A big third time welcome to urban fantasy author Jennifer Estep. The third book her Elemental Assassin series, VENOM will be released on September 28th (Julia’s review will be up on Thursday & she said it’s the best one yet). Jennifer is talking today about how titles can make or break a book and divulging some of the failed titles for her series.
Jennifer Estep writes the Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series. Jennifer is also the author of the Bigtime paranormal romance series for Berkley. By day, Jennifer is an award-winning features page designer for a daily newspaper with a wide range of media and journalism experience. She’s also a certifiable fangirl and an authority on fantasy literature and culture. Jennifer is a member of Romance Writers of America, Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, and other writing groups. Jennifer’s books have been featured in Cosmopolitan, Entertainment Weekly, Southern Living, and a variety of other publications.
by
Jennifer Estep
Greetings and salutations! First of all, I want to say thanks to Abigail for having me back on the blog today. Thanks, Abigail!
Some of you might know me as the author of the Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series. The books focus on Gin Blanco, an assassin codenamed the Spider who can control the elements of Ice and Stone. When she’s not busy killing people and righting wrongs, Gin runs a barbecue restaurant called the Pork Pit in the fictional southern metropolis of Ashland. The city is also home to giants, dwarves, vampires, and elementals – Air, Fire, Ice, and Stone.
The first two books in the series are Spider’s Bite and Web of Lies. Venom, the third book, will come out on Sept. 28. Tangled Threads, the fourth book, will be published in May 2011, while the fifth book (untitled) will be released in October 2011.
I’ve also sold a young adult urban fantasy series called Mythos Academy. The first book is called Touch of Frost and will be out in August 2011. The books focus on Gwen Frost, a Gypsy girl who has the gift of psychometry, or the ability to know an object’s history just by touching it. After a serious freak-out with her magic, Gwen finds herself shipped off to Mythos Academy, a school for the descendents of ancient warriors like Spartans, Valkyries, and more.
So Abigail asked me to talk about titles today. We’ve all heard the old saying that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. That’s true. But if you don’t have a snappy title, no one’s going to want to pick up your book in the first place.
Can you imagine if Gone with the Wind was called something else? Or To Kill a Mockingbird? I can’t. A great title really sticks in your mind and says something about the book at the same time.
So how do I come up with my book titles? Well, it’s a long process that involves several people, not just me.
When I first started writing the Elemental Assassin series, I called the first book Gin on the Rocks. In fact, I thought that all the books would have Gin in the title, after my heroine – Gin with a Twist, Bitter Gin, Gin and Tonic. My book group and I had a lot of fun talking about Gin titles and gin in general one night. ;-)
But my agent and editor didn’t think the Gin titles were dark and sexy enough. They really wanted titles that fit in more with the urban fantasy genre but were also memorable and distinctive at the same time. So we started tossing around various ideas, swapping e-mails back and forth.
We’re working on the title for the fifth book in the series right now. One of the potential titles I’ve suggested is The Deadly Web She Weaves, but that’s probably going to be too long for the cover.
Whatever it ends up being, I hope the title catches someone’s eye and makes her pick up the book. Hopefully, my writing and Gin’s adventures will draw her in from there.
What about you guys? What are some of your favorite book titles?
Thanks Jennifer for stopping by again. Come back anytime.
Visit Jennifer Online:
Want to read more from Jennifer Estep?
Bigtime
1. Karma Girl
2. Hot Mama
3. Jinx
Elemental Assassin
1. Spider's Bite (read Review)
2. Web of Lies (read Review)
3. Venom
4. Tangled Threads
Interested in guest blogging on All Things Urban Fantasy? CONTACT ME
New follower here, I have to recommend your site to a friend of mine, this post is right up her alley!!!
ReplyDeleteRight off the top of my head:
ReplyDeleteRed Headed Stepchild
Tsunami Blue
Necking
Tempest Rising
Hi, guys! I just wanted to chime in and say thanks to Abigail for having me on the blog today.
ReplyDeleteThere are tons of great titles out there, like the ones you mentioned. Sometimes, the title makes the cover, and sometimes, it's the cover that makes the title. They really do go hand in hand.
Thanks for the visit Jennifer! I love a good title, especially when it ties into the book like your spider themed titles...I'm waiting for Black Widow :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for having me back. ;-)
ReplyDeleteI like Black Widow too, but there are so many other books out there with that title ... I think it's become a little generic. LOL. I'm actually starting to brainstorm titles for Assassin #5 right now ...
I like how Kim Harrison names the books in the Rachel Morgan series after Clint Eastwood movies only with a paranormal twist. Every Which Way But Dead is up next for me!
ReplyDeleteI also like the titles in Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series. You can tell by the title which character is going to be profiled that book.
What a fun post Abigail! Thanks for stopping by Estep.
ReplyDeleteI like the play on words titles from the Sookie Stackhouse novels when combined with the original covers;it's just so cute! And I second Barb's mention of the Mercy Thompson titles too, plus those are also fabulous covers,lol
ReplyDeleteAnd Melissa Marr's Ink Exchange, Wicked Lovely, etc are also a set of titles I love.
Barb -- I love Harrison's titles too. I think they're really clever. And I also like a lot of the Eastwood movies too.
ReplyDeleteShera -- Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the title talk.
Bella -- I've been meaning to read Wicked Lovely. Another book to add to the TBR pile!