What's in a name?

Image Credit

BRITISH LIBRARY / SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

That is my question. After all, we know that a rose under any name would smell as sweet... unless you're comparing a David Austen to Madame Isaac Pierre—apparently the most fragrant rose you're likely to find.

However, as you may have guessed, my reason for ponderation has nothing to do with roses, but book titles. Yes, in particular murder-mystery book titles. You see, just now, only approximately ten minutes ago, I finished the manuscript for the first book in my new contemporary murder-mystery series! Woohoo! I am very excited, in fact, I'm so excited. I am about to lose control... and you know what, I think I like it!

Although... I do suspect there are a number of holes that will later need excavating, concreting or turned into tunnels, but for now it will remain in a proverbial drawer. Did I tell you about my plan? Oh, yes. Well, although this first manuscript is only 52,000 words; that's one book down and only two to go. Oh, and I also finished the section of my non-fiction I was working on, so that's another 12,500 words. Wow! Actually that's quite fun to put that down in writing.

Anyway, before I start the 45,000 word children's book tomorrow, I thought I ought to come up with a title for this recently completed book. As usual it's a very randomly conceived murder, but I wondered, how does one go about creating a title? Surely you don't want to give too much away at the beginning?

Naturally, I turned to Agatha (and google) for advice, and here are my observations.

1. The Mysterious Affair at Styles - Murder location, in the house.

2. The Murder on the Links - Murder location, on the golf course.

3. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd - Name of person murdered.

4. The Big Four - Refers to the organisation of people targeted/murdered.

5. The Mystery of the Blue Train - Murder location, on the train.

6. Peril at End House - Murder location.

7. Lord Edgware Dies - Person murdered.

8. Murder on the Orient Express - Murder location.

9. Three Act Tragedy - Spoiler if you don't know the story - refers to the murderer.

10. Death in the Clouds - Murder location, on a plane.

11. The A.B.C. Murders - Refers to the clue.

12. Murder in Mesopotamia - Murder location.

13. Cards on the Table - Murder occurs at a card game.

14. Dumb Witness - Refers to the dog who can't speak.

15. Death on the Nile - Murder location

16. Appointment with Death - Superstitious death curse, not the actual murder method.

17. Hercule Poirot’s Christmas - Murder happens at Christmas.

18. Sad Cypress - Murder weapon.

19. One, Two, Buckle My Shoe - The clue.

20. Evil Under the Sun - How the murder appears to happen.

21. Five Little Pigs - Five people investigated/suspected of murder.

22. The Hollow - This title is a mystery?

23. Taken at the Flood - Title is something to do with Shakespeare and how people behave.

24. Mrs. McGinty’s Dead - person who died.

25. After the Funeral - When the trick is played.

26. Hickory Dickory Dock - The mouse is a witness.

27. Dead Man’s Folly - The folly is built to cover the murder.

28. Cat Among the Pigeons - Secret agent is the murderer.

29. The Clocks - The clue.

30. Third Girl - The one set-up.

31. Hallowe’en Party - Where the murder occurs.

32. Elephants Can Remember - A past crime is investigated.

33. Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case - Self explanatory.

I decided not to go into the short stories or Miss Marple. I'm sure you'd appreciate that too. However, from the list above I can see that in the earlier novels, ten on them refer to the murder location. Of course, this isn't always explicit, like she doesn't say, Murder on the Golf Course, she says Murder on the Links. Four of them refer to the victim, three or four relate to the witness and there are a couple of red herring titles. Then there are about seven that have something to do with the major clue, like the clocks—however, the clock was not the actual murder weapon.

So... have I just confused myself further? Perhaps... but it was rather helpful, and has given me food for thought. (I apologise if you are the one person who reads this blog and is upset that I have given some spoilers away). Of course, some of those titles were not the original ones either, which makes things a little tricky...

Anyway, for now I'll use the victim in the title and call it: The Murder of Napoleon. What do you think?

Food for thought, anyway. Cherrio for now.