June 9th, 2021.
Explore, together with me, the meanings behind the titles of and the music of BACKFIRE books!
Why the names?
The titles of Backfire books are what people have been wondering about: Why is it called “In Solitude”? What’s with the “Twenty Hands”?
Now, obviously these names can be put into context if the respective volume is read, however, there is more to it than just them being “fitting titles”. Originally, Backfire volumes were supposed to be named directly as describing the content. Volume 1 – which is now called “In Solitude” – used to be “The Beginning”, referring to the beginning of the apocalypse and the story itself. Volume 2 – now “Twenty Hands” – was called “Newcomers”, hinting at several new faces to be shown. Quite early into production, actually long before Volume 1 was published, I scrapped these ideas and continued naming my books differently. Let’s find out more about the music of Backfire!
“Backfire – Twenty Hands” (Volume 2) releases June 15th. Find out more here!
Where derives the inspiration from?
The new system behind Backfire’s titles is a more “hiding” one, even though still fitting to the content. “Twenty Hands” for example still hints at new people to come as the survivors from “In Solitude” couldn’t form a group of twenty actual hands. However, these new names all share one similarity: The music of Backfire.
Each and every Backfire volume is and will be either named after a certain song or will directly refer to a one. Most of these capture some of the songs’ themes, others just share the name or the mood. Mostly though the first will be the case. To give you a more precise understanding of that, let me introduce the songs that the first three volumes are referring to (without spoilers of course).
- In Solitude: refers to “In Solitude” by the band “The Faceless” (progressive death metal). It does not directly share the song’s story but three essential lines of the song could directly be transferred to the apocalypse and the undead roaming the surface:
“Overwhelmed in a grievous revelation
Peering through exhausted pale eyes
Into darkness, where the antiquated lie” - Twenty Hands: refers to “Eleven Hands” by the band “Leoniden” (indie-pop-rock). The number is changed for story purposes which I can, at this point, not expatiate on.
- Voices of Violence: refers to “Voices of Violence” by the band “Billy Talent” (punk rock). The title itself refers to a certain character in the first Extra volume whose voice carries immense power, especially over the acting protagonists. Also, a line from the song hints at a scene inside the book … but who knows, which one I mean? Maybe you can guess after reading it in Q4 2021?
Where can I listen to the songs?
A playlist on Spotify is available for you to listen to all the current and future songs, Backfire titles are based on. It will always stay updated! Be aware though: The songs in this playlist are from various artists and genres. You might not like some songs but like others more. They differ a lot.
…by the way: the fourth book’s name is based on Wye Oak’s song “Civilian”, but don’t tell anyone yet!