Name All The Things

Naming things is hard. To take a whole, entire thing and boil it down to only one or a few words? Oh my goodness.

Ever since I started writing "Rogue Planet" <mumfl-fufff> years ago, that has been the working title. (No, not "That"—"Rogue Planet" ya goof.) It's a decently okay title, if kind of on the nose, but you know... workable. It could work. But maybe something else would be better?

Around Christmas, I finally got to buttoning up the changes needed to bring "Our Once Warm Earth" and "Inheritance of Dust" back to being all comfy cozy bosom book buddies under the same cover again. And now, as of last week, I have a singular novel that is ready to be pushed out into the world as a finally, really, completed work. With a title that is, y'know, "workable," and a cover that is good, but... I commissioned it almost... seven years ago. (Holy crow, really?! Ugh!) And not only that, but more than a few indie and not-so-indie books have used the same astronaut stock image—customized in different ways—that the designer who created my cover used so many moons ago. Anyway, like the title, the cover is... "workable," but maybe not "magical."

So, the last few days I've been brainstorming with the trusty rusty old bots de chat, and have come up with a few potential title options and cover design concepts. But rather than throwing a dart or just, I don't know, picking something, I thought I should ask you! You're better than some dumb ol' chat bot anywho.

So, with further ado, let me set the scene:

The book possibly formerly known as "Rogue Planet" has long been intended as the first book in a trilogy, so not only am I trying to see if another shoe fits, I'm trying to find the one that fits which maybe also has a couple of cute friends willing to tag along.

Here's what we're working with (click a title to vote):

Option 1 - more "literary" leaning

• "The Severed Sky"
• Books 2 & 3:
  • "Under a Broken Sky"
  • "Between Silent Skies"

Option 2 - more hard-SF leaning

• "Gravity's Ruin"
• Books 2 & 3:
  • "In Gravity's Wake"
  • "A Last Measure of Gravity"

Option 3 - old faithful

• "Rogue Planet"
• Books 2 & 3:
  • "In the Cold Dark"
  • "A Last Measure of Warmth"

So there you go, that's what I'm looking at. To vote for one (or more) of the above options, simply click the book title you prefer. If you'd like to share your opinion on these options, just dash off a quick comment or email reply.

Oh, and here's a sneak peak at some rough cover image concepts, courtesy of your friendly neighborhood nano banana...

I am once again toying with the idea of a short (30-day) Kickstarter to help get Rogue Planet (or whatever I end up calling it) re-covered with human-created art and design. I'll need to do some thinking/planning work before I make the final call, but in the meantime, you can tell me what you think about these cover concepts and possible Kickstarter, again, just by replying to this email! Especially if you'd be likely to support the Kickstarter! That kind of info would be very helpful!

As always, I'm glad you're here, and I'm looking forward to sharing more about this fully armed and operational sci-fi novel soon!

Til Then!