Book Titles

As of today, I have two books published. Killer of Killers and The Vase. Interestingly, both of those titles were not the original titles of those books. Each one had a "working" title when I began writing them.  When I started writing Killer of Killers, I was calling it The V-Shaped Man. I later changed the title to Killer of Killers, and right now, The V-Shaped Man sounds like a dumb title. And I sure am glad I changed it to Killer of Killers.

And when I started writing The Vase, I was calling it Lord, I am Not Worthy. But by the time I finished writing it, I had changed the title to The Vase. And I am very glad that I did, because as a book title, Lord, I am Not Worthy sounds just as dumb as The V-Shaped man.

So how do you choose a title for your book, anyway? Well, when I was writing KOK, I had initially described the main character, Trent Smith, as a man with the typical male V-shaped physique. You know, with the narrow hips and broad shoulders--The V shape. But after I wrote the book, it became clear that there was an obvious title for that book--Killer of Killers. And those three words had been mentioned repeatedly in the book. It is exactly what Trent Smith became, and by the end of the book, he was nothing more than just that. Thus the name of the book was clear.

And when it comes to The Vase, I don't even think I was done writing it yet when I realized that Lord, I Am Not Worthy was not the right title for that book. It became very clear about midway through the book, that the name of the book should be The Vase. Because the entire story line revolved around a vase. A very special vase. Everything was based on that vase. So much so that without that particular vase, there would have been no story at all. Zip. Zero. Nothing. It was all about the vase. Thus, the title of the book.

Admittedly, a casual observer, someone browsing in a bookstore, whether a brick and mortar one or an online one, may not realize all that is involved with a book called The Vase. They might even think it's a book about how to make a vase. But that's where the promo comes in. After checking the blurb, it becomes clear that The Vase is not a how to book. It's a novel, after all, and it's a story that takes place in Israel, (with a couple scenes in Hollywood, too, by the way,) and it does have a great deal to do with the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians. In fact the main characters are a Palestinian potter and his 14 year old son, a Jewish Art History Professor, and an IDF captain who also happens to be the head of Kidon, (the assassination branch of Mossad.)

And when you put all of that in the Old City Market of downtown Nazareth, with a very special vase at the center of it, you have a great story. There was no other name for that book. The story, the events in the story, the climax, and conclusion demanded it to be named The Vase.

And if my explanation is not clear, then I am confident that if anyone reads the book, they will understand and agree that the name of the book could only be that--The Vase.