Search for the Snow Queen’s Title
Following up on yesterday’s post, for anyone interested in publishing industry numbers, one of my readers provided a link to Bowker’s 2009 industry statistics. This doesn’t provide numbers sold, but does show the number of new books in various categories. Worth a look, for anyone interested in this stuff.
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So the princess series is going to be four books long. Three of these books have titles:
The Stepsister Scheme [Amazon | Mysterious Galaxy]
The Mermaid’s Madness [Amazon | Mysterious Galaxy]
Red Hood’s Revenge [Amazon | Mysterious Galaxy]
Book four doesn’t have a final title, and I’m almost out of time. We’re doing page proofs on Red Hood soon, and I want to make sure it includes information number four.
So I’m turning to y’all for help. The final book is based on the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale The Snow Queen, as most of you already know. I need a title that will fit with the rest of the series, and will be so exciting, so vivid, that everyone is helpless to resist its allure.
At the moment, the tentative title is Spell of the Snow Queen. It works, but my editor and I would love to find something that had a little more zing. Rejected titles include:
Shards of the Snow Queen
Scourge of the Snow Queen
The Snow Queen’s Secret
Snow Queen and the Half-Blood Princess
The Snow Queen and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
The Snow Queen would make an awesome movie! Are you listening, Peter Jackson? E-mail me!
iSnow: Apple’s Revenge
Godzilla vs. Snow Queen
All suggestions are welcome. If we end up using yours, you’ll receive an autographed book and a shout-out in the acknowledgements.
Sewicked
January 28, 2010 @ 9:45 am
Snow Queen’s Quest
Snow Queen’s Quarry
Snow Queen’s Shadow
Snow Queen’s Sanctuary
Snow Queen’s Snare
Jim C. Hines
January 28, 2010 @ 9:50 am
Thank you! I had actually considered Quest at one point, but I’ve already had one Quest book (Goblin Quest), so was torn about the potential repetition. I’ll have to think more about it, though.
Anton Strout
January 28, 2010 @ 9:55 am
I humbly suggest The Snow Job.
I’ll show myself out…
Jim C. Hines
January 28, 2010 @ 9:57 am
See, this is why we love you, Anton. Sadly, it’s also the reason we beat you with penny-filled tube socks.
Jillian
January 28, 2010 @ 9:59 am
The Snow Queen’s Quarrel?
I like the idea of going with the Q theme instead of the S theme, since there’s already been an “s” in the series…
ZombieJoe
January 28, 2010 @ 10:29 am
Damn, Anton beat me to The Snow Job. I guessing that means Snowballing is in the same rank.
Before I show myself out though, a serious suggestion.
Snow Blind (possible subtitle of The Fury of the Snow Queen)
Cassandra Yorgey
January 28, 2010 @ 11:05 am
Splinter of the Snow Queen
Snow Queen’s Sorcery
Snow Queen’s Scorn
Snow Queen’s Schadenfreude
The Snow Job is begging to be a short story about Snow. I’m just sayin’.
Bill Pearson
January 28, 2010 @ 11:16 am
Well, I suppose I might as well make a few suggestions…
Snow Queen’s Spell
Snow Queen’s Susurrus
Snow Queen’s Power
Snow Queen’s Shards
Snow Queen’s Splinters
Snow Queen’s Storm
Snow Queen’s Spite
Snow Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody
Snow Queen vs. the Salt Monster
::duck::
Jeff Linder
January 28, 2010 @ 11:22 am
Sorcery of the Snow Queen
(Depending on how the story plays out) The Snow Queen’s Quandary
Snow Queen’s Song (if you can fit in a Disney like musical interlude)
Saga of the Snow Queen
A Squall of Snow Queen
Steve Buchheit
January 28, 2010 @ 12:17 pm
The Snow Queen’s Desolation
Winter of the Snow Queen
Max
January 28, 2010 @ 12:19 pm
Seclusion, Sequester(ed), Psycho, San Quentin. Yes, I’m trying to make a double-alliteration with these.
Sorrow, Silence, Sierra Madre (if treasure is present).
Or Solitude, which is a very nice word and has only a few fortresses and ski resorts named after it.
Or The Snow Queen and the Skiing Quandary. Hm, no. Sounds like an Encyclopedia Brown casefile…
Steven Saus
January 28, 2010 @ 12:20 pm
I think you’ll want to stay with “(The) [Name]’s [action]” format, and with the alliteration. However, since you’ve already got the Stepsister Scheme, perhaps you should look at using another letter.
The Queen & Quest combo is good – I’d worry more about the “S” repetition than the “Quest” repetition since they’re different series with extremely different cover art.
It also depends on what aspects of the Snow Queen story (or stories, according to Wikipedia, which is NEVER wrong) you’re including or emphasizing. Mirror, for example, I’d nix off the bat for the same reason as the “S” stuff, but maybe something like:
The Reviled Reflection (ew… that sounds like a Lemony Snickett book, not one of yours.)
It should also reflect the antagonist, since you’ve done that with the rest.
Get the idea? Gotta run.
KatG
January 28, 2010 @ 12:35 pm
Well I don’t know what you’ve done with the fairy tale, so I have to go with the original story, I guess, which might mean: The Tears of the Snow Queen
If the alliteration needs to be there, then The Snow Queen’s Question might work, but that’s not very zippy.
I’m disappointed that the series is only going to be four books, but I hope that means you also have a new idea you want to try out.
Jim C. Hines
January 28, 2010 @ 12:36 pm
Oh, yes. In fact, my brain keeps trying to distract me from Snow Queen by dangling nifty plot and character bits from the new series…
Steven Saus
January 28, 2010 @ 12:38 pm
::facepalm:: Of course, “R” has already been used too. Realized that just after submitting. Don’t have access to a thesaurus right now, so here’s a few other quick templates that someone with a better vocabulary (or web access) can fill in:
The Queen’s [optional q-adjective] Quest – Note, not my favorite unless you’re making her an antagonist
The Troll’s [T-word for reflection or betrayal]
The Looking Glass’s Legacy
HTH, man.
Cassandra Yorgey
January 28, 2010 @ 12:52 pm
I think it’d be kind of neat if the series started and ended with an “s” alliteration.
Snow Queen’s Sniper
Snow Queen’s Snare
Fehize
January 28, 2010 @ 1:13 pm
Hmm, well, I was never really good at coming up with titles myself, but here goes nothing…
The Abhor of the Arctic Queen [I was unable to think of a work that means ‘queen’ with the letter ‘a’ in English…]
The Abhor of the Arctic Authority [?] [Best ‘leader’ term/name I could think with ‘a’.]
Conundrums of the Queen [‘C’ sounds like ‘q’ there]
Conundrums From the Queen
A Solstice of the Snow Queen
That was all I could think of. Good luck finding your title!
Moeman
January 28, 2010 @ 5:48 pm
How about:
Smilla’s Sense of Snow Queen
Thank you, thank you, ladies and gentlemen, I’ll be here all week. And please don’t forget to tip your waiter or waitress.
But on a slightly more serious note, how about:
The Snow Queen Strikes Back
If it was good enough for George Lucas and C.J. Cherryh, it ought to be good enough for you.
And now to be totally serious:
Of the suggestions so far, I’d second The Snow Queen’s Snare or The Snow Queen’s Quarry. Or maybe:
The Snow Queen Scandal (or The Snow Queen’s Scandal)
Snow Queen Sinister
The Snow Queen’s Sting
The Snow Queen’s Solace
The Snow Queen Caper
The Snow Queen Case
The Quisling Queen
The Quixotic Queen
The Coldhearted Queen
Snow-Cold
Snow-Crowned
Snowbound
Snow Hard
OK, maybe not so serious on that last one.
That’s it. I’m out.
Michelle
January 28, 2010 @ 6:50 pm
I like the original title format, so I’d change it to The Snow Queen’s Spell if you decide to keep it.
Other suggestions:
The Snow Queen’s Season
The Snow Queen’s Summons
The Snow Queen’s Kiss
Good luck!
Sean
January 28, 2010 @ 7:24 pm
snow queen == frigid beeeotch…….Ok maybe a little more PG is needed. If you had “Red Hood Strikes back you could then have “Return of the snow queen”.
Now seriously down to business. Let’s see, First you have a scheme, then madness, then revenge……there is only one thing left, and one way for you to go…….
“Winters Vengeance” #”Snow Queen’s Vengeance” does not sound as cool.
or
“Winters Puzzle”
Sean
KatG
January 29, 2010 @ 4:56 pm
Kinda like Cassandra’s The Snow Queen’s Snare.
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Laura
January 30, 2010 @ 8:49 am
The sorcies of the snow queen
The blizzard fury of the snow queen
The snow queen’s icy tendrels
The icy touch of the snow queen
Winter blindness the snow queen sees all
Laura
January 30, 2010 @ 9:34 pm
snowflake edge vs the snowqueen’s wand
frostbitten by the snow queen’s power
The snow queen’s icy ways
snowballed by the snow queen
Lynda
February 3, 2010 @ 3:55 pm
Well it all depends on what happens with in the story but instead of Snow Queen you could use the location
Peril of the Frost Palace
or maybe
use Ice or Frost or Frozen in stead of snow?
The Frost Queen’s Folly
Flight to the Frozen Palace
Intent of the Ice Queen or the Ice Queen’s Intent
idk
Darkstar
February 28, 2010 @ 8:43 am
This might be way to late but I have to admit that I like the idea of all book titles beginning with the “person”:
So I’d love to see the title start with “The Snow Queen …”
I also liked the Spell-idea, although I didn’t find anything wrong with the Secret.
So
The Snow Queens Spell
The Snow Queens Secret
To be honest, the “Secret” thing made me most interested yet. What IS her secret, damn??? What is the facette that I didn’t know yet about her???
OR you could go for another letter, like
The Winter Queens Wrath
or something
Jim C. Hines
February 28, 2010 @ 9:09 am
Thanks, Darkstar. We eneded up going with The Snow Queen’s Shadow.
Michael Willows
February 28, 2010 @ 11:50 am
Snow Queen and the endless winter.
Snow Queen’s Comeback tour?
The Reanimation of the Snow Queen
Snow Queen and the fires of Fairytown
Banshee of the Snow Queen.