Not everyone takes novellas seriously. It's not as long as a novel, therefore how could it be as good as a novel? Why not have made it a short story, or would trimming down the plot to make that work have been too hard?

Novellas seem to work best with short plots. Not shallow plots; shallow plots never work out in any length or format. Best to have a pool-level depth for a plot. Not too shallow, but you can still see the bottom somewhere down there...unless you haven't been cleaning your plot pool lately. In which case, get a better filter.

Novellas are just the right length to give a plot enough time to mature without getting bogged down in unnecessary bits and pieces that find their way in to novels.

Bits and pieces, like plot recaps, character backstories, and ridiculously detailed action scenes to help pad word counts. It's those bits and pieces that make it hard to take novellas seriously.

I like to think of novellas as stepping stones between short stories and novels. A good length for some YA plots, and good enough for several "classic" plots out there.

A novella length plot also works well for slower readers, or those with short attention spans. Some readers manage barely a book a year, whereas I feel slow if I don't read several books every week. I'd rather spend my life reading a book a day, but sadly that paradise doesn't exist in this version of reality.

Novellas are just short enough to make that easier, though. I can get through a novella a day, depending on how long my commute is and how distracted I am during my lunch hour. But good novellas aren't just pieces of fluff. There's enough meaty plot mixed in there to make it an engaging read.

There are plenty of fluff novellas out there, just as there are fluff novels, fluff short stories, and just your general everyday fluff. The only fluff I'm willing to enjoy is the fluff that comes from marshmallows. Mmm...marshmallow guts.

Sorry, got a bit distracted there. Where was I?

Right, novellas. Unlike marshmallows, they don't go well with camp fires...or any fires really. Novellas are in fact very flammable. Now you know. *insert GI Joe sound clip here*