December 15 – 21: “Did your editor insist on a title change?”

This week ITW Members Jaden Terrel, Tiffany Snow, Suzanne Chazin, William Nikkel, C. Hope Clark, Jerry Amernic, Susan Santangelo, Cynthia Lott and J. H. Bográn discuss whether their editors ever insisted on a title change. Why are some titles magic and what are some of your favorites?

~~~~~

Suzanne Chazin is the author of two thriller series. Her first, about the FDNY, include The Fourth Angel, Flashover and Fireplay. The series has been called “searing and emotionally explosive” (USA Today), and her heroine, fire investigator Georgia Skeehan, “incredibly strong” (People Magazine). Chazin’s newest mystery series stars Jimmy Vega, an upstate New York cop navigating the world of the undocumented. The first book in the series, Land of Careful Shadows, is due out in hardcover from Kensington on Nov. 25th. It has already garnered advance praise from Lee Child, Julia Spencer-Fleming, S.J. Rozan, Reyna Grande, Maggie Barbieri and Publishers Weekly, which called the book, “timely and engrossing,” and Jimmy Vega, “engaging, psychologically complex.” A former journalist, Chazin’s essays and articles have appeared in American Health, Family Circle and the New York Times.

Jerry Amernic’s new novel The Last Witness is about the last living survivor of the Holocaust in 2039, but the world is abysmally ignorant of events from the last century. Amernic has produced a video showing how university students today don’t know much either. His biblical-historical thriller Qumran will be out soon, to be followed by the re-release of his earlier novel Gift of the Bambino, and later next year another historical thriller called Medicine Man.

Shamus award finalist Jaden Terrell is the author of three Jared McKean mysteries and a contributor to Now Write! Mysteries, a collection of exercises published by Tarcher/Penguin for writers of crime fiction. Terrell is the special programs coordinator of the Killer Nashville Thriller, Mystery, and Crime Literature Conference and a recipient of the 2009 Magnolia Award for service to the Southeastern Chapter of Mystery Writers of America.

C. Hope Clark is author of The Carolina Slade Mysteries and the newly released Murder on Edisto, book one of The Edisto Island Mysteries. She’s published The Shy Writer and The Shy Writers Reborn, nonfiction motivational books, and is editor of FundsforWriters.com, chosen Writer’s Digest’s 101 Best Websites for Writers for 14 years. She lives on Lake Murray in central South Carolina when she’s not strolling Edisto Beach.

William Nikkel is the author of five Jack Ferrell novels and a steampunk, zombie western featuring his latest hero Max Traver. A former homicide detective and S.W.A.T. team member for the Kern County Sheriff’s Department in Bakersfield, California, William is an amateur scuba enthusiast, gold prospector, and wildlife artist who can be found just about anywhere. He and his wife Karen divide their time between Northern California and Maui, Hawaii.

Tiffany Snow was born in St. Charles, Missouri, where she developed a fondness for trivia games, the music of Elvis Presley, and romance novels. After earning two bachelor’s degrees—one in social studies education and the other in history—she went on to work in the information technology field. Now, the author of the popular Kathleen Turner Series writes full-time, when she’s not quoting When Harry Met Sally or dancing along to her favorite ’80s hair band. She resides in the Midwest with her husband of eighteen years and their two daughters.

An early member of the Baby Boomer generation, Susan Santangelo has been a feature writer, drama critic, and editor for daily and weekly newspapers in the New York metropolitan area, including a stint at Cosmopolitan magazine. Susan divides her time between Cape Cod MA and the Connecticut shoreline. She is a member of Sisters in Crime and the Cape Cod Writers Center, and also reviews mysteries for Suspense Magazine. Funerals Can Be Murder is the fifth in her Baby Boomer mystery series. The other titles are: Retirement Can Be Murder (2009), Moving Cab Be Murder (2011), Marriage Can Be Murder (2012), and Class Reunions Can Be Murder (2013). A portion of the sales from te books is donated to the Breast Cancer Survival Center, a Connecticut-based non-profit organization Susan founded in 1999 after being diagnosed with cancer herself.

J. H. Bográn born and raised in Honduras, is the son of a journalist. He ironically prefers to write fiction rather than fact. José’s genre of choice is thrillers, but he likes to throw in a twist of romance into the mix. His works include novels and short stories in both English and Spanish. He’s a member of The Crime Writers Association, the Short Fiction Writers Guild and the International Thriller Writers where he also serves as the Thriller Roundtable Coordinator and contributor editor their official e-zine The Big Thrill.

Cynthia Lott is an Author and loves hearing life stories over a glass of good wine (especially Shiraz). She is also a professional librarian and researcher. Her memberships include Sisters in Crime, Inc., Atlanta Writers Club, Inc., and International Thriller Writers, Inc. THE FEATHERS is her debut novel.