When some people
encounter the dense and complicated maze
of book titles, they break into a sweat?
Once upon a long time back, I was tormented and tortured by title trouble. I
love writing, but when it used to come to choosing a title for my work, then,
I would end up tearing my hair in frustration.
The
titles of my stories and features would be a complete mismatch with its
contents. My journalism lecturer in college constantly urged me to choose
better titles for my articles and features. According to her my titles never
did my writing justice. They were not
catchy enough. This habit continued even
when I started writing for newspapers. Often the titles of the features and
stories I sent were changed. And changed for the better.
I constantly wondered how other
writers came up with such amazing titles. Jealousy and envy stabbed my heart
whenever I read their titles.
To become title savvy, I plunged
headlong into the world of titles. It couldn’t be that hard, I thought. If few writers could achieve wonders with it,
so could I. Whenever I read any articles or books, I pondered over the titles.
Did it suit the story? What did it highlight? Slowly I transferred this
detailed attention onto my work. What was I trying to tell my readers? What was
the article/book all about? How could I sum up the work in a few words? What
was the best way to convey what I had written?
It was a tedious task, but
eventually I got the hang of it.
Nowadays the title trauma no longer affects me. For the past several years, the
editors have thankfully retained most of my titles. In my title quest, I have
learnt several things about them.
1. A title should be like a teaser. It should arouse
curiousity. Based on the titles readers
pick up books, or, read the articles and stories in newspapers.
2. Diving into the heart of the
story to emerge with a suitable title is a great idea.
3. Short and snappy titles have
immediate attraction.
4. Popular and catchy phrases work better than long and boring ones.
5. Titles that have instant recall
are seldom forgotten.
What about you all? Do titles trouble and torment you? Or are you the lucky ones who come up with winners?
Do you have any title tips that you would like to share?
I'd have to agree with you. Consider "title" practice with blogs! I attempt that each time and hope it gets attention! Check some of them out, and keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteTitles have always been a challenge for me. My publisher came up with the titles for my second and third books. And they do fit. And they are short! That I like.
ReplyDeleteA couple of my titles have just come to me, and I've been really pleased with how literary they sound and how well they match the tone of their stories. A few other titles of older books and planned books, however, need some serious changes. I was a lot worse at titles 20 years ago, and ended up with a lot of corny, cliché, generic, after school special-worthy titles.
ReplyDeleteI do have to give a thought to titles. It's not like I come up with them easily. I try to make them catchy but I am sure I still have to work more on them. I hope I get better with time.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I've gotten better at titles over the years. Once in a while, though, a good one insists on being elusive. Then I brainstorm with a fellow writer for inspiration. :)
ReplyDeleteI find a title either springs to mind really quickly or I spend ages pondering, changing and agonising over a suitable one! I try to make them memorable and I quite like using a play on words, especially with short story writing.
ReplyDeleteI've honeslty never thought much about titles, but then again I don't get published with any kind-of frequency.
ReplyDeleteI like your tips though, from my experience those all ring true. My only tried-and-true practice is to make them as short as possible, one word whenever I'm able, certainly no more than five.
Thanks for your comment today!
I'm like Suzanne - either the perfect one is with me from the beginning or I change and change and change it.
ReplyDeleteSome titles come easier than others. Your tips, though, are really good. I like to aim for #2--diving into the heart of the story. When the title doesn't come, it often means I haven't gotten deep enough into the story to boil it all down :-)
ReplyDeleteTitles are a pain for sure. What I do is after I write the first draft, I make a fairly sizeable list of powerful key words that represent my book. Sometimes a single word is good, or sometimes I start pairing them up into phrases. It works pretty well!
ReplyDeleteTitles are my bane too. I usually title a project after the first or second draft has been written as the plot is firmly fixed by then. I hate coming up with titles.
ReplyDelete.......dhole
For me, headlines torment me. Not so different from the title of a book. Many points are common. Only that the newspaper headline has less life span than the title of a book.
ReplyDeleteI guess a shorter, different from ordinary, title will hold people's attention.
I've been lucky that in my newspaper days I *loved* titles - I always found them to be a good challenge.
ReplyDeleteI agree titles have to be catchy and pertinent. I used to give myself 50 characters to tell the story, which in itself was fun.
My issue was never the title, it was the "verbal vomiting." My articles and features were always too long :)
Yeah. The "Titles" needs to be catchy and interesting.
ReplyDeleteWell, whenever I buy a book, first thing I see is if I know the author and if I don't know, I would check the Title and no matter what the title is, I read the synopsis of the novel. If it matches my taste, I buy it no matter who the author or the title is. Sometimes, the description also needs to be strong and attractive.
Thanks for sharing Ma'am Rachna. It's good to be back reading your articles again. It is always so helpful.
Happy Weekend.
Trying to think of a title sometimes drives me crazy!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh... right now I'm rethinking my title and it's certainly giving me a headache, ah well
ReplyDeleteI consider titles just a little longer than I do any other words in the story, typically. A few weeks ago, however, I ended up naming a flash fiction piece satirically, calling it "Archetypes Abound". In doing so, I sort of made fun of the story, which I didn't intend to do.
ReplyDeleteThere are times that titles magically appear for my short stories in the exact form I want. I can generate chapter titles almost on demand. But book titles? Agony!
ReplyDeleteTitles can be a challenge. I hate it when I think I have a good one, then I Google it and find out just how many people have used it already! Fortunately, it wasn't the case for Immaterial Evidence, which surprised me.
ReplyDeleteIf I'm stuck, I think about the theme or pick a line from the manuscript. Also, my CP's help me out. Usually I'm fast picking one out, though.
ReplyDeleteGenerally, I'm not too fussed with giving my books titles.
ReplyDeleteI write the story. Usually the name for it just occurs to me.
At the same time, I'm having trouble naming my upcoming series....
I'm terrible when it comes to titles. If they don't hit me straight away, then I'm doomed.
ReplyDeleteGreat tips!
Good post, Rachna, and good question. Sometimes the story comes to me via the title. I get an idea of what the story is about, and the working title to remind me becomes the title. When that doesn't happen, though, I have to go the frustrating process of finding a title. Sometimes I try lists, sometimes I browse through the story to see if a title is embedded there somewhere. But, yeah, it's a challenge quite often to find just the write title.
ReplyDeleteSo agree with you Rachna that the title of the write up can really entice a reader:)
ReplyDeleteAfter the cover picture, the title is the next thing that catches (or fails to) capture a reader's attention! So yeah, titles can be tricky...
ReplyDeleteWriter In Transit
That is indeed a problem! I agree with you on this post very much.
ReplyDeletewww.modernworld4.blogspot.com
I've found I have to have a title before I can write the story. A title makes it more real to me, I think. Of course, the hardest part for me is not getting too attached to a title that's not working.
ReplyDeleteHi friends..I always think of the title even before I start writing the first chapter. Without a title my brain clams up. I have been seeing from all your comments that titles are elusive creatures that can cause a bit of trouble.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I had trouble with titles in the beginning. They just didn't represent the short story or novel well. But I've gotten better over time. The problem with a "catchy" title is that it's usually already taken, and it's important that if readers look up your title they find your story, not a bunch with the same name.
ReplyDeleteGreat tips and advice, Rachna. Titles either hook/grab a reader or not. So there is only one chance to do it.
ReplyDeleteNas
I've always had trouble with titles, even in college. The title of my first book came from a bible verse, so it was very popular - too popular. But I just changed it slightly. Some people seem to come up with them so easily!
ReplyDeleteYes, titles torment me. I rarely come up with my own w/o help.
ReplyDeleteTitles are a challenge for me too, but I keep working at them. I like the way you tackled the problem. I'm going to have to give that a try.
ReplyDeleteSome titles come to me so easily and others are so hard to come up with. I never know until I write a story. Sometimes I get the title even before the story which is amazing but that's rare.
ReplyDeleteJai
I totally agree with your points regarding choosing a good title, I follow those points.
ReplyDelete