As I've mentioned before, I'm into titles. A good title on a book will catch my attention way before any artwork will. As such, I'm always jotting down ideas for titles. I usually lose these. Until I find them again years later and have to stare at the paper for five minutes trying to figure out what all the disparate phrases mean. Sometimes, I even think of stories to go with the titles or, at least, chapters, which is almost just as good.
Children end up being a good source for these kinds of things, and, lately, my daughter has been an especially good source. It all started last Christmas.
We got our kids Advent calendars for the first time last year. Not expensive ones or anything, just some little things we picked up with a Christmas shaped chocolate candy for each day. Yeah, you didn't know Christmas had a shape, did you? Well, it does. But I'm not telling you what it is. Anyway, at some point during the whole Advent thing last year, my daughter said something about the first day of chocolate, and it made me laugh and, then, it made me write it down. It's a great line.
And I've spent the last year trying to come up with a story to go with the title "The First Day of Chocolate," but, you know what, I haven't come up with a single thing. Or, rather, I've come up with a lot of things that I've immediately discarded. At any rate, I haven't come up with any ideas that I felt were worthwhile. Of course, my daughter knows I wrote it down, and, every so often, she asks me if I've written that story yet, and I have to tell her no. That's probably more disappointing to me than it is to her, because I hate having a great title with no story to go with it.
I have a list of things she's said in this past year that are title ideas, but I'm not gonna share any more of them with you. They're mine, I tell you, mine! Hopefully, some day, I'll start putting them to use.
So... here we are, and it's "The First Day of Chocolate." Yes, it is. And, yes, that's permission to go get yourself a piece. Preferably something dark and minty, but, really, just go with what you like best. If you're a woman, I bet you don't even have far to go from where you're sitting to get a piece. Yeah, my wife's gonna hit me when she reads that part, but I'm pretty sure it's worth it. Now, I'm not gonna tell you that you should follow this holiday and have chocolate everyday; that's for you to decide, but you should certainly have a piece on this first day of this wonderful chocolate holiday.
So...
Merry Christmas everyone, and have a wonderful First Day of Chocolate!!!
Haha 'First Day of Chocolate' that would make a great title for a children's story :)
ReplyDeleteIt would also make a great title for a piece of woman's fiction - for most women, the first day of any heartache is the first day of chocolate.
ReplyDeleteIt's a great title, and a great idea. I hope you enjoy Advent and come up with an idea for the story soon.
Pass the chocolate, please!
First Day of Chocolate - sounds like a romance.
ReplyDeleteTitles are difficult for me. I came up with one. The other two were my publisher's suggestions. Thank God, because I would've been screwed.
And I guess the title is the second thing I look at. Artwork and cover design always come first.
I allow myself a piece of chocolate every day so Not sure where the First day of Chocolate would fall. Maybe a restricted society of the future when no-one was allowed to indulge and then there was a rebellion which broke the restriction, hence the first day of chocolate.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, you could use the Advent Calendar somewhat along the lines of Ray Bradbury's The Illustrated Man using chocolate as your starting point.
ReplyDeleteSuzanne: I think so if I could think of the story.
ReplyDeleteCathy: What? I'm not giving you my chocolate!
Alex: See, you can make great artwork completely apart from the story. It really doesn't reflect the writing.
Jo: Oh! A dystopian piece about chocolate... hmm...
Doesn't have to be dystopian unless that's the way your mind takes you.
ReplyDeleteI have some titles that fell out of the sky. You can't have, for example "Ship of Crows," my post-apocalyptic steampunk novel, which came from a nonsensical spam comment on my blog, or "A Hundred Thousand Fireflies," overheard at random on a bus.
ReplyDeleteWHY don't I have any chocolate within walking distance? WHY?
Jo: I think a world without chocolate... I don't know; it just sounds dystopian to me..
ReplyDeleteJericha: That's okay, I already have "Tree of Crows" with a whole myth I made up around it.
And I don't know why you don't have chocolate. Even I have chocolate (covered almonds) within walking distance, and I'm a guy.
You're right, I have all manner of chocolate within walking distance. Kids are great for inspiration. Love that quote/title! The First Day of Chocolate can go so many ways. Fun prompt.
ReplyDeleteShannon at The Warrior Muse
I'm big on titles as well. I'm like you in that I'll sometimes think of a title that I like and then make something out of it. Kids can come up with unique word and idea juxtapositions that can make very interesting title and story ideas. I used to get my daughters to come up with lines for songs and poems when they were much younger. It was a fun exercise for all of us.
ReplyDeleteAnd chocolate--what can I say. I've had several doses today and for the past several days. I am a chocoholic, hopelessly so.
Lee
Wrote By Rote
Shannon: I'm surprised no one has mentioned having any within arms reach!
ReplyDeleteLee: I've had my own chocolate today, too, but it has coffee in it!
Definitely anything with the word chocolate is an attention getting prompt for me anyway! :) Enjoyed reading your post
ReplyDeleteG_G: Maybe I should have more titles with chocolate in them?
ReplyDelete