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.

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

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.

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.

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