Someone somewhere probably knows which mystery author was the first to use a pun in a book title, but it’s long since become standard practice (“Seven Deadly Zins” or “A Hoe Lot of Trouble,” anyone?). A groan-worthy pun not only signals a book as a light-hearted cozy mystery, but can actually tell you a lot about its setting and the nature of the crime.
A pun actually led me to write my first Adam Parrall mystery. I’m a huge music lover, and when I first considered writing a mystery involving music, I was listening to a classic tune, “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” by the Righteous Brothers. The slight skewing of that title into You’ve Lost That Livin’ Feelin’ came naturally.
That title also helped me structure the story, which concerns the murder of a Righteous Brothers impersonator (yes, one man who impersonates both singers at the same time). I knew, of course, that subsequent mysteries in the series needed to have similar puns. It didn’t take me long to arrive at A Hearse With No Name for the second mystery, a take-off on America’s “A Horse With No Name.” (That book has just been published!)
These titles indicate that music plays a part in the mystery, and that it may appeal to readers old enough to remember when these songs were hits.
I’ve just finished the manuscript for the third in the series…but I’ll leave the title as a surprise yet to come!