Penric 4th combo title mulling
It occurred to me I could pull together a 4th Penric combo volume for foreign rights/translations sales even before "Knot of Shadows" runs through its year license period with SubPress. The shortish The Assassins of Thasalon plus the novella just about make up a nice book-market-friendly word count. But that, of course, leads to the perennial problem of a title, different from all the prior ones but clearly in a grouping.
This is all the more moot because foreign publishers, if any, all change the titles anyway, but it would be nice if the volume at least started out well-dressed.
So, Penric's [active-sounding plural noun]. "Adventures" is a bit bland, "Ventures" sounds a bit too much like "Travels", "Perils" is, um, no. Best I've come up with so far is Penric's Lessons, mm, maybe.
Anyone inclined to play is invited to chime in down in the comments.
Ta, L.
This is all the more moot because foreign publishers, if any, all change the titles anyway, but it would be nice if the volume at least started out well-dressed.
So, Penric's [active-sounding plural noun]. "Adventures" is a bit bland, "Ventures" sounds a bit too much like "Travels", "Perils" is, um, no. Best I've come up with so far is Penric's Lessons, mm, maybe.
Anyone inclined to play is invited to chime in down in the comments.
Ta, L.
Actually, I sort of like Penric's Lessons in many ways. Pen does learn a lot in these two tales, but I am trying to think of a more exciting word for "lessons".Penric and Miracles? In Assassins there are the various miracles that the saint triggers by praying, including the miracle of the whales and the one that brought his prey to him like a "chicken bringing his own pot and onions", plus more. And of course Knot has the miracle of Death Magic/Death Miracle.
What about "Penric's Apprentice?" This duology seems to emphasize Penric passing his knowledge forward.
Oh I like 'Penric's Apprentice' for sure. How about "Penric's Crusade"? Assassins at least is a long journey with a saint on a mission from their god.
Jerri wrote: "Actually, I sort of like Penric's Lessons in many ways. Pen does learn a lot in these two tales, but I am trying to think of a more exciting word for "lessons".How about "Penric's Teachings"? I thought of that even before I saw your suggestion.
Oh, I like Penric’s Perils! But that would have made a better title for Penric’s Travels.For the new pair of stories, I suggest Penric’s Assassin, which sounds exciting and is quite accurate without giving anything away. It’s ambiguous, and could be called misleading, but that’s not a crime.
Penric’s Apprentice is quite appropriate, but it becomes appropriate only after you’ve read some way into the novel. It’s a bit of a spoiler.
Penric’s Lessons sounds unexciting to me, but maybe some people find lessons more exciting than I ever did.
Penric's Intrigues? Penric's Investigations? Penric's Snooping?
Carol wrote: Penric's Intrigues? I love that one, works especially well for "Knot of Shadows".
Carol wrote: "Penric's Intrigues? Penric's Investigations? Penric's Snooping?"Intrigues works better than Lessons, I think. And applies to both stories, in different ways. I'll give this a bit more time for more title-hats to be tossed into the ring, but now, rather than "something better than Lessons" it needs to be "something better than Intrigues".
Typical reiterating title triage -- I've filled pages of notepaper with them in the past, full of lines and circles and crossing-outs, but crowdsourcing is way easier! Plus the focus-group feedback is built-in.
Ta, L.
Penric’s Intrigues would do well enough, I suppose—ambiguous again. The buyer may assume that Penric is engaging in intrigues, but in fact it’s the intrigues of others that he encounters.This title makes no reference to Alixtra at all, she’s just a side-effect of the intrigues.
Jonathan wrote: "Penric’s Intrigues would do well enough, I suppose—ambiguous again. The buyer may assume that Penric is engaging in intrigues, but in fact it’s the intrigues of others that he encounters.This tit..."
Combo titles do need to cast a wide net, yeah.
L.
"Penric's Instructions"Like lessons but could be interpreted as both instructions to him, and from him.
Todd wrote: ""Penric's Instructions"Like lessons but could be interpreted as both instructions to him, and from him."
Well, that transactionality is exactly the appeal; Pen both teaches and learns in these tales.
But "intrigues" is probably more, er, intriguing, which one wants in a title. We'll see if it sticks, or gets replaced by an even better choice.
Ta, L.
Bo wrote: "Penric's Dirty Jobs."Heh. There was a novel some time back, disremember the author -- Howard Waldrop? -- a modern retelling of the Labors of Hercules, appositely titled A Dozen Tough Jobs.
L.
Lois wrote: "Heh. There was a novel some time back, disremember the author -- Howard Waldrop? -- a modern retelling of the Labors of Hercules, appositely titled A Dozen Tough Jobs."Yes, Howard Waldrop (1989). Nebula Award finalist.
I like Teaching's best though it should have included the previous novella about the disease...Hmmm...
What links both works....
- Alexa being taught : Lesson, Teaching, Apprentice have been mentionned
- the Gods are really present in both, : Penric's Blessings ? Penric's Grace ? Penric's Giving ?
Alexa is saved in the first and then the mother has been offered solace and the little boy soul is saved too...
Alealea wrote: "- the Gods are really present in both, : Penric's Blessings ? Penric's Grace ? Penric's Giving ?"The gods are always present. (As Cazaril says, "Alas.") Hey, maybe that's a title for one of these compendia: The Gods Are Always Present.
Penric's Puzzles? Penric's Enigmas? Penric's Predicaments? Penric's Quandaries?
I'm tempted to suggest Penric's Mysteries, but I can't help thinking you might want to save that title for a bigger collection, when you've written a few more.
JuaSaysHi wrote: "I'm tempted to suggest Penric's Mysteries, but I can't help thinking you might want to save that title for a bigger collection, when you've written a few more."Or something even more god-soaked, for the other meaning of "mysteries". But the deus ex machina works better when very light handed...
L.
Lois wrote: "Or something even more god-soaked, for the other meaning of "mysteries..."Yes! That was in my mind but I couldn't articulate it! All I could think was, “mysteries and Mysteries, needs some of the latter to balance, like, two more books.” -but that seemed too cryptic. I'm so glad you said what I couldn't figure out!
I've been thinking about what threads the two stories share, that would appeal meaningfully without giving too much away. What about Penric's Ghosts?
Edit: or maybe that *does* give too much away. Hm, Penric's Spirits? There's wine at the end...
JuaSaysHi wrote: "What about Penric's Ghosts?"Not a bad idea, except that you have to read more than halfway through the novel to encounter a significant ghost. It’s a memorable element of the story, but not really what the story is about.
For what it's worth, I came here to suggest Penric's Intrigues, only to find someone else beat me to it...
Tom wrote: "For what it's worth, I came here to suggest Penric's Intrigues, only to find someone else beat me to it..."Supporting evidence is always heartening.
:-), L.
What are both stories about? I’d say that the fundamental common theme is killing by magic. In the novel, the victims are killed by one particular magical technique; in the novella, by a different magical technique. But it’s hard to think of a short and snappy title to represent this common theme, even assuming that you want to represent it in the title.The Curse of Fatal Death—it’s been done.
Too Many Magicians—it’s been done.
Penric’s Corpses—unappealing?
Can a Body Meet a Body—I think I should stop now.
In the realm of the theological, which could also encompass teaching etc., Penric's Calling
Ooooh, I like Penric's Intrigues, but alliteration is so fun:Penric's Precepts
Penrics's Persuasions
Penric's Predicaments
Ok, I'll stop now.
I rather like Penric’s Predicaments (from Bev).
Jonathan wrote: "I rather like Penric’s Predicaments (from Bev)."Seconded.
I think I'm going to settle on Penric's Intrigues for this round. But should there ever be another combo volume (not imminent, I have nothing new in the works at the moment, been slacking) some of these may come around on the guitar again..Thanks, all!
L.
Ah, you already decided. I was going to suggest: "Penric's Quandaries". But it doesn't really roll of the tongue, as well as "Penric's Intrigues".
Perhaps emphasize Alixtra's introduction with the title Penric's Pupil?
How about Penrick's peculiar predicaments?
Well, there's a knot, which could be a (pardon this) knotty problem. And an assassin surely sounds like a problem. Penric's Problems?
Looks like it's too late now, but I think Penric's Shadows would work.
Celtic wrote: "Looks like it's too late now, but I think Penric's Shadows would work."It is indeed too late -- the volume has gone in -- but who knows what I might need for titles, always a burden, in the future, so these are not pixels wasted.
Ta, L.
For the next one, "Penric Saves the Day" :)
With the 4th Penric collection incoming and "Knife Children" now available as print on demand, am I correct in thinking that your only current work that is not available in print is "The Flowers of Vashnoi"?
Kosigan wrote: "With the 4th Penric collection incoming and "Knife Children" now available as print on demand, am I correct in thinking that your only current work that is not available in print is "The Flowers of..."The 4th Penric collection is only going out for foreign translation rights at the moment. It won't be out of SubPress's exclusive license period for another year. After that, nothing is yet set.
Yeah, now that "Flowers" is sold out at SubPress, I believe it is the only loose story not generally available on paper. I can't think offhand what it could be collected with to make up market weight for a book-sized volume. It might be a candidate for a print-on-demand edition like "Knife Children", but I do not yet have a report on sales results for that PoD edition.
Ta, L.
Lois wrote: "The 4th Penric collection is only going out for foreign translation rights at the moment."That sounds encouraging. Can we expect The Translated Penric at some point, then? Looking at Amazon Spain now, I see the Vorkosigan series available in Spanish, but Penric only in English.
Jonathan wrote: "Lois wrote: "The 4th Penric collection is only going out for foreign translation rights at the moment."That sounds encouraging. Can we expect The Translated Penric at some point, then? Looking at..."
That will be entirely up to the purchasing editors of the foreign publishing companies. They presumably know where to find my agent...
Ta, L.
Lois wrote: "They presumably know where to find my agent..."Not, I hope, “in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying Beware of the Leopard.”
Not, I hope, “in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying Beware of the Leopard.”"Hello, I've come to clean your windows... :)
Jonathan wrote: "Lois wrote: "They presumably know where to find my agent..."Not, I hope, “in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying Beware of the Leopard.”"
Heh. No. Spectrum Literary Agency is at their perfectly fine long-time address in New York City.
Although from the way some supposedly (or perhaps just newbie) professional people who have tried to contact me through Goodreads sound, it might as well be at the place you posit.
Ta, L.
I like the double meaning of Penric's Lessons, but might be confused for his earlier schoolwork. Someone suggested Penric's Calling (callings?), I like this as in both books it was his duty to the white god that made his calling or obligation clear.
I love this whole series and have read them more than once.
Penric's Perplexities? ALthough Penric's Apprentices (plural) also works for me. Sorry to be late out the gate.
Look forward to whatever it ends up being :-)