Title mem

May. 5th, 2004 02:28 pm
icarus: Snape by mysterious artist (Default)
[personal profile] icarus
The title meme, gacked from [livejournal.com profile] cursive and [livejournal.com profile] miraminx (who has declared her journal a movie-free zone! I second that! This journal too will have no movie news. That is someone else's job, ie, I don't want to be whipped up into a marketed, squirming frenzy.)



Primer To The Dark Arts - is about Harry learning the Dark Arts, ergo...

Beg Me For It - I was challenged to have "Draco beg Ron for sexual pleasure" by [livejournal.com profile] emeraldjay. Thus, the title (and the last line).

Sex, Drugs And Death Eater Rock - is about Ron and Draco going on a 'sex, drugs and rock n'roll' binge while in a Death Eater prison. Thus...

Guy Talk - is about guy's bragging about their sex lives: guy talk.

Hmm. Tricksy.

Noticing a pattern here? My titles are WYSIWYG - what you see is what you get. It's like clear plastic wrap. You know what you're getting.

But there are a few interesting ones:

A Moment Of Sin - is a good title. It reflects Snape's attitude about seeking a prostitute, that it's a conscious momentary lapse. It also describes the actual moment when he realises who he's hired and has to decide what to do about it. And there's an element of irony: the results are not momentary at all.

Rising Sun - is about the double standard regarding teenage girls and teenage boys having sex and the mess that results. Of course, the song House of the Rising Sun is about a whorehouse and regrets.

Here Again - refers to Arthur waking up in bed with his son again and not sure how he managed to blow it this time. (Still in beta review.)

Not My Affair - is about an incestuous mistake that neither party wants to address or even admit. The title reflects their hands off, don't-want-to-deal-with-it attitude, and the fact that they don't want anyone to know either.

The Hat Trick - is doing something impossible, improbable, three times. To gamble on a hat trick is very risky. So the title refers to Ron's involvment in the sleazy world of Quidditch gambling and then sticking his neck out to do the right thing and sacrificing it all.

Ante Up! - is a term from poker. The story is about Fred and George cheerfully one-upping each other into more and more outrageous behaviour, like a bet slowly climbing.

Zen Taxi - boy, that title has nothing to do with the fic. I was sort of poking fun at how everything has been called 'the Zen of [fill in the blank].' So what Draco does in that taxi is another 'zen of.' Though the word 'zen' also refers to the mesmerizing quality of the windshield wipers and the calm suspended feeling of the entire tale.

Sweet Hypocrisy - is a story about Snape pointing out Percy's hypocrisy. What's sweet is that Percy's hypocrisy comes from his 'true believer' innocence. An innocence Snape calls as destructive as his namesake, Percival.

Well, [livejournal.com profile] cursive, you're right. That was an utter waste of time. But this next part isn't:

There's a famous apocryphal story about How Do I Name My Novel.

There was a struggling, young novelist who had an opportunity to meet a famous, established novelist at a cocktail party. He pulled the celebrity aside.

"Sir, I've finished my novel. But I'm stuck on what to call it."

Without missing a beat the famous author asked, "Are there any drums in it?"

"Er. No."

"Are there any trumpets?"

The young man was puzzled. "No, no trumpets."

"Good," said the famous novelist, "then call it No Drums, No Trumpets."

~*~*~

And so I stand by my naming of Zen Taxi.

ETA: Was that supposed to be five? (Icarus proves once again she can't follow directions. You should see what I do with an IKEA Xandorf shelf unit.)

ETA2: In the interest of Spam relief, I'm adding this to this entry rather than making a new post:

Plot
You're a Plot writer!


What kind of writer are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Hmph. I didn't know that.

Date: 2004-05-05 06:28 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xenoface.livejournal.com
Heh. after readng the thing with titles, i feel it's so much easier to think up of titles for a story.

No Het= nice title for a slash fic. 0.o

Date: 2004-05-05 08:59 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] harveywallbang.livejournal.com
no drums, no trumpets... that's great....hehehehe..

Date: 2004-05-05 09:39 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] icarusancalion.livejournal.com
Yeah, it doesn't matter really, it's just the cover. The title just needs to be interesting.

Icarus

Date: 2004-05-06 12:05 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xenoface.livejournal.com
Heh. i guess ... and with titles like yours ... :3

Date: 2004-05-06 12:31 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] blithesea.livejournal.com
I once called a Draco/Harry fic "Biting on Tin Foil". To me it was clear that it was the kind of unpleasant feeling Draco had when thinking of Harry Potter, something I didn't have to explain, really, but I got several reviews reprimanding me for the title which they deemed stupid and pointless.

Date: 2004-05-06 12:35 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] icarusancalion.livejournal.com
Well it is hard to say, and that's always a good test of a title.

Icarus

Date: 2004-05-06 12:41 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] blithesea.livejournal.com
You mean it's a good title if you can't easily say what it means? Or, um?

Date: 2004-05-06 01:12 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] icarusancalion.livejournal.com
That flows easily off your tongue, is easy to remember, and is unique.

Like Sushi's Harry Potter and the Mai Tai of Doom.

That's a perfect example.

Icarus

Date: 2004-05-06 05:44 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ursulakohl.livejournal.com
I got the plot result, too, and it just isn't true in my case-- I think the problem with the quiz is that getting the characterization result requires that one believe its sample lines of dialogue are interesting.

Date: 2004-05-06 05:51 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] icarusancalion.livejournal.com
Which I fear they aren't. *nods* I really am a characterisation writer I think.

Icarus

Date: 2004-05-06 07:48 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ursulakohl.livejournal.com
I *know* I am-- though oddly enough, this is most obvious when I'm writing good old Dungeons & Dragons scenarios.

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icarus: Snape by mysterious artist (Default)
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