How do you find a title that resonates with readers?

Titles are important sales tools. Most editors agree on the following statements. 1) Titles should give a hint about the protagonist, the setting, the theme or the plot of the book. 2) Short titles are best. 3) Titles should catch the reader’s attention. 4) These rules are meant to be broken.

The net result is most writers waste hours ruminating over the title of their next novel. I’m no different. I always name a novel when I start working on a project. Then I rename it at least twice as I write and edit the novel. How about you? Maybe you’ll find my process of titling my last novel useful or amusing.

One of my medical suspense novel started out with the title Why Does It Hurt So Much? I chose the tile because I wanted the novel to address how individuals differ in their responses to physical and emotional pain. But that title was too long. I’d learned from my experience publicizing my second novel Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight that long titles even if they’re cute or funny are problematic. For example, it’s hard to fit the title on the spine of the book or in twitters.

The original title also gave no hint to the inner strength of my heroine – epidemiologist and world traveler Sara Almquist. Sara is a tough cookie. She knows being a public health consultant in Bolivia, where over 6% of the children before five years of age, won’t be a picnic when she accepts the assignment.

The original title also didn’t fit an adventure story with lots of action. Sara is chased through the Witches’ Market of La Paz and fights to avoid a trap in the silver mines of Potosí as she helps capture the drug czar Mazzone, who used to be her neighbor in New Mexico..

The next title I chose was Dull the Pain. It was short, established pain as recurring theme in the novel, and hinted the heroine was tough. Amazon listed no other book with that title.

I include tidbits of science in all of my novels and really strive to get the facts correct. Thus I had Sara learn that laborers in the silver mines of Potosí carry little food or water into the mines. In order to endure the pain caused by thirst, hunger, and heavy exertion at a high altitude (13,000 feet), they chew coca leaves. The active ingredients in coca leaves and its derivative cocaine are not analgesics; they do not dull pain. They are stimulants and help users ignore pain.

I changed the title from Dull the Pain to Ignore the Pain.

After all my explanations on the title, do you want to read Ignore the Pain? Or would you give it another name?  

For more, see:
www.jlgreger.com

WRITING IS LIKE DIETING

Doubt me? Let’s look at six pieces of advice for writers and dieters.

1. Set realistic priorities. You are more apt to attain small achievable goals (such as losing a pound a week or writing ten pages per week) than larger goals with artificial deadlines (for example losing fifty pounds before your class reunion or writing a three hundred page novel by Christmas).

2. Don’t procrastinate. Start working on your goals today, by skipping dessert at supper and writing at least one page for your next novel tonight.

3. Control problems and distractions. For writers, the distractions on the Internet are comparable to high fat, sugary foods to dieters. Perhaps this advice to Linda Almquist in the first chapter of Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight will help you sort through your clutter.

“There are three types of problems. A few problems are like wine; those situations improve if you delay decisions and let them age. Most problems are like waste paper. You can ignore them because they don’t matter. Unfortunately like waste paper, they tend to be messy when they pile up. And some problems are like manure. You must identify them quickly before they stink.”

4. Work at it every day. Most successful dieters have changed their lifestyle and eaten less and exercised more for months. If you want to write a novel a year, set aside time to “work on your book” every day.

5. Sweat the small stuff. Little bedtime snacks can undo our good behavior at meals or in the gym. Similarly grammar and spelling errors can ruin a novel with a great plot and characters.

6. Laugh at all those who give advice like this because you know it’s easier to give advice than follow it.

“My Writing Process” Blog Hop

1. Why do I write what I do?
I like realistic medical mysteries and thrillers that push the edge of modern science but don’t cross over into science fantasy. Books with action but with themes that make you think. For example:

• Why do some individuals bounce back from physical and emotional pain, while others are warped into monsters?
• When is the common good more important than the rights of an individual?

So I write books, like Robin Cook (author of Coma, Acceptable Risk, and many others) would if he were still alive. Maybe I’m complimenting myself by comparing my novels to those of Robin Cook. Why don’t you read my Ignore the Pain, Coming Flu, and Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight and see?

2. What am I working on?
I’m sending Sara Almquist, my epidemiologist heroine, to Cuba. When I visited Cuba last November, the tour guide bragged that Cuban researchers had recently patented a vaccine against lung cancer. I checked. She was right, so I built my next novel Malignancy around Sara’s assignment from the State Department to set up scientific exchanges between Cuba and the US. Two weeks ago, I read an article in Science announcing the US and Cuban governments were initiating scientific exchanges.

In Malignancy, Sara is also escaping past foes in New Mexico and looking for Xave, the “spook” who saved her in Bolivia in Ignore the Pain. I’m pleased to add I finished the first draft yesterday. Actually that’s not quite true, I revise previous chapters as I write new ones. So in some ways, yesterday I finished about the third edit of the book. I’m hoping Malignancy will be published in late fall 2014.

3. How does my writing process work?

I file interesting ideas from scientific journals, newspapers, and on-line search services as I find them. When I start thinking about a new novel, I sort through my files and pull articles that fit a common theme. Then I create a three to five-page outline of the novel. After that I let the characters take over. As I indicated above, I revise chapters as I write new ones.  Euphemistically, my outline is fluid.

4. How does my work differ from others of its genre?

I include a scientific epilogue (about two pages) at the end of my novels. Interested readers can then check the facts themselves.

Thanks to Amy Reade for inviting me to participate in this blog hop. Her Secrets of Hallstead House, which sounds like a modern version of Jane Eyre, will be published in July 2014. I can’t wait to read it. For more on Amy, see http://amreade.wordpress.com/

How many of you follow blog hops? Are they a good idea?

I’m not supposed to post this until June 8, but when I finally get a blog written I’m a kid with a new toy. My apologies to those organizing the blog hop for my childish behavior.

Is there a CSI effect? Can you use it to sell novels?

Forensic scientists think there is a “CSI effect.” They observe jurors and reporters are disappointed when real forensic scientists aren’t as good or as fast as Catherine Willows (CSI), Tempe Brennan (Bones), and Abby Sciuto (NCIS). For example, jurors became skeptical about an expert witness’s competence because he didn’t retrieve fingerprints from a rock at the murder scene. And at least one biology professor reports several of her students indicated TV shows influenced their choice of biology as a major.

Does that mean readers are becoming more interested in realistic science in their fiction? First off, I should define realistic. Most active research and clinical labs are much more crowded, and waiting times for analyses are much longer than those shown on TV. And surprise, the most of the men and women don’t have perfect hair.

In 2013, at least fifteen successful TV shows featured science, medicine or technology. That's unprecedented and suggests a large segment of Americans are receptive to realistic science adding “color” to their fiction.

Does this interest in “scientific color” on TV show relate to scientific literacy?

Scientific literacy is not just the memorization of facts, but also the conceptual understanding of how answers can be found by an organized approach to gathering data, formulating hypotheses, and testing them.

Surveys indicate American students don’t understand science as well as students in Finland, China, Australia, and Canada. We’re ranked around 30^th in several surveys, but many question the validity of the surveys.

I don’t think anyone has proven that the popularity of TV shows with “scientific color” reflects increased scientific literacy among Americans, but I don’t have access to demographic data on TV audiences.

Does scientific literacy matter?

Federal agencies, such as the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Science Foundation (NSF), and various organizations (National Academy of Sciences and AAAS) think scientific literacy matters. Why? They believe that if the American electorate understands the basics of science, discussions on vaccines, climate change, and genetically modified crops will be elevated from an emotional level to a thoughtful level. Wiser decisions will be made. They also know that advanced knowledge of science and technology is a key to many high-paying jobs in medicine, drug development, computer technology, engineering, etc.

Could adding realistic science in your next novel attract readers?

I don’t know, but a growing number of writers are now calling their novels “science in fiction” rather than science fiction. I’m one of them. My three medical thriller/mysteries are Coming Flu, Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight, and Ignore the Pain. My fourth novel Malignancy should be out this fall.

P.S. Why do I think this blog will be less popular than my last guest blog on adding romance to your novels?

Make your Sell Sheets Sell

Templates for sell sheets on the Web make it appear that there are defined rules for sell sheets. I think there is only one rule: Sell sheets should appeal to buyers and make them want to buy your book.

WHAT MAKES A SELL SHEET APPEALING TO BUYERS?

Most book buyers don’t read anything that looks dense or difficult.

• ·      Use size 12 or 14 print.
• ·      Leave plenty of white space.
• ·      Keep paragraphs short.
• ·      Try using a two-column format.
• ·      Limit the sell sheet to one-page.

Use color. The choice of color depends on the genre of the book and the cover, which is the main artwork on most sell sheets. For example, pastels and purple are often used to sell romances.

Design features are important but shouldn’t overpower. For example, a narrow (one-half inch) border of black and white zebra stripes around the edge of a sell sheet for a children’s book might be effective, but a wider border would detract from the cover and the blurb. Generally I like design features (such as a colored box) that draw attention to the book’s blurb.

Consider making two versions of your sell sheet. Book retailers and distributors often cringe when they see the word Amazon. Information on how to obtain the books from Amazon is essential when you’re talking to most readers at book fairs and talks

WHAT SHOULD YOU INCLUDE ON A SELL SHEET?

• ·      Title of the book, boldly at top of page
• ·      Author’s info: name, website, blog, and other ways to contact. Some think a photo of the author and a short (one or two    sentences) bio are appealing.
• ·      Blurb, only three to four sentences.
• ·      Cover of the book, large enough that you can read the print
• ·      Reviewers’ comments or awards
• ·      Publisher’s info: name, date of publication, ways to contact
• ·      Book info: genre, ISBN number, format, number of pages

What do you think makes a sell sheet effective? Let me know.

Thanks

 JL Greger, author of medical thrillers and mysteries - Ignore the Pain, Coming Flu, Murder: A New Way to Lose Weight

Murder in the Worst Degree

I like Murder in the Worst Degree because the author F.M. Meredith of the mystery deals realistically with true life crises or opportunities (depending on your perspective) of her three-dimensional, lifelike characters. These include special needs children, Alzheimer’s Disease, end-of-life decisions, and balancing careers and marriage. F.M. (Marilyn) Meredith is also a joy to talk to, so please welcome her.

From novelist F.M. Meredith 

Janet asked me about how I came about the title for Murder in the Worst Degree. In yesterday’s post on my blog tour I explained how I came about all my titles, including this one. I’ll go into a little more detail about it came about.

This was the first time I had a title before I even had an inkling what I was going to write about. A friend from Nipomo, one I only see once a year when I go to the Nipomo Library to participate in a craft fair, told me on Facebook, “Why don’t you write a book with the title, Murder in the Worst Degree?”

So I thought, why not? I began the book and the more I got into it the more I knew the title didn’t fit the plot that was coming together. That is until nearly the end, then it came to me. When you read the book, you’ll see how the title fits the story.

Blurb for the latest RBPD mystery, Murder in the Worst Degree: The body that washes up on the beach leads Detectives Milligan and Zachary on a murder investigation that includes the victim’s family members, his housekeeper, three long-time friends, and a mystery woman.

Bio: 

F. M. Meredith aka Marilyn Meredith is the author of over 35 published books. She enjoys writing about police officers and their families and how what happens on the job affects the family and vice versa. Having several members of her own family involved in law enforcement, as well as many friends, she’s witnessed some of this first-hand.

Webpage: http://fictionforyou.com/

Blog: http://marilynmeredith.blogspot.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marilyn.meredith/

Contest:

Once again I am offering the opportunity to have your name used for a character in a book if you comment on the most blogs during this tour for Murder in the Worst Degree.

Available at: http://tinyurl.com/n94hmju/


Tomorrow Marilyn will be visiting Cora Ramos at http://coraramos-cora.blogspot.com/ 

JL Greger, author of Coming Flu, Murder: A New way to Lose Weight, and Ignore the Pain

New Blog Game in Town – A Spider Web of Authors

Did you like to play tag when you were a child? Maybe you’ll enjoy participating in this adult version and decide it’s a good way to tell other authors about your work. Everyone who participates in this spider web answers the same four questions.

WHAT AM I WORKING ON NOW?

I’m sending Sara Almquist, my epidemiologist heroine in my medical thriller series, to Cuba. I’ve included sites (e.g. the La Floridita Bar that Hemingway made famous and the beautiful Springer Spaniels that were security dogs at José Martí International Airport in Havana) from my visit to Cuba last November. Sara took this public health assignment to get away from problems at home in New Mexico and to look for Xave, the “spook” who saved her in Bolivia in Ignore the Pain. Officially, she’s working for the State Department as they arrange scientific exchanges between the US and Cuba.

I’ve got a problem. Even though the first draft of the book is almost done I don’t have a title. Do you have suggestions? Leave a comment please.

WHY DO I WRITE WHAT I DO?

I am a scientist, and I strive to create colorful scenes in my books by including factual scientific details and realistic, not stereotyped medical experts. I guess, I’m trying to do a bit of science education while I use my imagination to spin fictional thrillers.

HOW DOES MY WORK DIFFER FROM OTHERS OF THE SAME GENRE?

My lead character epidemiologist Sara Almquist could be compared to the pathologist Kay Scarpetta

in Patricia’s Cornwell’s novels or the medical anthropologist Tempe Brennan in Kathy Reich’s medical thrillers. However, Sara is more irreverent to authority, takes herself less seriously, and is based in New Mexico. She also has great side-kicks – Bug, a Japanese Chin, and Linda, her sister.

HOW DOES YOUR WRITING PROCESS WORK?

I file interesting ideas from scientific journals, newspapers, and on-line search services as I find them. When I start thinking about a new novel, I sort through my files and pull articles that fit a common theme. Then I create a three to five-page outline of the novel. After that I let the characters take over.

I guess that means I’m an organized pantser or a disorganized plotter.

The spider, who caught me in this web, was Ilene Schneider. See her at http://rabbiauthor.com/2014/04/new-blog-game-in-town. She was caught into the web Sandy Fairfax. See her at  http://sandyfairfaxauthor.com/blog-bop-my-writing-process . I snared Sharon Moore into the web. See his blog at http://samwriteaway.blogspot.com.

If you want to be included, I’ll alter this blog to include you in this web. Just let me know at janet.greger@comcast.net