Feb 17 2009
Is ‘fiction novel’ redundant?
I say yes. I have read and was carefully taught this is a no-no. A novel IS fiction by definition. If you’ve written a non-fiction novel you’ve written a memoir or a biography or a self-help book for people who don’t understand English or love adjectives.
But I’ve seen this all over the place and someone recently suggested I refer to my book as a fiction novel when I query agents.
Say what?
So…what say you?
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LOL! I’m right (write) with you! I totally see it as redundant. I would only say non-fiction if it was, since the agent will assume it’ fiction unless you tell them differently. Of course when it comes right down to it, that won’t make or break an agent anyway, so it really doesn’t matter. It’s just one of those oddities, huh? LOL!
It seems that agents love to make fun of authors who submit “fiction novels,” so I’d suggest just writing “novel.”
However, they teach the “non-fiction novel” in high schools now. No wonder people get confused. If there is a non-fiction novel, why shouldn’t there be a fiction novel?
*sigh*
Non-Fiction Novel
LOL!
“Fiction-novel” is like saying I’ll have a “look-see” or “added bonus” or “close proximity.” It’s totally, completely, fully, utterly, and thoroughly redundant.;-)
Yeah, you are correct. I think when agents see the redundancy they just toss the letter in the “WTF” box. I would! LOL
I would consider it redundant. But I also don’t understand some of these newer genres that books are pigeon-holed into.
Novel. I have never heard of having to clarify that.
Which brings me to one point . . . I think it’s almost an illness the way writers will tell each other, “You have to do x or y,” and have to follow this rule or that, or someone heard once that if you submit in Gramond and not Times Roman or Courier, you’re doomed. And I tend to think if you produce a quality project, write a good query letter, and so on . . . you stand a SHOT and focusing on some of this as “has to” . . . just makes writers more insecure than most of us already are. You know?
I’ve read several agent blogs that say they toss a query without reading further if it says fiction novel. They have their various reasons, but the main one is that it’s redundant, and as writers we should know better.
Non-fiction novel doesn’t make any sense because they are opposites. you have narrative non-fiction (memoir and the like) or regular old non-fiction, but you cannot have fiction non-fiction.
I’m having difficulty figuring out what to call my book in my query because I believe it’s mainstream fiction, but I can’t call it a mainstream fiction novel. Mainstream novel sounds weird… so I’m at a loss.
Yep – novel by its definition is fiction. ‘Nuff said.
I can’t say I’ve ever heard anybody say “fiction novel”. But I would definitely agree that it’s redundant. And just…awkward to the ear.
I agree with the poster above me. A novel is fiction. Otherwise it’s a memoir, or an autobiography, or a narrative, or a historical account, or…you get the picture.
‘Fiction novel’ is redundant in my opinion……a novel is fiction by definition, no? So, I would not use that in a query, it would be more useful to the agent to identify what type of novel it was….mainstream, literary, etc.
As you said, ALL novels are fiction, simple as that. The phrase “fiction novel” screams amateur. After all, you don’t go to a restaurant and say, “I’d like some vegetable broccoli,” do you? LOL!
I didn’t even know the term “nonfiction novel” existed until now. To be honest, I thought it was some type of pseudo-phrase until I saw the link Spy gave to the Wiki article. Funny stuff!
Works as well as “non-fiction memoir.” Doh!