{"id":10355,"date":"2026-02-24T00:08:31","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T06:08:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/?p=10355"},"modified":"2026-02-19T18:57:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T00:57:07","slug":"does-size-matter-sarah-hoyts-unusual-three-book-novel-no-mans-land-achieves-epic-scope-yet-is-not-unprecedented-in-literary-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/does-size-matter-sarah-hoyts-unusual-three-book-novel-no-mans-land-achieves-epic-scope-yet-is-not-unprecedented-in-literary-history\/","title":{"rendered":"Does size matter? Sarah Hoyt\u2019s unusual three-book novel No Man\u2019s Land achieves epic scope yet is not unprecedented in literary history\u2028"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Michael Grossberg<\/a><\/p>\n

Does size matter?<\/p>\n

The question arises in fiction when authors conceive novels that are noticeably bigger in word count and longer in page length than usual.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

In theory, a bigger novel makes possible a larger canvas, allowing for an epic scope, a more complex narrative, richer world-building, more full-bodied characters, greater subtleties and depths.<\/p>\n

Whether or not ambitious authors fulfill that potential and achieve their literary goals when writing bigger novels varies, of course. So does whether readers will find it rewarding to invest the extra time needed to read such magnum opuses.<\/p>\n

Such questions are interesting and timely to ponder now that Sarah Hoyt\u2019s No Man\u2019s Land <\/i>has been nominated for the Prometheus Award for Best Novel.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

HOYT\u2019S THREE-VOLUME MAGNUM OPUS<\/b><\/p>\n

Based on a passionately pursued idea that Hoyt first developed in her youth and wrote over several drafts and decades, and requiring decades for her to mature as a writer, No Man\u2019s Land eventually developed into a three-volume novel – as reported in a recent Prometheus Blog feature-interview with Hoyt.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Sarah Hoyt at an sf convention (Creative Commons license)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThe book exploded to over 250k words and my editor and business manager convinced me to slice it in three. The three are not stand alone but “volumes” of one book,\u201d Hoyt told me last fall when the first volume was published by Goldport Press.<\/p>\n

No Man\u2019s Land: <\/i>Volume 1, published Sept. 9, 2025, is 307 pages.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>No Man\u2019s Land:<\/i> Volume 2, published Sept. 23, 2025, is 280 pages.<\/p>\n

And No Man\u2019s Land:<\/em> Volume 3, published Oct. 7, 2025, is 313 pages.<\/p>\n

Each book, in other words, is the size of a normal novel, but they are not stand alone, Hoyt said.<\/p>\n

Together, all three books constitute one 900-page novel with one complete story.<\/p>\n

That makes No Man\u2019s Land <\/i>distinct from the increasingly frequent practice within the science fiction and fantasy genres for authors to write duologues, trilogies, tetralogies (for four linked novels), pentalogies (for five), sexologies (for six), and so on.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>For instance, among this year\u2019s 12 Best Novel nominees so far are Forged for Destiny <\/i>and Forged for Prophecy, <\/i>the separately nominated first two novels in Andrew Knighton\u2019s planned fantasy trilogy.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Forged for Destiny trilogy will culminate with the publication in March 2026 of Forged for Royalty<\/i>.<\/p>\n

OTHER NOMINATED TRILOGIES
\n<\/b>
\nLikewise, the annual Prometheus Award for Best Novel has seen many examples of novels nominated separately that are part of larger trilogies, tetralogies or series.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Just last year Alliance Unbound, <\/i>by C.J. Cherryh and Jane S. Fancher, was nominated for Best Novel and became a finalist.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>This is the second novel in Cherryh and Fancher\u2019s The Hinder Stars projected trilogy, itself part of Cherryh\u2019s much larger Alliance-Union series.<\/p>\n

Alliance Unbound<\/i> is the sequel to Alliance Rising<\/a>,<\/i> which won the 2020 Prometheus Award for Best Novel.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Similarly, all three novels in three-time Prometheus winner Ken MacLeod\u2019s The Corporation Wars science fiction trilogy were recognized in our award.<\/p>\n

The Corporation Wars: Dissidence<\/em> and The Corporation Wars: Insurgence<\/i><\/a> were separately nominated and became Best Novel finalists in 2017, while The Corporation Wars: Emergence, <\/i>the conclusion of the trilogy, was nominated and became a Best Novel finalist in 2008.<\/p>\n

GALLAGHER\u2019S FALL OF THE CENSOR SERIES
\n<\/b>
\nOver the past decade or so, perhaps the most significant example of an author being nominated for a large number of novels within the same series is Karl K. Gallagher.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>War By Other Means, <\/i>one of 12 2025 novels nominated so far for the next Prometheus Award for Best Novel, is Book 7 of Gallagher\u2019s projected nine-volume Fall of the Censor series, a favorite among LFS members.<\/p>\n

Storm Between the Stars <\/i>(Book 1) became a 2021 Best Novel finalist.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Between Home and Ruin <\/i>(Book 2) and Seize What\u2019s Held Dear <\/i><\/a>(Book 3) both became 2022 Best Novel finalists.<\/p>\n

Captain Trader Helmsman Spy <\/i>(Book 4) became a 2023 Best Novel finalist, and, Swim Among the People<\/a> <\/i>(Book 5) became a 2024 Best Novel finalist.<\/p>\n

HOYT\u2019S DARKSHIP SERIES
\n<\/b>
\nPerhaps the most interesting comparison with the single nomination this year of Hoyt\u2019s three-part novel No Man\u2019s Land<\/i> is with her own previous and illustrious track record in the Prometheus Awards.
\n\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

After winning the Prometheus Award for Best Novel in 2011 for Darkship Thieves, <\/i><\/a>Hoyt was nominated for each of her Darkship novels, all set in the same future solar-system-wide scenario revolving around a heroic woman from an anarchist colony in the asteroid who must fight for her freedom and identity against a tyrannical Earth government.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Among them: Darkship Renegades,<\/i>\u00a0a 2013 Prometheus Best Novel finalist; A Few Good Men<\/i>, a 2014 Best Novel finalist; Through Fire<\/i>, a 2017 Best Novel nominee; and Darkship Revenge<\/i>, a 2018 Best Novel finalist.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Hoyt also has said (in an earlier Prometheus Blog article)<\/a> that she hopes to return to her Darkship universe to write more novels.<\/p>\n

Yet, each of Hoyt\u2019s Darkship books is a stand-alone novel – part of her larger fictional future universe but each with its own plot, characters and dramatic arc, including a compelling beginning, middle and end.<\/p>\n

DUMAS\u2019 MUSKETEERS AND OTHER LITERARY PRECEDENTS
\n<\/b>
\nNo Man\u2019s Land, <\/i>on the other hand, tells one story revolving around its central character – and that took three books to complete.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s unusual today, in the 21st century, yet it was far more common in the 19th century. And such three-book novels were popular, too, especially in England and France.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Alexandre Dumas in 1855 (Creative Commons license)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870), who became the best-selling novelist in the history of France, is best known today for The Count of Monte Christo <\/i>and The Three Musketeers,<\/i> a historical swashbuckling adventure published in 1844.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>His Musketeers tale proved so popular with readers in France and around the world that Dumas wrote several sequels.<\/p>\n

Billed as the first of three d\u2019Artagnan Romances, The Three Musketeer<\/i>s was followed by Twenty Years After <\/i>and The Vicomte de Bragellone: Ten Years Later <\/i>– all bestsellers in French and their subsequent English translations.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Few read the latter sequel today, or even recognize its title. Yet many have read (or seen the film versions of) The Man in the Iron Mask,<\/i> a novel that actually was one of three or four books within the multi-volume The Vicomte de Bragellone<\/i>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Appearing first in serial form between 1847 and 1850, the 268 chapters of this large volume are usually subdivided into three in the English translations of the French , but sometimes four or even six individual books, according to an encyclopedia entry about Dumas and his novels.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

In three-volume English editions the volumes are entitled The Vicomte de Bragelonne<\/i>, Louise de la Valli\u00e8re<\/i>, and The Man in the Iron Mask <\/i>(by far the best-known work today, thanks largely to several film adaptations, including a 1998 version starring Leonardo DiCaprio.)<\/p>\n

If a three-volume novel seems expansive, how about four?<\/p>\n

According to the encyclopedia reference, The Vicomte de Bragellone has also been divided up to publish as four books. The names remain the same, except that Louise de la Valli\u00e8re<\/i> and The Man in the Iron Mask<\/i> move from second and third volumes to third and fourth, with Ten Years Later<\/i> becoming the second volume.<\/p>\n

HOW TO JUDGE EPIC NOVELS – AND HOW BIG IS TOO BIG?<\/b><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Given such historical precedents and the fact that different subjects often require different scopes, does No Man\u2019s Land<\/i> work as a three-volume novel?<\/p>\n

That depends largely on the story itself, how well Hoyt wrote it (excellently, in my view, with a winning blend of intelligent plotting, imaginative world-building, zestful adventure, twisty suspense, affecting emotion and humor).<\/p>\n

But it arguably also depends in part on the reader – and the practical question: Is a three-volume novel simply too big to practically digest?<\/p>\n

At 900 pages for all three volumes, No Man\u2019s Land i<\/i>s certainly on the high end of today\u2019s range of novels. Yet, the story is so engaging, the writing is so deft, the pacing is so well-timed and it reads so smoothly that I didn\u2019t find it too long at all.<\/p>\n

And I think Hoyt is right: All three volumes were necessary, and do add up to one satisfying novel that has the unusual characteristic of appealing equally to fans of science fiction and fantasy.<\/p>\n

Coming up on the Prometheus Blog: <\/b>A comparative list and analysis of the biggest novels in page length in the 47-year history of the Prometheus Award – and where No Man\u2019s Land<\/i> ranks on that list. (You might be surprised.)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

ABOUT THE LFS AND THE PROMETHEUS AWARDS<\/b><\/p>\n

*\u00a0Join us!<\/b> To help sustain the Prometheus Awards and support a cultural and literary strategy to appreciate and honor freedom-loving fiction, \u00a0join<\/a> the Libertarian Futurist Society, a non-profit all-volunteer international association of freedom-loving sf\/fantasy fans.<\/p>\n

Libertarian futurists understand that culture matters. We believe that literature and the arts can be vital in envisioning a freer and better future. In some ways, culture can be even more influential and powerful than politics in the long run, by imagining better visions of the future incorporating peace, prosperity, progress, tolerance, justice, positive social change, and mutual respect for each other\u2019s rights, human dignity, individuality and peaceful choices.<\/p>\n

* Prometheus winners:\u00a0<\/b>For a full list of Prometheus winners, finalists and nominees \u2013 including in the annual Best Novel and Best Classic Fiction (Hall of Fame) categories and occasional Special Awards \u2013 visit the enhanced \u00a0Prometheus Awards page<\/a>\u00a0on the LFS website. This page includes convenient links to all published essay-reviews in our Appreciation series explaining why each of more than 100 past winners since 1979 fits the awards\u2019 distinctive dual focus on both quality and liberty.<\/p>\n

*\u00a0Watch videos of past Prometheus Awards ceremonies, Libertarian Futurist Society panel discussions with noted sf authors and leading libertarian writers, and other LFS programs on the Prometheus Blog\u2019s\u00a0Video page.<\/a><\/p>\n

* Read \u201cThe Libertarian History of Science Fiction,\u201d<\/a> an essay in the international magazine\u00a0Quillette<\/i>\u00a0that favorably highlights the Prometheus Awards, the Libertarian Futurist Society and the significant element of libertarian sf\/fantasy in the evolution of the modern genre.<\/p>\n

* Check out the Libertarian Futurist Society\u2019s Facebook page<\/a> for comments, updates and links to the latest Prometheus Blog posts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Michael Grossberg Does size matter? The question arises in fiction when authors conceive novels that are noticeably bigger in word count and longer in page length than usual. In theory, a bigger novel makes possible a larger canvas, allowing for an epic scope, a more complex narrative, richer world-building, more full-bodied characters, greater subtleties … Continue reading Does size matter? Sarah Hoyt\u2019s unusual three-book novel No Man\u2019s Land achieves epic scope yet is not unprecedented in literary history\u2028<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[32,2205,2206],"tags":[2778,671,424,407,1006,152,2299,18,2779],"class_list":["post-10355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-author-updates","category-ken-macleod","category-sarah-hoyt","tag-alexandre-dumas","tag-c-j-cherryh","tag-darkship-thieves","tag-jane-s-fancher","tag-karl-k-gallagher","tag-ken-macleod","tag-no-mans-land","tag-sarah-hoyt","tag-the-three-musketeers"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pe8nGl-2H1","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10355","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10355"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10355\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10357,"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10355\/revisions\/10357"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10355"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10355"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lfs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10355"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}