misslj_author: (Demons tell me what to write)
misslj_author ([personal profile] misslj_author) wrote2011-06-30 08:07 pm

Thursday Thirteen 007: Thirteen Titles; One Novel.

The Archangels novel has gone through so many title changes, it's ridiculous. So, as it FINALLY has a title, thanks to the genius 4am brain of [livejournal.com profile] meredith_shayne, here's the thirteen titles it had before achieving it's current title. (I'm sure there were more than thirteen, fyi, just that these are the ones I kept a record of!)

In order, from oldest to what it is now, finally, fixed! And I bet both [livejournal.com profile] meredith_shayne and [livejournal.com profile] jerusalemorbust breathe a sigh of relief, as I've been bemoaning titles to them both for... um. Months. >_<

1. Silver and Gold.
Chosen because Gabriel's power manifests as silver light and Michael's manifests as gold light.

2. Unexpected Destinies.
Yeah... no.

3. Craving to Entwine.
Saying it out loud made me cringe. A blog that my Noble editor Bonnie linked to had a piece about how if you can say your title out loud without wincing or cringing, that's the one to use. And it's true. This... was not the one to use.

4. Masquerade of Stars.
Doesn't fit this first novel, but it does fit the final novel in the trilogy so at least there's that.

5. The Coming War.
Which sounds good, but the story is about more than an approaching war.

6. Flying for Lovers.
Also made me cringe, but might be reused for a short story or something. Something that isn't so plotty as this.

7. Hope Remains.
Cringeworthy.

8. In Silver and Gold.
I recycled and added a word and decided... no.

9. Uprising.
This was a solid contender for quite a while. I actually went back to it after discarding title #10.

10. Wings of Desire.
Which is a really awesome German film, and I love it, film and title both, but it didn't really feel right to me for this book.

11. Genesis.
Suggested by [livejournal.com profile] meredith_shayne, while we were brainstorming, and I liked it but it still didn't really feel right.

12. Angels Speak in Dark and Light.
Too close to one of my all time favourite novels, Creatures of Light and Dark by Roger Zelazny for me. So, no.

13. No Quarter.
HALLELUJAH. It immediately resonated with me. This was [livejournal.com profile] meredith_shayne's 4am brainstorm, and her thoughts matched mine as soon as I saw it. No quarter is given in wars/battles between angels and demons; no quarter is given in love, when it's the possessive, primitive sort of love that Michael and Gabriel have. It's also the title of a Led Zeppelin song covered by Tool, the first verse of which fits *perfectly* the whole tone of the novel. And I quote:
Lock all the doors, and kill the lights.
No one's coming home tonight.
The sun beats down and don't you know?
All our lives are growing cold, oh...
They bring news that must get through.
To build a dream for me and you, oh.


So, a million thankyous, [livejournal.com profile] meredith_shayne. I shall build a temple in your honour.

Oh, and also, the word count of No Quarter is currently 52465 words. I am so close to finishing the first draft. I'm aiming to have it done by the end of the weekend. Then I will ignore it for a week and work on City of Jade, then go back to it and start fixing it into a readable second draft. But being so close... it feels awesome. I'm quite pleased with how the feathery kids have turned out!

I'm sorry, I can't resist...

[identity profile] corellian-sugar.livejournal.com 2011-06-30 02:35 pm (UTC)(link)

I know I'm dead before my time
I know It's coming down
If you could only see what's right
You'd see what's coming 'round

[Chorus:]
So I walk Alone
I ask no quarter friend
I walk alone
Til I find you again

I know no place to call my bed
But I know this thorny crown
If you would only feed your head
You'd see your hands are bound


Fuel, Quarter

:D

[identity profile] misslj-author.livejournal.com 2011-06-30 03:22 pm (UTC)(link)
It's a freakin' sign. This is the title to go with. 110%

[identity profile] corellian-sugar.livejournal.com 2011-06-30 03:24 pm (UTC)(link)
I agree. OMG, absolutely. :DDD

[identity profile] strangemuses.livejournal.com 2011-06-30 06:00 pm (UTC)(link)
Good title!

[identity profile] misslj-author.livejournal.com 2011-07-01 03:54 am (UTC)(link)
Thankee!

[identity profile] meredith-shayne.livejournal.com 2011-06-30 07:29 pm (UTC)(link)
All my best problem solving happens when I'm asleep. 4am is quite the inspirational time for me.

I quite like Silver and Gold, and Uprising. Uprising's a good one. But No Quarter is my favourite, obvs. If you hadn't used it I probably would have, LOL.

[identity profile] misslj-author.livejournal.com 2011-07-01 03:56 am (UTC)(link)
That's when I dream scenes. Which is why I'm exhausted thanks to writing the damn thing down until 4:30am. Sob. No Quarter is defo the best one, imo. THANK YOU!

[identity profile] meredith-shayne.livejournal.com 2011-07-01 05:31 am (UTC)(link)
Not a problem. That's what I'm here for! :)

[identity profile] xakara.livejournal.com 2011-07-01 05:08 am (UTC)(link)
Congrats on having a title finally! I'm glad that's off your mind and it's now all about the writing. What do you think the final wordcount of the draft will be?

[identity profile] misslj-author.livejournal.com 2011-07-01 07:29 am (UTC)(link)
Thankee! I'm not sure. I was aiming for 60K, but I think it's going to be quite a bit more than that, as I'm nearly at 60K now and I still have qutie a bit to cover before it's finished.

[identity profile] xakara.livejournal.com 2011-07-01 09:17 am (UTC)(link)
I get that. I'm hoping to do The Forgiven in 80k but I'll count anything under 100k as a win.

In contrast, I managed to pack a lot in just the first 20k of PsiCorps 3, so I wonder about the final outcome. I wanted 60k, which is the word cap, but I think it might end up more like 45. I feel halfway done. Of course, I had to backtrack, so I could be completely wrong.