A novel is a long work of fiction written in prose that tells a narrative involving characters and usually involving an organized set of actions occurring in a setting.

Let’s break that down. Fiction is a type of writing (literature) that involves characters that don’t exist or people (usually famous) who have been reimagined (fictionalized). The events in fiction are made up, or, in the case of historic events, were fictionalized.

Prose is the ordinary manner of writing that we use, that is, using complete sentences and not poetic verses. A narrative is a telling of events or experiences. Stories and essays are narratives.

A setting is a story’s location and time. Some novels take place in our own time and place, while others take place in the past, in another country, in the future, and even in space or on other planets (real or made-up).

Length is usually the key difference between works of fiction. While there are no official rules, a novel is generally at least 50,000 words, and many novels are much longer than this. By contrast, a short story is often 1,000 to 10,000 words, although flash fiction can be as short as 500 words. A novella (a short novel) is somewhere in between a short story and a novel.

The first records of the word novel referring to literature come from around 1560. It comes from the Italian world novella, meaning “a new story.” At first, novel referred to a collection of stories in one work or one of these stories. Over time, it began to refer specifically to long-form fiction and novella was adopted to describe the medium-length work of fiction.

Because of its length, a novel is usually more complex than shorter fictional works. Novels usually have many characters and a bigger setting. This allows the author to create bigger, more complex stories. Some stories are so big that it takes a series of novels to tell them, as with the Harry Potter series.

Some examples of novels many students read in school include Catcher in the Rye, 1984, and Lord of the Flies.

The Tale of Genji by Japanese author Murasaki Shikibu around 1010 is considered by many people to be the first novel. The novel stars Prince Genji and his life in the Japanese imperial court.

This is the cover of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, an example of a classic novel.

<img loading="lazy" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/The_Great_Gatsby_Cover_1925_Retouched.jpg" alt="" width="251" height="356" />

Many people dream of writing a great novel.

#writers You are never too old to sell a debut novel (read entire article for examples) Angeline Boulley, age 55, sold “Firekeeper’s Daughter” for seven figures in a two-book deal. https://t.co/yAnEENAnTU via @WSJ

— christine kohler (@christinekohle1) March 25, 2021

At @RBESRockets, 1st graders in Mrs. Skinner's class have become poets! Students have been enjoying listening to the classic novel "Charlotte's Web" during daily read-alouds. Then, students wrote and illustrated poetry based on a favorite character in the book. ✍️🎨🐖🕸️ pic.twitter.com/OCQvsLqEfR

— Oconee County Schools (@OconeeCoSchools) March 25, 2021

• literature
• fiction
• prose
• length
• narrative
• complexity

Which of the following is NOT a trait of a novel?

A. it is a work fiction
B. it is short
C. it is written in prose
D. it involves a complex narrative