A Novel Question

Factual Questions
1

Starting three or four years ago, I began noticing the words “A novel” on the dustjacket of hardcover novels. Why in the world did the publishing industry start doing this? Were people having trouble distinguishing the cookbooks from the fiction section?

I haven’t scoped a bookstore recently to see if all publishers do it, but, as I can recall seeing it on many books, I suspect that most, if not all, follow the practice.

Any thoughts, teeming millions?

thanks

-ellis

2

I suspect it has something to do with the fact that I noticed a lot of book stating “A true story” or something to that effect recently. But it isn’t really a recent thing, I have a book that must be 25 years old “The Gods Themselves” by Isaac Asimov that states it’s a novel. Although in his case it may be to sidtinguish it from a short story collection.