The second novel in the Brendan Murphy series now has a draft title, ‘Hen Bane’. Hen bane is a poisonous plant and the name means ‘killer of hens’. Like all my favourite titles, it’s a play on words (much like Iain M Bank’s Surface Detail, for example). ‘Hen’ is a colloquial term in Scotland for a woman, ‘bane’ means cause of great distress (the bane of my life). It fits the story well and also continues the natural history theme of titles that I started with ‘Moss Piglet’.
I am, as of today, up to 40,000 words written. Much writing and editing still to do, but I am excited about this story.
