How Do You Write A Fiction Novel Excerpt?
Excerpts from fiction novels are used most often as marketing tools to give agents, publishers and prospective customers a glimpse of the work as a whole. If your novel is complete, you can simply select an excerpt which you feel best embodies its strengths. In some cases, however, you may need to write up an excerpt before the novel is finished. You need to approach the task with care, ensuring that it both piques interest in those who read it and stays true to the greater work of which it is a part. Outline your novel completely, making sure you know how the action will proceed and what the overall structure is. It helps you determine your options when selecting an excerpt to write and to keep the excerpt in line with the remainder of the work. Think about the appropriate length for a novel excerpt, which depends on your intended audience. In some cases, an entire chapter may be best. In others, you want to limit it to just a few paragraphs. You don’t want to be either too long or to
