Banks Smither, my editor at History Press, read this website last week and offered a word of caution. He said it appears here as if the title of my book has been determined, and that the book will be published in July 2016. Neither is certain.

The title I gave the story is Death on Rattlesnake Mountain: Virginia’s Last Lynching. I’m guessing that the first part of the title, Death on Rattlesnake Mountain, is set. Banks told me a story about how a member of the editorial board at History Press headquarters in Charleston, S.C., said he liked that part of the title. It’s the subtitle, Virginia’s Last Lynching, which may have to be tweaked. Banks also said that it helps sales if the name of the locality is in the book title. So maybe the new subtitle could be: How a 1932 Attack in Fauquier County became Virginia’s Last Lynching. I don’t know, that seems a little wordy to me.

As for the publication date, I think I’ll use an old newspaper trick. In a news story if I didn’t know exactly when something happened, I would say it happened recently. In this case, I’ll say that publication will occur this summer.