,440 words per chapter,
which makes the official total 79,920 words.
But each additional chapter will inflate that number by 4,440.
The more you want to add, you'll need to start off with a lower overall number to calculate with in order to keep the end result at roughly 80,000 words.
PARTS
Every chapter in Australian Novel and Novellan Poems must consist of 5 parts.
Every chapter must commit to its designated rise or fall of tension between characters and their situation.
The 5 Parts to every chapter:
1. Introduce a character that brings tension to the room.
2. The MC (Main Character) resolves to lower the tension but not the problem.
3. A reflective moment for the characters.
4. Bring the characters suddenly to a head.
5. The MC and / or other characters seek to resolve the problem, together or apart.
NOVELLA PART WORD COUNT
How many words per chapter is dependent upon the overall word count chosen.
The amount of words per part is the chosen word count
- divided by 90
- then rounded down to the nearest whole number.
E.g.
A 25,000-word novella must have
277-word parts
A 10,000-word novella must have
111-word parts
NOVEL PART WORD COUNT
How many words per chapter is dependent upon the overall word count chosen.
The amount of words per part is the chosen word count
- divided by 90
- divided by 8
- then rounded down to the nearest whole number.
- Multiply by 8.
E.g.
A 100,000-word novel must have
1,104-word parts
(138*8)
An 80,000-word novel must have
888-word parts
(111*8)
NOVEL SECTION WORD COUNT
Only Australian Novel Poems of 80,000 words or more require sections.
Each part must have 8 sections.
The amount of words per section is the chosen word count
- divided by 90
- divided by 8
- then rounded down to the nearest whole number.
E.g.
A 100,000-word novel must have
138 words per section.
An 80,000-word novel must have
111 words per section.
MATHS BREAKDOWN
Click the link to download a hand-dandy Excel calculator.
LIVING EXAMPLE - THE MAGPIE
In "The Magpie", there are 18 chapters (16, plus prologue and epilogue)
Each chapter is split into 5 parts.
Each part has 277 words.
Each chapter has 1,385 words.
Parts 2-5 of the chapters start on a new page and are numbered accordingly.
REINTERPRETING CHAPTER HEADINGS FOR OTHER GENRES
The generic detective story structure will work across almost every genre available with a little jigging.
First attempt (at solving the murder)
Romance - First attempt at wooing the potential partner
Horror - The MC's first real encounter with the serial killer
Adventure - First attempt at starting the quest
Bad guys close in
Romance - The main effort of bringing the two together has failed and worsened
Horror - The MC's main effort to get away from the serial killer has fumbled and worsened
Adventure - The quest has all but collapsed on itself, and everyone wants to go home
Solve the crime
Romance - Boy gets girl
Horror - Girl kills serial killer
Adventure - Boy kills beast
GOOD LUCK!
Writing an Australian Novellan or Novel Poem will be a hard slog. However, even if you accomplish it once in your writing career, your future books will be all the better for it. Being forced to follow a wordcount will keep your words economical (and not waste readers' time with fluff) and intentional (giving readers the best choice of words that pack the biggest punch in the smallest space).
D. M. Wright has made quite a few Australian Novellan Poems for you to check out!
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