The title of a book will be the only words read by the majority of not-quite-readers (some won’t even get that far). As a writer I have to earn every sentence. The title helps lots of readers get over the hump toward reading the first sentence. If they like that one hopefully they will read a few more, etc.
My working title turns out to have been someone else’s working title (and now published title). This someone else is also a bigger fish in the novelist pond, so I am dropping Blood Vines as my title and looking for a new one. I mean, hey. I’m sure it was better suited for my soon-to-be-pulitzer-prize-winner, but first come, first serve. No hard feelings (for taking my title, you jerk!).
Here is where you come in. I need some help coming up with the new money-making, “buy me!” title.
Here is a little information to get you into the right frame of mind: The soon-to-be book formerly known as Blood Vines will be categorized as a Southern gothic, historic, literary fiction. It involves elements of religion, spirituality, paranormal, racism and family relations. Target audience will include 18 to 120 but focus on twenty and thirty-somethings. Women make up a majority of these age groups.
In a dream world the title will be reminiscent of the South, encourage a visual image, be four words or less, include the feminine, have more than one layer of meaning, be slightly dark, refer to the writing, not be in use already. Here is a list of words to inspire:
Sleep, dream, sugar, honey, South, king, kingdom, child, daughter, girl, baby, vine, blood, land, unloved, forgiven, fallen, forest, scapegoat, suffer, forgotten, voodoo, gris-gris
So. Hit me with your ideas. I am hoping to land on something soon in order to recommence my marketing scheme. At the moment the leading candidates are Gris-Gris Daughter, or Real Thing Done Gone. But it appears that gris-gris is not commonly recognized. So lastly, if you know what gris-gris means or feel you have a vague idea please let me know!