Finding the Perfect Title for Your Book

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After writing your novel and sweating over your blurb, finding the perfect title is probably the hardest task. How do you encapsulate the idea, mood, or essence of your book in just a few words? How do you find a title that grabs the reader's attention? What kind of titles work best? Also, when is it a good idea to just use a name? Would "Anna Karenina" or Daphne du Maurier's "Rebecca" have worked with a different title? What about "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"? And finally, how did Peter Benchley come up with the novel title, "Jaws," a name that I can still recall screaming at me from the drugstore bookshelf.

Finding the perfect title that sells books and stands out from the crowd is  no easy task. "The Mysteries of Udolpho," the quintessential 1794 Gothic novel by Anne Radcliffe about the misadventures of a young lady, including the death of her parents, supernatural terrors in a gloomy castle, and the machinations of an Italian brigand, make it the archetypal example of a Gothic novel. The title contains the word mystery and the name of an Italian castle, evoking feelings of curiosity, terror, and wonder. It is a title that could work in any era and seems to have transcended time and place. Would you dare enter a castle with the name "Udolpho"? Would you dare read this book without all the windows and doors firmly locked and secured? Methinks not.

One of the easiest methods to pick a title is to choose a noun phrase. A quick look at your bookstore shelf will show that many popular tiles are just intriguing noun phrases, which is just a string of words that mean a person, place, or thing. The idea behind these titles is that they are simply constructed, easy to understand, and they help the reader visualize some aspect of the book. Think "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas," "The Girl on the Train," "A Gentleman in Moscow," "The Book of Lost Names," "What She Left Behind," or "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." Each title has something intriguing about it and evokes interest. There is also a bit of mystery in each title. What exactly is a night circus?  And what do you picture with "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest"? Does a psych ward in a hospital come to mind?

Another way to pick the perfect title for your book is to pull a line from the book, something that can stand on its own and provide some insight into the story or theme. Think "The Catcher in the Rye" by JD Salinger, "A Moveable Feast" by Hemingway, "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien or "All Quiet on the Western Hemisphere" by Erich Maria Remarque. Two other great examples are books that used the last sentence to create the title, "The Importance of Being Earnest" and "Heart of Darkness" come to mind. Interestingly, this is how Margaret Mitchell picked her title for "Gone with the Wind." The last line has Scarlett saying, "After all...tomorrow is another day!"

Another strategy is to spotlight a character. Think "Dr. Zhivago," "Rebecca," "Jane Eyre," or "Oliver Twist." This technique works when one of the characters or the main character is so distinct, so unique, or stands out to the point that the whole story is their character arc or journey. The name "Anna Karenina" almost hints at her terrible downfall and terrible choices. The novel could never have been called, "The story of a bored housewife who follows her heart and loses everything." Nope. Gives too much away. The character in the title does not necessarily have to be the main character, as in "Rebecca," but when you read the novel, you see that the entire story comes about as a result of this offscreen character. When the name you choose to be the title is highly original or interesting, you want to learn more about that character. "Madame Bovary"? "The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo"? "A Man Called Ove"? Hmm...Having a character's name in the title means they're going to play a huge role in it and readers want to know more.

Peter Benchley initially struggled to name his novel about a killer shark. Originally, he called it "Silence in the Water," but after his father suggested "The Jaws of Leviathan," he settled on the one-word title, "Jaws." This was a powerful, evocative word, and during the summer it was released, it was a powerful marketing tool. Readers had no choice but to pick it up and read it. Apparently, Benchley's editor loved it for its brevity and mysterious quality. Millions of readers did, too. One word titles, when chosen correctly, can be very powerful. But they can also be flat and dull.

Let me explain. If the one-word title is too ordinary or dull, such as "Susan," the original title of Jane Austen's "Northanger Abbey," you miss all the Gothic horror and mystery of the tale, which includes a visit to a mysterious abbey, the site of all the mystery and intrigue the novel presents. Likewise, "Tomorrow is Another Day," which was the original working title for "Gone with the Wind" doesn't really work. It's ordinary and sort of...well, dull. Which one of those titles is evocative to you and which one is ho-hum? Maybe I'll get  to "Tomorrow is Another Day"...well, another day.

The next strategy is to consider your genre. Ultimately, your book title is a piece of marketing copy. It has to sell your book. Naturally you want it to feel significant or fit your story, but the goal is to get the reader interested enough to buy your book. A romance would not have words like "horror" or "terror" in the title. Neither would a Woman's Fiction novel. Words like survive, night, terror, or horror clearly reflect thrillers or horror novels. Fantasies have their own stock phrases or words, like shadow, war, night, dead, dark, blood, magic, and dream. The trick is to choose something that does not feel cliché or overdone. 

When I was writing "Island on Fire," a novel that is part historical thriller, part horror, part survival tale, part romance, I struggled with the title. Some of the examples I came up with were: 

The Martinique Horror

Terror in Martinique

Fire Mountain

Devil Mountain

Island of No Escape

Island of Eternal Fire

In fact, I think I suffered from too many choices. It turns out that "Island of Eternal Fire" was the working title right up until publication. Honestly, I think any of these titles would have worked, and when the book was picked up by Kindle Scout Publishing, they didn't recommend changing it, so I kept it.

The point is, there are no easy or clear answers. Sometimes the best idea is to go to your beta readers or followers and ask their opinion. Ultimately, you want the most concise, memorable, and relevant phrase that captures the essence of the story. When all else fails, tell us what happens in the book, like "Summer of My German Soldier," "Mutiny on the Bounty, "Twelves Years a Slave," or "The Devil Wears Prada." Sometimes the simplest message is the most powerful, poignant, and irresistible. What is your favorite title and why? Let me know in the comments!