The word “novel” originally derived from the Latin novus, meaning “new.”

The first novel, called The story of Genji, was written in 1007 by Japanese noble woman, Murasaki Shikibu.

The rise of the “novel” as the major alternative to the antiquated “romance” began with the publication of Cervantes Novelas Exemplares (1613).

The first novel sold through a vending machine - at the Paris Metro - was Murder on the Orient Express.

Barbara Cartland completed a novel every two weeks, publishing 723 novels.

Ernest Vincent Wright’s 1939 novel Gadsby has 50,110 words, none of which contains the letter “e.”

Almost half of all the paperback books printed and distributed for the North American market are romance novels of various types.