Monday 22 September 2008

Drumroll please...

I have a title for the second book in my Poisoned Apple series - YAY!

I've fought through the awful - The Wicked Queen - chosen because there's an actress in the book who has the stage name 'The Vintage Queen' and because I wanted to go for a fairy tale title again.

Then I thought I'd found magic with - Big Bad Wolf - because there's like a werewolf in the story, so obviously that was soooooo intelligent.

Then I struggled with a million other titles all referring to fairy tales. Am I writing a fairy tale? Err, no. The title of the first book and this blog was born because a character in it 'Apple' is well a wee bit poisonous. Hence - well you get where I'm going with it.

So then (light at the end of the tunnel and all that) I decided the next book should refer to a character as well, so we have:

STRANGE BONES


Because Larry Bones is acting rather strangely this time around. He's given away his time-shifting watch and has signed up for the school play.


Oh, and if you hate the title - because I am not convinced that it's good and I am worried it doesn't gel well with book one's title (The Poisoned Apple) - then please speak up, otherwise you will have to carefully place your hand over the title when reading the book.

24 comments:

God said...

Hiya Cate. I like it! My only suggestion would be to add the word 'The' to the beginning of it. That'll make it sort of fit in better with 'The Poisoned Apple.'

Maybe?

Fox Lee said...

I like it : )

Cate Gardner said...

I'm not certain a 'The' would work as 'bones' refers to a person (I know, I did that with TPA - LOL), but have confirmed what I thought - the two titles don't gel together. I will get there eventually.

Oh, and as always thanks for your input.

Jamie Eyberg said...

i'm with you Cate, Strange Bones is a great title.

Cate Gardner said...

Thanks Natalie & Jamie...

Mary said...

Strange Bones. I absolutely LOVE IT! I think it works well with The Poisoned Apple, and don’t think the second title needs to gel with the first in an overly predictable way.

The more I hear about this series, the more excited I become. Honestly, Cate, it sounds GREAT!

Cate Gardner said...

Thanks, Mary :)

I don't know why I'm getting so wound up about a title that if I ever, ever, ever get an agent / publisher / letter from God, will probably change.

Jamie Eyberg said...

You are a good writer. Have faith in that.

Mary said...

LOL! But it’s our duty to put ourselves through it. ;)

Cate Gardner said...

:)

Michael Stone said...

'Strange Bones' gets my vote. Love it, preferably without the definite article. 'The Strange Bones' doesn't sound right.

And "He's given away his time-shifting watch and has signed up for the school play" really make sme sit up and take notice!

Cate Gardner said...

Thanks Michael :)

As the hours tick on I'm starting to feel a little easier about the title - still trapped in chapter 1 though. I think my editing hat is squeezing my brain a little too tightly and it insists on reading the same paragraphs over and over and...

Anonymous said...

Sounds GREAT. I look forward to it. Perfect time to come across your blog, right?

Happy Mabon!

Michael Stone said...

Ah, you're like me, then, Cate -- unable to leave things rough and move on. It's a habit that makes first chapters absolute murder, but what can you do? It's just the way we are.

Brenda said...

I like "Strange Bones"...it leaves the imagination open to what the meaning is behind it...which is what I like about a book...I am a book title kinda reader...if the title catches my attention, it will be the one I take home...

I don't know why, but when I read what the story was about, this is what came to mind for me:

A Bone In Time...

and

Timeless Bones...

Titles are so hard for me, so I feel your pain...Good luck with it...

Brenda said...

OMG! I don't want you to think I was saying my titles fit better...I really didn't mean it that way, but after I read my post, I was afraid it came off that way...sigh...

Okay, what I meant was...I love your title Strange Bones and it goes with the description of your story...and makes me want to read more...

The titles I gave was just examples of how bad I am at titles...sorry if they came across as anything else...I've been milking cows all afternoon...so my brain might not be working quite right yet...grin...

K.C. Shaw said...

I like The Wicked Queen, but Strange Bones is even better! And hey, you can always leave The Wicked Queen for some other work if you like it.

Cate Gardner said...

Thanks for visiting, Devon.

Michael - I'm a nightmare. I've been working on chapter 1 for 10 days or so. Today I will conquer the second chapter.

Brenda - I actually quite like Timeless Bones. And suggestions are always welcome.

KC - I liked The Wicked Queen title until Mum burst out laughing. Parents. :)

Carrie Harris said...

Yeah, The Wicked Queen sounds a little, er... pervy, doesn't it? But I like Strange Bones quite a lot!

Anonymous said...

I like the title a lot. Good job!

Jodi Lee (Morrighan) said...

Hmm...if I double comment, blame blogger. It told me to retry. ;)

I like Strange Bones, Cate - it's definitely catchy!

Cate Gardner said...

Carrie, Barry, Jodi - cheers, guys.

Anonymous said...

Strange Bones. Yep, I like it. Gets my vote. I think Poisoned Apple is catchy, too. Good luck on the agent hunt. That's a whole other battle.

Cate Gardner said...

Thanks Justin. :)