Titles. Word Counts. Epiphanies.

I had an incredible epiphany Monday night.
Monday night was the book signing for Emily Wing Smith's debut novel! She is awesome, her book is awesome, and the signing was awesome! Sara Zarr was there as well, though not to sign books. It was sweet!

I was standing in line, chatting with Sara, admiring all of the books surrounding me, waiting for my turn to see Emily when from out of nowhere the title of my book flies into my head and nests itself into my brain! It was amazing!

I love good titles. I love titles with double meanings and depth and weight. Like Without Reservations, brilliant title, in it's own right! But when it comes to my poetry and my novels, my personal stuff, titles escape me. I just don't really bother with them unless they appear on their own, or are required by a professor. I figure as far as any novel goes, if it makes it to the editor or to an agent, they will change the title anyway, so why bother?

This title appeared all on its own. It was really quite remarkable. Okay, so it's a title that has been lingering in my mind since Vegas. I first applied it to the poem I'd written there, and I really liked it for the poem, it fit perfect. It didn't occur to me one bit to connect it to my novel at all.

Until the book signing. And it was just Wham! That works! That's Perfect! I love it! I don't even know what made the two connect...I guess that's the bliss of epiphanies, you don't know how they happen they just do happen. And when you least expect them to.

All of a sudden I was shouting and waving my arms, "Oh my gosh! I have a title for my novel!" Like time and the space around me warped and -- it was so cool!!

So anyway. I've been riding on that all week. It just makes my book seem so much more real and more ...Real! I mean, I'm half way through! It has a title...the two just go perfect! It's as though I wouldn't have ever found a title until I made it to the halfway mark, and now I have and it's there and I just really have to finish it all now!

(((Only I spend my time updating blogs rather than adding new words...hmm)))

But I've come to the realization that this is not a novel to be rushed. I will by all means consistantly work on it, but I know once I've hit that 50,000 word mark I've only really just begun! The rewrites and the things to add to it and the things to take out will take care and time and patience.

But I'm on my way!! : )