I know, I disappeared for a while. I'm sorry! I went to the beach with my cousins, came back with a cold, and I've been studying, but I'm back now and we're going to be talking about book titles today.
I had the hardest time coming up with a title for
The Darkest Light. I was more than halfway finished with the book before I finally thought of a title, so I know how frustrating it is when you have most of your novel planned out, yet don't have this very important piece of the book figured out.
Coming up with a title should be the easiest part, right? No, it's not. Publishers sometimes change titles to make the book seem more intriguing to readers. What are the first two things that catches the eyes of a book browser? The cover (or spine, depending on how it is set on the shelf) and the title. That phrase, "Don't judge a book by it's cover" doesn't apply to a lot of people (myself included, as far as books go).
A title is supposed to represent your book's subject without giving too much away. At least, this is the case for a fictional book. When writing non-fiction, I would assume you would have to have a more out-right title, like the book I read on self-publishing, "
How to Publish,
Promote, & Sell Your Own Book: The insider's guide to everything you
need to know about self-publishing from pasteup to publicity" by
Robert Lawrence Holt.
A title is supposed make reader's curious, so being subtle is key when coming up with a title for your novel. I have some tips for coming up with a title for your novel. I hope this helps!
1. You can use a word, or more than one word, from a sentence from your book. You will either come up with a title like this during the process of writing your book, or when you're finished writing it.
2. If you're really struggling to come up with a title, maybe have a friend read your book and ask for advice with coming up with a title.
3. You could incorporate your main character's name into the title. Here are a few examples: "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," "Julius Caesar," and "Anne of Green Gables."
4. You could incorporate the setting of your book into the title. Here are a few examples: "The Jungle Book," and "Little House on the Prairie."
5. Consider a mysterious title. This is bound to draw attention to your book; it will spark curiosity. The main quote from my book is, "Where there is light, there is a way out of the darkness." This is where my title,
The Darkest Light came from. I thought of this quote while I was writing, and I was struggling for a way to incorporate it into the title and the book.
6. Use an image from your book. For this, you'll want to pick something that will come up often throughout the
story so the reader can connect the title to your writing.
7. Use a familiar phrase, but twist it to make it your own. When you find that right phrase or sentence that could fit as your title, write it down and start twisting it around to make it fit with the story you've written. Even if it doesn’t match just so, it will get your readers
thinking.
8. Write down every possible title that pops into your head. Make a list! This is important because what if you think of a title, but wasn't sure about it so you didn't write it down, but then, sometime down the road, you realize that it's actually perfect. You might have forgotten it! You might only be able to remember part of the title!
9. You could get an idea from other book titles. Read titles from the same genre of your book. I'm not saying steal another author's title, but it might inspire you to think of your own.
10. Try to keep your book title relatively short. Maybe don't reduce it to one word, but if you have a title that's too long, it can be difficult to remember. Long and surprising titles can spark interest, but sometimes, if they're too long like the self-publishing book I mentioned above, the title can be hard to remember. Can you imagine a friend coming to you and saying, "Hey, I just finished reading this book on self-publishing by
Robert Lawrence Holt. It's called 'How to Publish,
Promote, & Sell Your Own Book: The insider's guide to everything you
need to know about self-publishing from pasteup to publicity.'" Would you be able to remember that title? Doubtful.
Hope these tips help you come up with a title for your book!
www.ashleyearley.com
www.ashleyearleybooks.tumblr.com
