The Next three months.

 Another re-edit/new cover complete!

This is quite an experiment to see if covers and titles really do make a difference. I am following stats and reports keenly, and all I can say is this has been the nest month this year which kind of proves something.

The next three months will be interesting.

 I don't know what I'm going to do now. I think everything has been done that needs doing. 

However this coming week will be busy. I have  a hair appointment on the same day my dog is booked in for an ultrasound scan. That's Wednesday and we are having lunch at the Black Sheep in Masham on Saturday. Bill has a lunch date on Tuesday but I stay at home or walk the dog while is out enjoying himself. 

I shall have to think about writing a totally new story soon, but so far nothing is consolidating in my brain. 

Re-publishing

Thinking of a new title for one of my books.

The Gybford Affair is about to become the Unwilling Marquess.

I've re-edited the entire book, which was fun and went by really quickly but for some time now I've thought the Affair series wasn't a good selling point. Many of the names I chose - all placenames in the UK, seem to cause the internet and Amazon problems. Craigmuir was never really accepted, so I changed it to Cragstone, which did better. 

Now I am thinking of renaming the entire series so that the genre is more easily seen by prospective buyers. Titles that include buzz words for genres ie Duke, heiress and Marquess for Regency stories. I understand it means unpublishing on Amazon and republishing so I am hoping all goes smoothly.

Making an Impact.

I am currently proof-reading The Cragstone Affair.

I first published this in 2015 as the Craigsmuir Affair and decided to unpublish and re-publish in e-book format with a new cover because the spelling of the original title always seemed to puzzle Amazon. (I haven't decided if print format is worth all the effort) As I've gone through the stages, I've removed a thousand or so words and improved the prose - as you do. Is editing ever really finished? This led me to consider the opening lines and wonder if they were good enough. Have I improved on my first lines, or not, in the last five years?

The truth is, I'm not sure. I knew what the story question was before I began - could a young Victorian woman achieve her dream of going to art school AND get happily married? I solved that one positively by the end of the story and gave her a mystery  to solve and a few adventures along the way.

I read somewhere that a mystery does not need a murder in the first few lines. A romance does not have to have to begin with a kiss, but the killer thing to remember is that most mysteries have a dead body at the end of the first chapter. (Believe me or not, that pun was unintentional.)

I had my mystery planted before the first chapter ended, so that was OK. But  when I begin a new story I now spend a long time thinking what the first line might be. Looking at the line I wrote way back eight or nine years ago, I don't think I did. If anything, I thought of the bigger picture, the fact that in paragraph two she falls down the stairs and lands in the arms of a stranger. I liked that, and still do. It is a visual beginning and readers might not like it, but it pleased me and I guess I'm stuck with it now.

What shall I call this?

Northumberland 1544

   ‘You haven’t heard the news?’ Harry Wharton lounged against the fence post, one ankle crossed over the other and regarded Matho with mock surprise. ‘The King of France was clapping his heels so loud you could hear it from the cliffs of Dover on a windy day.’

‘There’s nowt new about siring bairns.’ Matho’s long muscles moved easily as he continued the rhythmic grooming of his horse. ‘Hereabouts folk manage it wi’ nae trouble.’

‘It’s taken Dauphin Henri and Catherine de Medici ten years. People say witchcraft is involved.’

‘Aye, a new French prince will put everything on a different footing. There’ll be new plans hatching.’ Matho hooked one arm across his horse’s back and regarded his well-born friend. ‘The Dowager Queen of Scots will marry her daughter back into France. That will send King Henry into a rage because he wants her to marry his son. Arran wanted the bairn for his own son, so he’ll be annoyed. Cardinal Beton hates the idea of being under French control, so he’ll be stamping and spitting around the Scots court.’

‘You appear to know her well, this Dowager Queen.’

Matho looked down at the brush in his hand and pulled a few tufts of hair from the bristles. ‘Aye, well. Ye tend to remember a woman when she gives orders to take yer head off next morning.’

These are the opening words of my as yet untitled sequel to Abduction of the Scots Queen.

Titles are the Worst

Corbridge from the river bank

DH is safely returned from his trip to Oz and has dutifully gone off to restock our fridge and freezer. He has lots of scope as the household was down to bare shelves and empty cupboards. While he was away I imagined I would get lots of writing done, but that was not the case. I had so much more to do! Grocery shopping, empty the dishwasher, fill the dishwasher, cook every night, put the waste bins out, hoover and mop the kitchen floor now and then to keep the dog hair down, gardening - all things dh does. So now he's back, I may have more time for writing!

I have reached the end of Daisy's story - still without a title. There's polishing and editing to do, but essentially, it is finished. In 1893 Daisy dreams of a career as an artist but runs up against the rock that is Adam Grey, who distrusts women and thinks wives should not work outside the home. This immediately means Daisy must decide if she want s love and marriage or to fulfil her dreams. When a valuable painting goes missing in the country house where they are both guests, Adam turns detective and Daisy decides to help him if only to prove that she is not the thief as Adam initially believes.

Corbridge from the bridge

After several misleads and red herrings, they discover the culprit. They may have fallen in love but barriers remain between them. Daisy fights for her right to have a career, and Adam still cannot get over his distrust of women.

Now comes the tricky thing of deciding to publish it myself, or try for a publishing house.
I also need a title, always a problem.
Barriers to Love is a possibility.
Or, The Art of Love. Artistic Circles? Blinded by Love?
 Suggestions on a post card please!

The Baronetage

A baronet is not a peer. The title is a hereditary honour descending from father to son. Thus Thomas Wharton was given the honour by Henry VIII and thereafter stuck Sir in front of his name and Bt after it, If he had no son, the title would become extinct. If a later holder of the title sires no son, the title descends to the nearest male descendant of a former holder.

 A baronet's wife takes the title Lady with her surname, thus Lady Wharton. She is not entitles to be called The Lady Wharton. The is not generally used now, but was once in general use - historical authors take note!

A baronet is addressed by his title and forename ie Sir Thomas. In writing you would address him as Sir, and his wife as Madam. The envelope would be  formally addressed to Sir Thomas Wharton,bt and for his wife: Lady Wharton.

Widows  retain the style until the succeeding baronet marries. The new wife takes the title and the  widow adopts The Dowager Lady Wharton. If she marries again, she takes the same status as her new husband. In other words, if she marries a commoner, then she becomes Mrs Jane Harris or whatever. Until re-marriage they are addressed  by forename and title. Children of baronets have no titles. They are plain Mr and Miss.

Went up the hill for a walk today and almost blew away. Beautiful and bright, but the wind! Tears ran down my cheeks!

Those titles....

Courtesy Titles can be fun or sheer hell, depending on your Point of View.
Here's a real life example: The 8th Duke of Devonshire died without issue. His heir was the eldest son of his brother, Lord Edward Cavendish, who had predeceased him. As long as the 8th duke lived his heir presumptive (Victor Cavendish) had no title, nor of course had his two brothers. But when Mr Victor Cavendish succeeded to the dukedom, his brothers became Lord Richard and Lord John Cavendish. His mother, however, remained Lady Edward Cavendish.
It is interesting that even though Victor would have inherited had his father, Lord Edward, succeeded to the dukedom, these privileges cannot be claimed as a right. They are given by favour of the Crown and warrants are granted in such cases only upon the recommendation of the Home Secretary.

(I am using capitals as used by Titles and Forms of Address. The use of capitals where royalty and the nobility are concerned in fiction is food for a whole other post.)

I have difficulty with hereditary barons and baronets. Barons and Baronesses make up the fifth and final grade of the peerage, ie the lowest in rank. The confusion possibly comes from the Scottish peerage created in Scotland before the Act of Union in 1707, and the installation of Life Peers; but before we digress,  lets look at English barons.

All of this rank are known as Lord or Lady with the exception of peeresses in their own right who may choose to be called Baroness. The title is sometimes territorial, sometimes a family name and sometimes something made up for the purpose. An example might be Baron West, with a family name of Sunderland. In speech these people are addressed as lord and lady or baroness. In writing I should address them as My Lord, or My Lady. If I know them personally I might  write Dear Lord West or, if I know them really, really well, Dear West.

A dowager baroness is the earliest surviving widow of a peer. If he had a second or even a third wife, they are distinguished by the use of their forename before the title. The former wife of a baron uses her forename before the title. So there is sense in getting it right. If I'm introduced to Lady West, Lady Lavinia West, the Dowager Lady West or Daphne, Dowager Lady West, I ought to be aware of their status within the family.

Enough for one day? I think so.

Those tricky titles

Titles and Forms of Address, 20th edition, is a mine of information for a historical author. It becomes obvious on delving into it that the strange ways of the addressing nobility have a purpose, if not a secret code . Though I shall never be introduced to the Queen, I know that if she speaks to me, I should answer using her title Your Majesty for the first response and subsequently can get away with Ma'am. Should Prince Philip speak to me, I answer with his title Your Royal Highness and subsequently Sir.
If I meet the children of the Queen, the same rule applies - initial response Your Royal Highness and subsequently Sir or Ma'am.
The peerage has five grades - Dukes, Marquesses, Earls, Viscounts and Barons. A hereditary title descends from father to son or grandfather to grandson. Occasionally descent includes the female line. If a cousin succeeds in an ancient peerage, it is because he is descended from some former holder of the title, not because  the previous peer was his cousin. With newer titles, it gets complicated over who might or might not inherit.

All peers have a family name as well as their title. Sometimes they are the same. Sons and daughters of peers use the family name, except in the case of eldest sons of dukes, marquesses and earls. The eldest son takes a courtesy title - in effect he borrows one of his father's lesser titles from the day he is born and uses it as his own.

It is a lot to remember when you are writing an exciting romance. More to come with the next post.

Thoughts on Hugh Howey's WOOL

Why the peculiar title? The experts keep telling us aspiring writers that a cover is all and the title comes close second in the quest for readers. I galloped through the book - except to eat, sleep and walk Tim - and came to the end slightly puzzled.

First of all - the cover is eye-catching but not informative in my humble opinion. The title is even less informative. Having just finished a book called The Wedding Yarn, which involved a wool shop, I might be forgiven for thinking this new story would be about sheep or knitting or both.  Not at all. The only thing I can see that is relevant to the story is that the powers who run the silo are pulling the wool over everyone's eyes in the hope of keeping them all trapped within its protection. Naughty, and definitely not nice.

But then the alternative is worse. The air outside the silo is toxic. That at least seems to be truthful. So you stay inside or you die. Not a happy alternative. The first two thirds of the book are excellent, with  lots of detail about life in the silo, some doomed people who want to "go outside," and  what the Americans call a kick-ass heroine called Juliette. (Had I been HH, I would have picked a shorter name. Imagine having to type two e's and two t's every time for no apparent gain in pronunciation.)

But the last section seems to unravel (to keep the wool pun going) or else I read too fast and missed important info along the way. The way Lukas guessed what had happened was odd, the way Bernard vanished was doubly odd and we were never told what burn injuries Juliette suffered, or what transpired between her and her father. There was also the curiosity of the kids in the other silo - the oldest was fifteen, yet Solo said he'd been there thirty years on his own. So who conceived and bore the children, brought them up? Who kept the lights running?

Any answers delightfully received!

Titles and squirrels

Since Monday I've discovered there are at least two other books with the title Blood Feud, so maybe I'd better think of another title. I own one of them. It's non fiction by Richard Fletcher - murder and revenge in Anglo-Saxon England. He spells it as one word. The one I saw on Amazon yesterday is a crime thriller, Mafia style feuding. So. along with the hunt for a better cover, I'll hunt for a better title!

Went out for an early morning twenty minutes on the field behind the house and discovered how warm it is in the sun now. The grass is lush and green, everything is growing like crazy and it's a pleasure to be out walking. A squirrel darted along the fringe of the woods. Tim bounded after it. I wasn't sure what he would do - he hasn't actually caught anything yet, though he has finally begun to see and chase rabbits. The squirrel chose the wrong tree - one with a smooth bark - and couldn't climb. Tim chased it round the tree, snacking at it. I feared the worst when it lay on its back, quite still, little paws, with those long claws, limp on its chest.

Tim sniffed at it, but didn't volunteer to eat it. I grabbed his collar and pulled him of it. The squirrel picked itself up and stumbled away, went to another tree and vanished. I think it went up into the tree, but Tim was yelping and struggling to get after it and I didn't actually see what it did. I hope it got away. Such a little beauty. I fear we managed, between the three of us, to squash a few bluebells that have sprung up and into flower this week. I hate squashing growing things. Must be a Buddhist at heart.

Second Bite at the Cuckoo

Tim really doesn't like JKRowling's book. He's had another go at it, and this time he has torn the cover right across to the spine. I shall have to get the Sellotape out and do a spot repair (Ha! Excuse the pun). But happily all the words are intact.

I enjoyed the book and found it an absorbing read. I didn't guess the villain and was surprised when he/she was revealed. It's a neat set up for a series based on Strike and Robin's adventures. I wondered at the title until I reached the book's conclusion, and then all became clear - but to talk about it here would spoil the pleasure of those about to read the book, so I shall stay quiet.
Sorry Helen. It's no way to treat a gift and I've had words with Tim about this habit of pouncing on a certain lady's book. He promises to do better in future, but we all know what that night mean. I now keep all my books on the very highest shelf in my study, or in a drawer in my bedroom.

I'm off to do some research on how people tag their books. I think I'm doing it correctly but  reassurance would be nice.

Titles - Joy or Torture?

Are you good at thinking up titles for your book? Next to writing all the bits that go with the submission, I find coming up with a memorable title almost the hardest thing of all.

I’ve always understood that the publisher, or more accurately the marketing department, has the last word on this, but even so, you want a good title when you send something out to an agent. I’ve always considered it as a working title that may later change, but this alone can make you feel it’s hardly worth slogging away for hours when what you’ve dreamed up may not last.

But the title is part of the package that will hopefully catch an agent’s attention, so … remember it will set up an association of ideas in the agent’s mind, perhaps even at a subconscious level, before they finish reading your cover letter. Think about it: you only have to see the words Cruel Mistress, Considerate Lover and you know you can’t be far from the category romance. Cloud Atlas, and you know you are moving into the realms of literary fiction. Words, even single  words, have great power and depending on your perception and their context, words convey whole volumes of meaning. a good example would be Revelation. Others might be Heretic, or Heresy, Treason. Look at them, and see what filters into your mind. Those few small words, when applied to your book, will set up a whole raft of expectations in your reader.

If you thought up a good, strong title that captures the eye, the chances are good that the publisher will keep it, and that will give you a nice warm little glow in the days when your book is for sale. So the first step is to decide what sort of a book you’ve written. Romance? Thriller? That gives you a handle on the sort of titles you should consider. Then start thinking of any ad every title you could possibly use. I check them against Amazon, because one thing you don’t want is a title that  has already been used – and possibly used more than once, for more than one genre.

Rachelle Gardner, Literary Agent, recommends free associating at this point: write lists, she says.  Put all the words associated with your book "in columns: nouns, verbs, adjectives. Describe or suggest the setting. Then think about each of your major characters and write down words that relate to them. Think about the action in the story and write down verbs that capture it.” Keep going until you have at least 100 words.

There has been a fashion (it may even be passé now) for single word titles, which can be powerful. If not, put combinations of your words together. If you have a thesaurus, use it. to jog your memory. From this point, you should be able to winkle out perhaps 20 possible titles. Then go away and do something else for a day. The following day, add any ideas you’ve had in the intervening 24 hours to your list. Then select the five that appeal most and try them out on other people.

A couple of days later, consider how your potential titles would sit in among the lists you’ve seen on Amazon – or your local bookshop if that’s handy. Are you happy to make a final choice? Does the selected title match your book? Does it suggest right away that this book is Romance, Historical, Thriller? Is there any sense of a time period within the words? Will it attract attention from the buying public? If you are planning a series, can your title be adapted or made to fit and match with later volumes? Dunnett connected six of her titles in the Lymond series to chess, and the idea worked beautifully.

Rachelle has more to say on the topic.

Memes and titles

I’ve been tagged with something called the Lucky No 7 Meme.  I’m not even sure what a meme is, and it’s not in my dictionary! Still, Anita’s a good friend, so here goes.  Here's what she tells me to do:

*go to page 77 of your current WIP
*go to line 7
*copy down the next 7 lines/sentences as written and post them on your blog or website
*tag 7 other authors
*let them know they've been tagged.

The first hitch in the programme is that I haven’t got to page 77 in my current wip, so the best thing to do is go to the work I’ve spent so much time on lately doing a third edit. I’d love to give you the title, but I keep changing it. Originally I called it Endangered Queen, but soon changed that to Treason, thinking it was more exciting until someone gently suggested that as my protagonist is an Englishman, he cannot commit treason in Scotland. H’mm. How true.

So I thought long and hard and came up with The Hope of Scotland but then doubts crept in. How could that title be a good fit it with an English hero? Now the story is lurking behind King’s Business.  Any thoughts on which appeals most?

But to get to the point of the post ~ Here are my seven lines:

“Meg remained standing next to the window and did no more than raise her brows at Lennox. She would not be the first to break the silence. He closed the door behind Matho and paced slowly to her side, drew a deep breath, as if to speak, and then let it go on an explosive sigh.

She gritted her teeth. Lennox deserved to suffer. She was glad Matho had been here, glad that she had kissed him and especially glad Lennox had seen and been annoyed by it.”

Now, who shall I choose to send this on to?

Lindsay Townsend, Jean Fullerton, Abigail Bosanko, Rhoda Baxter, Hazel Osmond, Maggi Anderson and Rosemary Morris. Over to you, ladies!

The joy of titles

Advertising at Gibside

Cold weather starting to bite now. Down to minus 6 Centigrade in Yorkshire overnight, and we weren't far behind. Today it is raining, my least favourite winter weather. Damp and cold. Ugh.
Time to be indoors snuggling up to my computer and thinking of travelling through France in the summer of 1544 with my trusty hero.
I'm thinking of sending out a new partial sub. for Matho One even though it's only a few days to Christmas. The literary agents can't be at parties all the time, and surely most authors have better things to do than submit to agents at this time of year? Maybe my sub. will sneak in and catch people by surprise when they're in a good mood and with time on their hands!
I tentatively titled this story Treason, but as someone pointed out, Matho may not actually be committing treason simply because he crosses the border from England into Scotland. As a foreign national, what he sets out to do in Scotland is more properly an act of war. So I'm back to no title again.