This week has been loads of fun as I’ve been working with the publisher to title my Texas series. This is the series that will debut next fall. I like to write and title all three books before any of the series releases. I think the publisher likes that too.

It seems, however, that this was titling week for a lot of my author friends. Sometimes we joke about putting words like: love, heart, hope, tomorrow, promise, home, among others and pull them out of a hat for a title. Othertimes we are confident it’s like drawing bingo balls only with words.

Unfortunately it’s not that simple.

In truth – there is a super secret meeting in the basement of the publishing house. Only the most important folks are invited. These are the people who know the industry better than anyone and have super memories for all the titles ever written. Now titles can’t be copyrighted, so they could call my book GONE WITH THE WIND, but it wouldn’t be wise.

Anyway, I have never been invited to one of these super secret meetings. I am asked what I would like to call the book – but I think this is just so they can have a good laugh before getting down to business.

I’m convinced that what happens in the super secret titling meeting is this. Someone decides how many words the title needs to have. Then they make a list of the first and last names of those at the meeting and see how many words can be made from this. When they have a list of the words they give each of the words a number. Then they take the birth date of the person who’s sitting in the secret chair (predetermined before the meeting and written on a secret card that must be taken from a lock box). The birthday numbers will then be used to pick the numbered words and from this – the title will be determined. But don’t tell anyone that I shared this information with you or they might have to put me in the lock box with the card that tells which is the secret chair. 😀

So after all that ordeal – my next series and 3 books are finally titled. Only, I can’t tell you…not yet. But – if you take the letters of the names of the editors at Bethany House and the marketing guy and the p.r. ladies and mix them all together – you should have the letters of each title.

Tracie