Writing in "roleplay novella" is terrifying to somebody that's just getting into it, I know. Everybody kind of has a different definition in RP of what novella actually constitutes.

If we're going by the actual definition of novella, the word count is anywhere from 17,500-40,000 words. Short fiction is anything less than 7,500 words and the area between that and novella is a novelette.

When I write, personally, I often write in such a way that every time a new person starts speaking, I begin a new "paragraph". Because of this, my starters, replies, and drabbles can often end up being upward of fifteen "paragraphs".

Example

This sample was taken from a drabble of mine.

A little further up the road, and he saw the great wooden gate that marked the entrance of Riverwood from his end. As he entered, he didn't see Hadvar or Alvor outside, but could smell the smithing forge. Every single building in this small village was made of wood. The people here were sitting ducks if a dragon happened upon them, and there were only a small handful of guards.

"Dragon! I saw a dragon!" an elderly woman spoke as he passed.

"What is it now, mother?"

"It was big as a mountain, and black as night! It flew right over the Barrow!"

He didn't stay to listen to the rest of their conversation, but he knew she must have been referring to the stone structures he'd seen on his way down. He made his way to the door of the house attached to the smithing forge and knocked on the door. He was told to come in and opened the door, stepping in to see Hadvar sitting there with his uncle.

"Sigrid! We have company!" Alvor called as Andrel closed the door. Hadvar pulled a chair for him and motioned for him to sit down. A few moments later, a woman came upstairs and moved to sit down next to her husband. Alvor turned to Hadvar. "Now, then, boy. What's the big mystery? What were you doing, looking like you lost an argument with a cave bear?"

"I don't know where to start," Hadvar replied, leaning forward. "I was assigned to General Tullius's guard. We were stopped in Helgen when we were attacked... by a dragon."

"That's... ridiculous. You aren't drunk, are you, boy?"

Sigrid nudged Alvor with her elbow, her voice stern but gentle. "Husband. Let him tell his story."

I don't like writing in "essay format". I see essay format as when each paragraph must have 5-7 sentences to be considered a full paragraph. That, I feel, inhibits my creativity as a writer, which is why I prefer to write in storybook format, instead.

I also see storybook format as more "organized" than essay format. You can clearly see when a new character is speaking because it isn't always clumped together, and unless it's two people talking, there's always some way to discern who is talking. Additionally, I count each new line as a new "paragraph", regardless of how many sentences it has.

Furthermore, I believe in "quality" over "quantity". My storybook format writing may seem a lot longer than some typical roleplay responses, but I'm not one for writing more than what I feel needs to be said.

Because I write in storybook format, you could easily categorize my writing in 'novella'. I get carried away with my writing when I write in storybook format, and I find it the easiest way to reach 1,000+ words.

I'm not saying this is the "be all, end all" of writing styles, this is just my personal preference and I never want anybody to feel like you have to match my length.

TL:DR - I write as much as I damn want per paragraph. To hell with these silly "your paragraph has to be 5-7 sentences to be considered a full paragraph" rules. If I feel like a two-word sentence feels like a full paragraph in that situation, or a singular line of dialogue fits the bill, time to start a new paragraph!