JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Pacing, hair-pulling, scribbled up lists, asking friends and family - no, it's not naming a baby, it's naming a book. Not too long or readers will mess up the title. Not to short, or they'll forget it. Not too much like the latest blockbuster, but, you know, maybe a little like it?
If you're lucky, the work sets some guidelines. Lucy and Jenn have punchy, punny titles for their food-related cozies. I use quotes from Episcopal hymns. Rhys gets to use a lot of archly British phrases for the Her Royal Spyness series.
But what if the writing doesn't lay out a blueprint for a title? What if you need the title to guide you in what to write? Judy Penz Sheluk, editor of the upcoming anthology Larceny and Last Chances, tells us what goes into creating a successful and inspiring short story theme (hint: it doesn't involve having "Murder" in the title...)
Many authors will tell you that coming up with a title can
sometimes seem as difficult as writing the book or short story. That difficulty
is doubled when it comes to dreaming up a theme for an anthology. Not only does
it have to work as a book title, it also has to offer writers the latitude to
explore any number of schemes they might want to concoct. For the Superior
Shores Press (SSP) anthologies of mystery and suspense, that pretty much
eliminates putting “murder” in the title…because, well, then there’d have to be
murder in every story. And while I certainly enjoy a good murder mystery, I
don’t think I’d want to read twenty of them in a row. I expect you’re much the
same.
That brings us back to dreaming up the theme. The first SSP entry —The Best Laid Plans—was easy (the definition of the adage being, “the futility of making detailed plans when the ability to fully or even partially execute them is uncertain.”). The second, Heartbreaks & Half-truths, worked perfectly for a short story I’d already written (translation: one less thing for me to worry about). And the third, Moonlight & Misadventure, continued to feed into my love of alliteration. Of course, I ran the risk of getting a lot of stories about werewolves (I really don’t get werewolves) but I’m born under the astrological sign of Cancer and we’re all about the moon.
After editing and publishing three multi-author mystery
anthologies in as many years, I took a much-needed hiatus. In fact, I had joked
to my hubby that if I ever contemplated publishing another anthology, he should
duct tape me to my office chair.
He didn’t, bless his heart (though I suspect he was sorely tempted). Then, in the summer of 2023, a new theme popped into my head: Larceny & Last Chances (I did warn you that I love alliteration). Because who wouldn’t be above a bit of larceny if it was their absolute last chance to…
To what? It’s the ambiguity of that last, desperate chance that makes it work as a premise. The result? Twenty-two schemes, twenty-two dreams, and one overarching theme, duct tape optional.
What about you, readers? What “last chance” would entice you to partake in bit of larceny?
About
Larceny & Last Chances: 22 Stories of Mystery & Suspense: Sometimes it’s about doing the right
thing. Sometimes it’s about getting even. Sometimes it’s about taking what you
think you deserve. And sometimes, it’s your last, best, hope. Edited by Judy
Penz Sheluk and featuring stories by Christina Boufis, John Bukowski, Brenda Chapman,
Susan Daly, Wil A. Emerson, Tracy Falenwolfe, Kate Fellowes, Molly Wills Fraser,
Gina X. Grant, Karen Grose, Wendy Harrison, Julie Hastrup, Larry M. Keeton, Charlie
Kondek, Edward Lodi, Bethany Maines, Gregory Meece, Cate Moyle, Judy Penz
Sheluk, KM Rockwood, Kevin R. Tipple, and Robert Weibezahl.
About the editor: JudyPenz Sheluk is a former journalist and magazine editor and the bestselling author of Finding Your Path to Publication and Self-publishing: The Ins & Outs of Going Indie, as well as two mystery series: the Glass Dolphin Mysteries and Marketville Mysteries. In addition to the Superior Shores Anthologies, which she also edited, her short crime fiction appears in several collections. Judy is a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she served on the Board of Directors for five years, the final two as Chair. Find her at www.judypenzsheluk.com.
What an intriguing idea, Judy, . . . definitely a "must-read" for me [and I do like the alliteration] . . .
ReplyDeleteThank you Joan. I think this may be the best SSP antho yet!
DeleteJUDY: Congratulations on your newest anthology. I like the explanation of how you chose your titles. Alliterative titles are easier to remember, too.
ReplyDeleteI would commit larceny if it was my last chance to save a life (my own or someone close to me).
Judy here --- having a tough time getting comments to work. Thank you Grace and yes, I think we all might choose larceny if we really had to!
DeleteCongratulations on the new collection, Judy! That's a great title, and it looks like you assembled a fabulous group of short story writers.
ReplyDeleteHi Edith, yes, the group is outstanding -- and every story takes on the theme from a different angle! Inventive lot!
DeleteCongratulations your new anthology. I like the alliteration in all your anthology titles. It suggests some playfulness and the idea that reading these stories will be fun.
ReplyDeleteI just looked up the word larceny in order to be sure of its meaning, and the definition I found was kind of playful, too, (or maybe it's too early to judge.) "Carrying off personal property in order to deprive the rightful owner..." or something like that. Well, I guess there could be situations...
I think the title is a hit!
Thank you Judy -- I loved the name when it came to me! Glad it works.
DeleteCongratulations on your new collection. I've read a few of the stories. My fear of going to jail prohibits me from committing larceny.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading some of the stories Dru Ann! Maybe you'll submit to my next call for submissions!
DeleteJudy: Congratulations on this latest anthology. I like alliteration so your titles delight me.
ReplyDeleteI had to look up the meaning of 'larceny' and learned that "In the United States the most common form of larceny is the theft of property from a motor vehicle. This does not include physical parts of the vehicle itself, but the items inside the car." Hmmm. So, larceny is, essentially, stealing. Well, that opens endless story line possibilities! Then I found this: “Larceny is considered one type of stealing under the general category of theft. The term is more narrowly defined as the theft of personal property capable of being possessed and carried away." Just what might a person want to or be able to carry away and why did the victim have that personal property in their possession in the first place?
Judy -- if your title alone gets me going like this, the stories in the anthology are bound to capture my imagination!
Judy, nit picking retired lawyer here at the end of a very long day. But “personal property” is any property that is not real (as in real estate). So much personal property is not with the person all the time (think your couch or your clothes hanging in the closet). Cheers, Elisabeth
DeleteHi Amanda...glad I got those little gray cells working! And Elisabeth, my epigraph in the book (further explained in the intro) is: "Surely you know that everybody’s got a little larceny operating in them.”—Bing Crosby, White Christmas
DeleteJudy, I like the alliterative titles! Easy to grasp how widely divergent the stories in each anthology could be. I could commit larceny if I were righting a grievous wrong against someone who couldn't get relief through legal means. For example, I know of someone who has ruined lives with absolutely no remorse and legally they have slipped through the law many times. If I could be like Andy from The Shankshaw Redemption, I'd love to leave him and his entire family penniless.
ReplyDeleteOoh, I can think of someone like that, too!
DeleteEdith, is the color orange closely associated with this person?
DeleteGood one, Judy!
DeleteJudy, I'm dreaming of the day when he and his grifting family all have matching orange jumpsuits.
DeleteFlora and Judy - indeed!
DeleteFlora...I LOVE Shawshank -- the novella and the movie!
DeleteI do like alliteration and puns for titles. I also like titles that follow a theme or even like Janet Evanovich does with consecutive numbers ("One for the Money", etc). Speaking of quotes from religious texts Julia, I love the British vet/author, James Herriott, who used "All Creatures Great & Small", etc from the song. His later books continued with titles from the same song.
ReplyDeleteOne title that I always remember is "Key Lime Crime" (Lucy's) and Hank's titles Prime Time, Drive Time, Face Time, etc. They stick in your head!
Those Janet Evanovich or Sue Grafton type titles are gold! Maybe I'll be known as the "alliteration anthology" publisher!
DeleteTitles can be a beast an then you find out sales and marketing are really in charge of titles. LOL. The anthology sounds awesome, Judy! I'm looking forward to picking it up!
ReplyDeleteThank you Jenn! I am biased, of course, but I do think it's pretty awesome.
DeleteFrom Diana: Great to see you here, Judy! It was lovely seeing you at Left Coast Crime in Vancouver before the pandemic. I was surprised that you remembered me. I am always surprised that people remember me because I am Not a member of the Royal Family nor a Celebrity. I enjoy meeting people and chatting with them.
ReplyDeleteTitles can be challenging. As a reader, I struggle to remember the title though I am better at remembering the name of the author since I joined the Bookstagrammer community on Instagram and my handle is wonderwomandbookish (no spaces and all lowercase)
Love the Agatha Christie mysteries where the titles are often borrowed from nursery rhymes.
Love punny titles. And I notice that often when I read a novel with a title, I would find the title in the dialogue or description on the pages.
Regarding larceny, why am I thinking of Grand Auto Theft? When I googled Larceny, it means a crime without violence.
This is so great, Judy! And “last chance”means… Motivation, right? And that is what a good story is all about it! Congratulations on another fabulous anthology.
ReplyDeleteHank, you are right -- motivation is often based on last chances!
DeleteI'm doing a final reading of my MS for Polizei Bern Book#4, and I've thought of and discarded one title after another. So far, I don't repeat keywords in each title or use puns, so whatever I come up with doesn't have to match the other titles, but it does have to be appropriate for the different crimes in the story. Pesticide, Sons and Brothers, A Fondness for Truth, and X. Don't worry; I'm not asking for advice--I'd have to give you all too many spoilers to get informed suggestions. I'm just whining!
ReplyDeleteKim, I like to think I'm good with titles. One story, about a tattoo artist with financial trouble, had been titled Slippery Slope. I recommended calling it Red Ink (and we did). Another was called The Demise of Jack Robinson (his wife had been killed by a boa constrictor). I recommended A Tight Squeeze (which we used). I love titles!
DeleteLovely to catch you here today, Judy.
ReplyDeleteAs a (somehow) serial contributor to Judy's amazing anthologies, I'm always happy to have Judy announce another enticing theme to play with, and I had more fun than ever with this one.
Like others, I had to check out the precise meaning of larceny, just in cases.
And Susan's story is the first in the collection -- it's wickedly clever!
DeleteThe collection sounds great and I love your alliterative titles. I also love your golden retriever (I still miss mine!) Last chance implies an important decision--if it involved my life or death or the life or death of someone I loved, for sure I would commit larceny.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear from you Gillian -- and I also love Gibbs (my golden). He, poor thing, is forced to listen to my read-alouds!
DeleteLove alliteration! I would cheerfully commit larceny to aid and abet a friend whose little brother wound up with all of their mother's assets. He is a selfish so and so and refused to share with his siblings. Not even to repay them for their share of her estate that went to paying her medical care. I hope the anthology includes larceny righting wrongs!
ReplyDeletePat, lots of wrongs being righted. In fact, my own story in the collection (The Last Chance Coalition) is (very loosely) based on something that happened to me -- took me 7 years, but I got even :-)
DeleteTitles really are hard - and when you come up with the right one it seems so obvious... in retrospect. Judy, congratulations on the new anthology - I can only imagine how much work goes into it.
ReplyDeleteThanks Hallie, yes, a lot of work but I got my start in short fiction and I like to pay forward my modest success!
DeleteThank you Reds (especially Hank, who sent me along to Julia, and Julia, who did the heavy lifting) for having me on. Apologies for the lateness of my comments...sometimes life gets in the way of our best laid plans. But I love this blog, follow it faithfully, and appreciate you all.
ReplyDelete