u/BlackZapReply

Black and white.

I think it's dead.

I recently began shopping a novella I've written to some publishers and publications. So far, I've gotten nothing but form letter thanks-but-no-thanks replies.

Now, I know that getting something out there on my own is going to be hard. Novellas are a hard sell. Too long for many, and not long enough for many others. There's also the fact that I have no previous works published aside from something that got into my high school lit mag.

Now, I know that self publishing is always an option, and there are those who've hit it huge. Wool and The Martian come to mind. I also know that the field has been flooded by poorly written drek and AI-slop. Personally, my impression is that beyond friends and family, few will give it any attention,

What's the feeling out there?

Mutual Combatants [BETA]

It's about 20000 words.

The story is basically what you'd get if you tossed Reality Television, found footage, Main Character TikTok brainrot, Pay-Per-View & John Wick into a blender and hit frappe for a story that would probably be right at home as a Black Mirror episode.

Right now, it's stuck in Novella Hell™. Too long for magazines to consider and too short for an agent to hear the phone ring.

I'm looking for critiques and feedback. I also want to know if I've fallen into any narrative traps.

Enjoy!