Novel was read as boat goes out of port (7)
I believe the answer is:
seaward
'as boat goes out of port' is the definition.
(travelling towards the sea)
'novel was read' is the wordplay.
'novel' indicates an anagram.
'was'+'read'='wasread'
'wasread' with letters rearranged gives 'SEAWARD'.
(Other definitions for seaward that I've seen before include "Like sailor going out" , "Towards the ocean" , "heading for coast?" .)