Yes, many of my titles are novellas. Some are adaptations of my two-hour screenplays; some are explorations of singular themes that catch my interest; some are individual episodes gathered together to comprise larger series.
Novellas typically range in length from 20,000 to 50,000 words, that space between short stories and full-length novels. I read somewhere that they are like capturing lightning in a bottle, that they can showcase an author’s ability to world-build quickly.
Novellas in literary history? Consider well-known classic novellas such as Of Mice and Men, Animal Farm, The Old Man and the Sea, A Christmas Carol, The Time Machine, and many, many more. Authors include Shirley Jackson, Phillip K. Dick, Ursula K. Le Quin, George Orwell, H.G. Wells.
I love writing novellas. I love that world. It’s a wonderful place in which to dwell.
Yes, yes, then there are my full-length novels. A whole other amazing world. Consider my Serpent’s Keep and The Shylmahn Migration, two novels that allowed for expansive exploration of epic fantasy and science fiction, all the more so when each was expanded to trilogies. Each provided the opportunity for deep character exploration and detailed world-building.
And of course there are also my short stories. I do love writing short stories.
So… short stories, novellas, novels. What will it be today?
While I don’t set out to target a book that I’m writing to a specific readership, when published one may be better suited to young adult or general family readership, while another may be better suited to a more adult audience, due to the tone of the story. However, all my books are absolutely safe for all readers, whatever their age.
Okay, I believe I used the phrase “old fart” once.
The one book of mine that you might steer the young’uns away from is The Caravan, this due to its underlying theme, not due to language or anything racy.
For a limited time, pick up the hardcover edition of Sutherland House direct from our hardcover distributor at 30% off list price.
Sutherland House – the complete series, recipient of the Readers’ Favorite Five Stars award:
“David R. Beshears excels in creating a world that’s grounded and otherworldly. The Society, with its unique abilities and intricate hierarchies, is a fascinating construct that adds intrigue to the plot.”
Sutherland House Hardcover 30% off from IngramSpark
Several years ago, the Shylmahn Migration, first book in the trilogy, received the Readers’ Favorite Five Stars award. I only just recently decided to submit the 900-page Shylmahn Trilogy, the complete collection, to Readers’ Favorite for a possible review.
Well, I finally did it, submitted it a few weeks ago. And wow, only took about a week, one of their readers picked it up. He wrote a very nice review and the collection received their Readers’ Favorite Five Stars award:
“The Shylmahn Trilogy is a thrilling and expertly crafted science fiction trilogy…
I thoroughly enjoyed reading the trilogy for its multiple layers, subplots, exceptional characters, and complex worldbuilding.”
Head over to the Readers’ Favorite page and check out the full review!
I submitted the Last Day at Sharp Park novella to Readers' Favorite last week, hoping for a nice review. So... just got word that it picked up their Readers' Favorite Five Stars award. So cool... I posted the review here on the Readers' Favorite page. Please head over and give it a read! Thanks!
Several have recently asked why we don’t do more FREE ebook promotions, with these last two being the first we’ve done in years. Yes, a free book does get out to a much wider audience, and that’s great. But there is a downside. A lot of folks see that a book is free and quickly click to download without first checking it out. Hey, free book, but it’s often not really their kind of story. They read it and are disappointed. This often shows up in ratings and reviews. On the other hand, when we offer a three-day .99 promotion, the reader usually checks out the description before downloading it. A smaller but more targeted audience, and happier readers, which also shows up in ratings and reviews.
And so… while the two free promotions that ran this past month are the last for the foreseeable future, there are several more .99 promotions on the calendar for 2026. These will announce here on the website and in the newsletter.
I wrote a novella about ten years ago called “Last Day at Sharp Park”, which itself had used a short story that I had written decades earlier as its original source.
A couple of years ago I adapted the novella to a television series pilot called “Miles Bennett”, and last year I decided to send it out to a screenwriting competition that I came across, then quickly forgot about. Well, I just got word that the project is a finalist in the competition. Cool.
You can check out the novella by clicking the Last Day at Sharp Park book image on this website's home page.
Scheduling out upcoming development projects, I’m looking forward to getting back to science fiction. While I absolutely loved writing the Gordon’s Porch contemporary fiction series and Mrs. Weddington’s Yard family fantasy short novella, I’m excited to be returning to scifi and I’m ready to delve into the world of the Black Tower sequel. This will be an epic project and will likely take much of the coming year. Pulling all the notes and outlines together, development will probably start sometime in late March once Gordon’s Porch Two is published.
All eleven episodes of the Black Tower series are available in audiobook format on both Amazon and Audible. Great narration by Jeffrey Fellin. Grab ‘em an episode at a time, starting with: Episode One on Amazon or Episode One on Audible.
The Mrs. Weddington’s Yard short novella is the latest of our titles to pick up the Readers' Favorite Five Stars award! We’ve posted the very nice review by Jenny Alexander on the Readers' Favorite page on this website. Give it a read! Thanks!
Just a reminder… For those who live in the region, paperback editions of most of my titles are available for checkout from the Timberland Regional Public Library. Be sure to take advantage of that great service.
Most of my literary titles have either been adapted to or were adapted from screenplays, and over the last few years I’ve submitted most of these screenplays to screenwriting competitions. In that time, almost every script, whether feature, tv pilot, tv movie or short script, have done very well, placing finalist or better. These acknowledgements complement well the awards their corresponding novel/novella adaptations all have received.
A general comment from someone the other day got me thinking, when it came to my writing, just how did I get from there to here? I pondered on those thoughts for a while, and then, me being me, I put a few notes together, and then those notes became a document. Yeah, I was going to let it go at that, then decided to put it on my author website and on this website. Give it a look. Select the About the Author page from the menu here on greybeard.
The tv pilot screenplay adaptation of The Storekeeper was a finalist in a recent screenwriting competition.
The novella adaptation is the recipient of the Readers’ Favorite Five Stars award and is available in ebook, paperback and hardcover format.
The stage play adaptation of The Storekeeper placed finalist in an international stage play competition, and is listed with Scriptmore, an online platform for playwrights, producers, directors, actors, anyone in the world of theater.
The properly formatted stage play script of The Storekeeper is available on the Scriptmore website (Storekeeper on Scriptmore), which is what you would want (and need) in order to produce the play. But for those who might be interested, I did manage to create and publish a paperback edition of the stage play, albeit with some necessary adjustments to format. Not the novella adaptation, this is the actual stage play adaptation inserted into a paperback. Curious? Check it out at: storekeeper stage play
A reminder that author-signed paperback, large print paperback and hardcover editions of most of my books are available on ebay. These copies come from our direct-sales inventory that we take to book fairs and holiday fairs. Note that inventory is limited. Click the ebay button on this site’s home page and check it out!
I strongly encourage you to head over to the Readers' Favorite page of this website and give the review by K.C. Finn of Readers' Favorite a read. An amazing review of one of my earlier (and most popular) books. Much thanks to K.C. Finn!
We got word this morning that the Sisters in Space Episode 1 screenplay just placed #1 scifi webseries for September and is now #4 scifi webseries for the year. Find info and links for the “Sisters in Space – the complete series” novel adaptation by clicking the title's book image on this site's Home page.
The screenplay adaptation of Yesterday’s Shadows, the title story in the Yesterday’s Shadows short story collection, was purchased by producer/director Nawaf Al-Janahi and is to be produced as a short film.
The screenplay adaptation of "The Shylmahn Migration", book one of the Shylmahn trilogy, won the Pacific Northwest Screenwriting competition.
Greybeard Publishing
Washington State
Copyright © 2026 Greybeard Publishing
We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.