My New Novel—aka La Querencia—Now Has 306 Potential Titles. THANK YOU ALL!

What a response! My call for title help received more responses than any blog post I’ve sent out in five years. All I can say is to repeat something I learned back when I was still buying 45s; the Beatles were right, duh. I did need a little help from my friends and boy did you come through. I’ve been playing with all the titles, falling in love with each and following the riff of possibilities it sent me through. Just yesterday I thought I had it with The Dream Chasers. I was fantasizing about possible covers and where in the manuscript I could seed in language to make it transcendent. Then I discovered it had been the title of a 1984 two-star modern day western as well as two documentaries.

I guess that means it was a good, if not unique, idea. But alas, not for me. So, I don’t have a finalist yet, but the winnowing has been enlightening. Read on to see where I am in the process.

I Promised to Make the “Author” of the Final Title Famous. Round One.

PHOTOGRAPH BY SUSAN AURINKO

All 306 possibilities have been great, and they are still coming in, from many sources including some people I haven’t connected with since pre-Covid and longer. I’m delighted. My Excel spreadsheet is now on page ten. Some of you have shared the process of your entire creative burst and others have sent a single carefully curated option.

The leader in quantity with 38 suggestions is master designer/identity expert Greg Samata, who designed the look of my website (and in full disclosure was also my eighth-grade boyfriend). Within seconds of sending his ideas he texted to indicate that he could come up with more if I’d just tell him the ending of the novel. Ha! Nice ploy, Greg. I differed. But then we know that endings are as changeable as titles, yes?

Coming in the twenties was poet Nolan Chambers with 26, many based on some fascinating research into the origin and meaning of potential Spanish words. Writer John Poplett follows with 21. I met John when I browbeat him into buying my first novel at the Printers Row Lit Fest a while back. He threw it on his TBR (to be read) file and didn’t crack it open for a year, after which he sent a fan email.

Some other seriously great writers also sent double-digit lists of seriously great options including 17 from Maggie Smith, who is currently basking in the glow of the successful launch of her debut novel Truth and Other Lies. At 16, networking buddy Brenda Butler tied with fabulous photographer and supporter of all writers Susan Aurinko, who took my first author photo. Alice Early, author of the award-winning The Moon Always Rising, sent 15, including the one currently stuck in my head that truly sings. Alice and I share a publisher (She Writes Press) and a consultant-to-author background. Bob Carr, former communications colleague and writer sent 11, as well as some wonderful research on the Day of the Dead Fiesta, which figures prominently in the novel.

The First Cut

Going through so many potential titles has helped me reach a few early conclusions. As much as I love the truly wonderful titles featuring “bull,” I realize I shouldn’t have that word in the title. The novel is already an homage to The Sun Also Rises, with a single bullfighting scene, the prospect of either of which is off-putting to some who are squeamish or Hemingway adverse (sad but true). I’m always explaining that the book is not about bullfighting, that it’s just the metaphor, so putting bull in the title is going to make that hill harder to climb. As a result, I have to give up wonderful options like Twilight of the Bulls, The Place in the Ring, The Season of the Bull, Last Stand in the Ring, In the Bull’s Eye.

Also, the concept of “safety” doesn’t seem to work as well as I’d envisioned to communicate what the story is about. Although I do like Safe Dreams.

What I have learned on the “what does work” side is:

1) San Miguel is a setting that really resonates, so having it in the title would be a bonus.

2) Sunset or “twilight” seems to combine the wonderful-but-temporary concept of querencia. And it’s already in the manuscript. As Rachel, the main character, explains: “La Querencia is the perfect time before the end of life, a sunset is the most beautiful, last hurrah of the day.”

3) Dream works in many of the titles and clearly represents what all the characters are after. Wounded Dreams, A Rage of Dreams.

4) Last or “final” offers the concept of a last shot or opportunity for that dream. Last Call, Last Stop, Last/Final Dream, Finale, Last Call at La Querencia (the Spanish word could work in this sense).

Many of the title options use or combine these elements, such as:

Last Sunset in San Miguel Twilight in San Miguel

Sundown in San Miguel The Sunset Dreamers

Last Stand at San Miguel This Last Dream

I’m still going through many more from the categories above as well as those related to the Querencia time frame, i.e., The Last Best Part of Life (though that won’t necessarily be true. After all, there are five characters, each with a dream, what are the odds?)  So, if you have any thoughts or additional ideas, or want to make a case for something I’m passing on, I’d love to hear from you. Meanwhile I’m clearing off my bulletin board so I can whiteboard this process and come to a conclusion or at least identify final candidates by my next post. Thank you all so much.

It’s Anniversary Day—The Fourteenth of September published on September 14, 2018. Or did it?

I still remember the conversation with my publisher when we knew publication would be September 12. “Marketing me” said that of course we should hold it two days—“Fourteenth on the 14th.” Genius, right? Logical, of course?  She laughed. Apparently the 14th that year was not on a sacred Tuesday, the only day of the week when books are launched. This was one of many critical factoids about the publishing world I was to learn. The first year I was peppered with many questions: Why didn’t it just come out on the 14th? I finally took to rounding it off and just telling people it WAS published on the 14th.  Which is where the story is today and will stay.

It has been quite a four years. I still have an approach/avoidance relationship with the good/bad situation of history that continues to make The Fourteenth of September evergreen historical fiction. Though set in 1969-1970 (from the first Vietnam Draft Lottery through the Kent State Massacre), the world continues to deal with similar issues. I take pride in the fact that the lessons of what we encountered ending the Vietnam Draft are currently giving Putin pause in starting one of his own. Hopefully, it will help to accelerate a badly needed conclusion. There will never be a good way to sacrifice lives without a worthy objective.

On the positive side, I’ve met and worked with amazing people and partners. We had a ton of parties and events, won more than a few awards and schlepped many pounds of books to and from independent bookstores, festivals, and book clubs. I’m amazed that the book continues to sell after all this time, though I know if I take my foot off the marketing machine it stops cold. (As if I would do that. You all know me better). I’m very grateful to the masses that helped me launch as well as to my current team of Kaitlyn Kennedy on publicity and Zerina Mehmedovic on social media (she actually had a baby and moved across the country in the middle of all of this!). Both of them agree with the adage of author Ann Patchett, “If You Haven’t Read It, It Is a New Book to You.” I thank all those readers in all those enthusiast social media sites who press on beyond the recent best-seller lists to prove that to be true every day.

To celebrate the anniversary, we’ve lowered the ebook price to $1.99 through the month of September only.

So, act fast if (despite all my nagging) you haven’t yet read the book, or if you have friends you think would like it.

Thanks for being with me.

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