In honor of the fact that my debut novel is well on its way to having an actual title, here are 8 random phrases from my book that would make terrible titles:
1) Surface of the Firepit
2) A Knowing Smile
3) Tense For the Rest of the Morning
4) Well, Then
5) Strip-Searched in the Garden
6) It Sounds Expensive
7) Several Battered Quills
8) Her Execution Started Everything
So now I am tagging some other author friends to share their #8TerribleTitles. Here’s how it works: open your manuscript, scroll for a bit without looking and stop. Pull out whatever phrase your cursor is on. Do this 8 times and then share your list. Even non-writers can play – just grab the nearest book and pull out random phrases as alternate titles. Then tag some friends to pass it on.
I hereby tag:
Stories By Hand with Kathy MacMillan 
Hahahaha, I actually feel like some these titles went full-circle and became awesome and/or hilarious. Or perfect for a totally different book. Thanks for tagging me, I’ll put mine up early next week!
My favorite: A KNOWING SMILE. Doesn’t sound creepy at all. No, not at all. This has been so much fun — who knew what you’d kick off when this conversation first started, right?
My titles have made it up on my blog…just say you’ve been warned. That is all.
Several Battered Quills: The Untold Story of Hermione Granger’s Academic Frustration
You know, my protagonist is a bit Hermione-esque. She would approve of that comment.
OK- So I love Several Battered Quills. But gotta say.. WELL, THEN COULD be the next American classic!!