The Deepest Waters or...what?

"What's in a name?" Juliet asks Romeo. She then answers: "A rose by any other name would still smell as sweet" (slight paraphrase). A fancy way of saying something is what it is, no matter what you call it.

Parents usually spend a great deal of time picking out a name for their child, as well they should. It's something that will stay with them their entire lives. I know a friend who chose "Danger" as his son's middle name. He said he always wanted to say, "Danger is my middle name."

All right then.

My sister Anne named one of her sons "Samuel." Not Sam or Sammy, she told us. We're going to call him Samuel. And she insisted we keep calling him Samuel all his life. Because that was his name. Now, I don't know how long that lasted, but we've all been calling him Sam for as long as I can remember (and so has she).

Even though my second book, The Homecoming, won't be out until June, my publisher recently sent me a lengthy questionaire all about what I want to call my third book and why. That book won't be out until the spring of 2011. Things move very slowly in publishing.

I'm going to fill out this questionnaire all the way through and then turn it in, but it didn't help with my first or my second books. Both of those titles got changed in the process. I really like the name change for book one, The Unfinished Gift. Actually much better than what I'd come up with. But I'm still warming up to the name we picked for the sequel, The Homecoming. It really fits, don't get me wrong. It even connects on several different levels.

But I still like the name I came up with better. I called it, "Meet Me At The Eagle." When you read it, you'll understand why. It also fits and connects on several different levels. Problem is, no one except people who live in Philadelphia would have any idea what this means. I'm told when you become a major bestselling author you can pretty much call a book whatever you please.

We'll see.

I've titled my 3rd book, "The Deepest Waters," and I'm really hoping it sticks. The story takes place in 1857. It's about a young couple separated during a fierce hurricane by a shipwreck on their honeymoon. The title really fits and connects on several different levels. :) I'm going to fill out this questionnaire here and make my best case. Will I succeed with Book Number 3? Will it wind up being called "The Deepest Waters"?

We'll see.