I’ve written and published eleven novels and wanted to give readers some trivia about them. As I do that, though, I have questions for you, my readers. How many of my books have you read? Would you be interested in asking questions about them–as you might if you were discussing them in a book club?
Did you know?–
During the drafting and rewriting phases, my first time travel novel, Inherit the Past, went through several names changes, including In the Deep Dark Woods, but was for the longest time titled Cobblestone. The final title came to me during the final edit.
In the Shadows, my very first published novel, also went through numerous title changes, from Cul de sac to Moonlight Flit to Laissez Faire. For the longest time, it was called The Outsiders, but when I started working on cover designs and selected a painting for the cover, the final title emerged from that painting.
Liars’ Games probably went through the most name changes. It started as Enigma, then Someone is Watching, the The Lying Den. For the longest time, though, it was Chameleon. It wasn’t until working on the final draft and book cover that it became Liars’ Games. I used Chameleon in the series title.
It’s sequel, The Secret Town, which I’m currently working on, so far has had only one title. It’ll be interesting to see if it changes by the time I publish.
My two Tangled Roots books, Breadcrumbs and Bombs and Bloodlines and Barbed Wire, kept their original titles all the way through the writing and publishing process.
The Handyman also kept its title all the way through the development and publishing phases.
Not Expecting This, my third time travel novel, went through lots of changes and probably should have had one more. It’s my one title that I think missed the mark.
The photograph on the cover of my second time travel novel, Tanglewood Grotto, came from my daughter-in-law, Yasmin. She took the photo near her parents’ home in Bavaria. As soon as I saw the photo, I loved it and knew it fit my story. I asked if we could use it on the book’s cover. She said, “Yes.” The cover designer, Ken Dawson, added the wormhole over it and did the rest of the cover design.
Shortly before I published my first book, In the Shadows, my daughter, Samantha, brought home a painting she’d made in college–a painting of a street scene in a French town. I immediately asked her if I could use it on the cover. After she agreed, I worked up a mock cover and then enlisted the help of a professional cover designer, Ken. He did his magic with it.
Inherit the Past got a book cover revision after I discovered a book that was published after mine had a ‘too similar’ cover. Did the author of that other book copy my cover? We don’t know. It could have been a coincidence. It doesn’t really matter. I told my cover designer about it and even though it certainly wasn’t his fault (his cover came first), he gave my book a new, sleek cover and didn’t charge me anything. He’s the best! Thank you, Ken!
When I first started writing, I didn’t expect to ever get anything published. I was doing it for fun. I loved books and was having trouble finding the kinds of stories that were rambling around in my head, so I wanted to see if I could write one. It’s amazing how addictive writing can be.
I’m close to halfway done with The Secret Town, the second official book in my Project Chameleon series. I also have sequels planned out for each of my other series, as well as a spinoff series for one of them.