Helen McKenna
  • Home
  • About
  • Bookshelf
  • Bookstore
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Life Story

What's In A Title?

23/4/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
Coming up with a title for your novel can be surprisingly challenging. With my first book, The Beach House, the title came to me long before I jotted down a single note about the story. I didn't care that there were several other books with the same title, it was set in stone as far as I was concerned. When my publisher gently suggested I might consider changing to a variation on the theme (in the interests of being more original) I politely said I would consider it, but knew it would never happen. I have never regretted taking that firm stance as my book is about not only "a" beach house but "The" Beach House.

When writing my second and third novels, it took me much longer to come up with titles I was happy with. In fact, I was almost ready to publish before either book was named. Not having such a strong and obvious theme as The Beach House, it was hard to settle on an original title that captured what each novel was about. With Room 46, I used the setting once again and felt that it sounded intriguing enough that the reader might wonder exactly what was happening inside the room in question. As far as the number 46, that really was random, I just road tested a few in my head and for whatever reason that was the one I liked the most. With my third novel, Third Offence, the setting was not an option and thus began another long and frustrating journey to come up with a title. This time I finally opted for a line in the book, something that had some significance for one of the characters. It did take a while for each title to "settle" with me, but once they did, it felt that they were always destined to be so named. And I was happy that both Room 46 and Third Offence are original titles, at least as far as I know. When competing for retail space on such sites as Amazon, this can be the one way that your book stands out.

With my fourth novel I am currently working on, like The Beach House, the title came to me before I began writing. I won't reveal it just yet, but suffice to say it has a lot to do with the theme of the book once again.

If you are struggling to come up with a title, just let it be while you write. Don't stress about it or try to force it - you will come up with something eventually. Think about the books you have read and how their title relates to the stories within. Try and come up with a short list or even just have a brainstorming piece of paper handy where you can write ideas. Do check out Amazon and see how many other books there are by the same title, of course there is no copyright on a book title, but if there are dozens by the same name you don't want to get lost in the middle of a huge list. It can be hard to let go of a name you may have picked back in your childhood for your first book, but you have to be practical too.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.


    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Picture
    Join the Australian Women Writers Challenge
    AWW Book Reviews
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Previous Posts

    • The Universality of Writing
    • Now In Paperback!
    • What's In A Title?
    • The AWW Challenge
    • The Value Of Editing
    • Words That Inspire
    • Write That Life Story!
    • Why I'm Sold On e-books
    • Meet My New Book
    • Why Reviews Matter
    • The Value Of Entertainment
    • AWW 2017 Sign Up
    • To Give Away Or Not?
    • Finding The Positive In The Challenge
    • Don't Forget The Wave
    • Lessons Learned Between Books
    • Documentaries That Make You Think
    • Finally Book No 2 Is Here!
    • The Urban Myth of Anti-Fog Goggles
    • Quick Update
    • Awesome Reading Volunteers
    • Reviews Have Moved
    • Why Amazon.au Is Good For Aus Authors
    • Amazing Community Libraries
    • The Kindness of Kids
    • Getting the 2nd Book Finished
    • Thanks Fellow Authors
    • Dear Amazon, Please Explain
    • The Importance of A Review
    • Amazon
    • Choosing Your Genre
    • The Way We Write
    • Love The Feedback!
    • Beach Magic
    • My Blog Begins
    Tweets by @helenmckenna_

    Helen McKenna's books on Goodreads
    Room 46 Room 46
    reviews: 17
    ratings: 80 (avg rating 3.98)

    The Beach House The Beach House
    reviews: 30
    ratings: 77 (avg rating 3.86)

    The Perfect Proposal The Perfect Proposal
    reviews: 6
    ratings: 12 (avg rating 3.75)

    How Do I Write My Life Story? How Do I Write My Life Story?
    reviews: 4
    ratings: 9 (avg rating 4.11)

    The Perfect Proposal And Other Stories The Perfect Proposal And Other Stories
    reviews: 5
    ratings: 9 (avg rating 4.22)

    Archives

    November 2019
    July 2019
    April 2019
    January 2019
    September 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    November 2017
    September 2017
    May 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    August 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    July 2014
    February 2014
    November 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    November 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    January 2012

Contact:

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture



© Helen McKenna 2019