'You need a snappier title,' she said.  'Something to capture the public's attention.
My novel was called "Rocio", after the heroine.
'Nobody in England will understand that Rocio is a girl.  You need something to grab people; something like "A pile of stuff at the bottom of the stairs",' she added, quoting the title of a popular novel.  'That sold very well.'
I looked at her; it was an intriguing title, but it hadn't intrigued me enough to buy the book.  But I took her point: a Spanish girl's name that meant nothing to an English reader was not going to work.
'Or "The curious incident of the dog in the Night-time", that was a best seller,' she continued.
'But Rocio lives in a two-roomed house with no stairs,' I said.  'And there's no dog in the story.'
Mind you, how hard would it be to write in a part for a dog?  I could at least consider it.
'OK, what about "Summer Sisters"?' she suggested.
I smiled politely and shook my head.  That sounded like a yukky teens story, not the social drama I was hoping to portray.
So I set to work trying to find an alternative title.  Despite the old adage "Don't judge a book by its cover", that is exactly what people do.  If the cover appeals then they pick it up to explore further.  I knew the importance of that moment when the book seems to leap off the shelf and demand that you buy it.  It could be the art-work or a clever title; something will grab your attention and make all the difference.
It had taken me six months to write the novel and I despaired that it would take me another six months to find the right title.  I played word games with appropriate nouns for hours, but snappy, appealing, meaningful and up-to-date they refused to be.  Then if I came across anything that sounded halfway decent, I checked it on the internet and, sure enough, someone had thought of it before.  I know that there's no copyright on titles but it smacks of a lack of originality when six books with the same name leap onto the screen at once.
Perseverance was the name of the game, closely followed by a definite drop in expectations.  In the end, after filling page after page with ridiculous and inappropriate titles and boring both family and friends rigid, I settled on a title that had, if not sex-appeal, at least relevance and "The House on the Beach" was ready to publish.

I never thought I would write a blog.  Blogging seemed to me something alien, reserved for youngsters and computer nerds.  Yet here I am, having a go.  After all, I tell myself, it's not much different from chatting to your friends, the only difference being that you actually get to finish what you started to say.  Whether I shall have anything worth saying is another matter and whether anyone will want to read it gives me cause to hesitate.
What shall I write about is the first question.  I haven't been on any exciting journeys lately, nor have I won the lottery.  In fact my life seems to be centred on the computer these days, writing begging letters to agents and publishers alike, hoping to dazzle them with my wit and perspicacity so that they will beg me to send them my latest manuscript and offer me a stunning fee in exchange.  No such luck.
That is why I have turned to self publishing.  It sounded so easy when I read the blurb on the internet and it was either free or available for such a small amount that it was inconsequential.  Alas, things are not all that they seem.  Perseverance is the name of the game and after weeks of false starts and returned proofs I published my first book.  The pleasure experienced is second only to the moment when you type the last full stop on the final page of your novel.  And, like that sensation, it too turns out to be only a fleeting moment of joy.  Just as you then realise that your hero, whom you started out calling Roy, has now changed his name to Fred and you have to trawl through the manuscript to check each reference to him, so your finally published book turns out to be available only in a restricted market and you have to start all over again.  This is what happened when I published with Createspace, who distribute only in the United States.  True you can buy it through Amazon.com but the extra cost of postage and the delay in delivery can be off-putting for potential buyers.  So back to the computer and the search for another POD printer.  This time I tried my luck with Lightning Source, who turned out to have all the distribution channels that I required but were not set up for novices like me.  After a series of even more setbacks I have managed to republish the book, thanks in no small measure to the helpful and pleasant Client Services Representative that I was allocated.  These people certainly have their work cut out if they have many clients like me. 
Now I can sit back and wait for the sales to happen!