Kurt R.A. Giambastiani

Now hear this!

In the past, people have asked me: Do you get to pick your own title for your books?

• Short answer: Yes.
• Longer answer: Yes, but the publisher can override my choice.

Such was the case for two of my books, and I now have the chance to fix at least one of them.

When we re-release The Fallen Cloud Saga, complete and for the first time in all its five-volume glory (how’s that for a marketing sentence!), we’re going to have all new covers, revised text on the first four books, and (tada!) we’re also going to re-title FC:IV, restoring it to its original title: The Cry of the Wind.

The original idea for the series was for each book to have its own “meteorological” word. Cloud, Thunder, Storm,Wind,and Sky. But somewhere around FC:III, the bean-counters got involved. “What this series needs,” they posited, “is a really upbeat title. That’ll do the trick!” So, they started mucking about with my original titles.

Silly rabbits.

Now, to be fair, I will admit that The Shadow of the Storm is a better title than what I had originally offered up, so I’m going to keep that one. But the title for FC:IV that they slapped over mine was sheer dreck. From the Heart of the Storm? Please. And don’t get me started on the cover art. I mean, it’s like the last 40 minutes of “Marnie,” where you just know that the publisher has lost interest.

So, I am returning FC:IV to its original title: The Cry of the Wind.

I think it’s a perfectly good title, and I’m sticking to it. However, if you’re a fan, and you’ve already purchased/read From the Heart of the Storm, you do not have to get The Cry of the Wind to have the complete series. You heard it here first.

That is all.

k