Another Working Title Bites the Dust
The working title of my recently released novel, GIVE MY REGARDS TO NOWHERE, was ELECTRIC LADYLAND. That title went out the window when I discovered ELECTRIC LADYLAND was a registered trademark of Experience Hendrix LLC, the corporate overlord of the Jimi Hendrix estate. I’m now in rewrites of the next Dwayne Finnegan adventure. It had the working title, THE 7 HABITS OF ROMEO & JULIET, because Dwayne’s frustrated wife throws a copy of THE 7 HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE at him, and it becomes a running gag as Dwayne attempts to use the book to improve himself.
I thought THE 7 HABITS OF ROMEO & JULIET was kind of funny as a title, but after the experience with ELECTRIC LADYLAND, I realized I needed to seek permission from the Franklin Covey Company. They have trademarked not only the 7 HABITS title but also the 7 Habits themselves.
Franklin Covey did not think THE 7 HABITS OF ROMEO & JULIET was nearly as funny as I did. Nor were they inclined to give me permission to use 7 HABITS in my title. And they promised to be as vigilant about their trademarks as Disney is about the Mouse.
Ah well… I didn’t want to lose the gag about Dwayne improving himself so I decided to invent a self-help book to replace the 7 HABITS. So far my favorite new working title is ROMEO & JULIET KEEP THEIR EYES ON THE PRIZE. What do you think?
Meanwhile, GIVE MY REGARDS TO NOWHERE is starting to collect enthusiastic reviews on Amazon and Goodreads after just two weeks on sale. The most recent one concluded with: “It was one of those books you don’t want to end, and that is a good read in my opinion!” So maybe you should get your copy while it’s still at launch time prices. You can get it in print, ebook, and audiobook from lots of retailers.