Over at the big BG today I posted a brief write-up that looks at a relatively new line of chapbook novellas from small press Blackwyrm. Focusing on stories that skew genre conventions, the Blackwyrm line has a lot of personality, and it’s great to see a publisher — whether big or small — taking the chance on short books like this once again. From military fantasy series to genre mashups, Blackwyrm seems to be casting the net wide to come up with a nice variety of styles, voices, and approaches.
In the age of fat fantasy series, doorstop thrillers, and historical epics it’s often impossible to find a short, satisfying read. Gone are the days of the 60,000 word science fiction novel, or even the novella doubles series Ace once put out. Long a standard of genre fiction — both the worlds of SF and of fantasy having a host of renowned novellas and short novels considered classics in their respective fields — these short, sharp stories are increasingly ignored for multi-book works of massive length. But, sometimes, it’s nice to get a book done in a day or two, it’s nice to explore an idea, premise, or setting without committing to dozens or hundreds of hours with it.
