Indirect Books, the publishing arm of L'Esprit Literary Review, has issued an open reading call for novellas. The press seeks manuscripts between approximately 20,000 and 40,000 words that are conceived and executed as novellas—not compressed novels or enlarged short stories. The editors are explicit in their desire for works that exploit the form's singular capacities: a contained internal logic, a resistance to conventional narrative expansion, and a language-driven sensibility that rests comfortably beyond convention. This is a call for writers who understand the novella as a distinct literary architecture, not a matter of word count alone. The selected project—at least one novella is expected to be acquired—will receive full editorial and production support, including distribution to the trade, with publication planned for 2027. There is no submission fee. The press's commitment to risk-adept writing signals an interest in manuscripts that might be overlooked by commercial houses: formally adventurous, stylistically rigorous, and structurally self-possessed. The novella, as Indirect Books frames it, is a space for concentrated vision, and the editors are seeking work that justifies the form's demands. Submissions should consist of sample pages from a section of the manuscript, beginning with the opening, up to 5,000 words. Accompanying materials include a brief author bio with publication history. The manuscript must be formatted in Times New Roman, 12pt, double-spaced, with one-inch margins and page numbers. The deadline is 23 November 2026. This is a focused reading period for a specific, form-conscious acquisition, and the press's editorial stance suggests a preference for writing that is as deliberate in its mechanics as it is in its language.