My family will tell you that I agonize over this part. And I hate agonizing!
I have to name a simple short story and I can't come up with anything that I like!
How do you guys come up with titles?
Do they just come to you?
Do you pull them from your story?
Do you use a Magic Eight Ball?
Tell me! Help a girl out!
***
My un-named short story will be released as part of, The Thing That Turned Me, an amazing anthology from Stay Class Publishing!
Call it Bob!
ReplyDeleteNo wait - Blood, Boobs, and Carnage!
I struggle with book titles. Two came pre-named, two my publisher had to name. Yeah, that's sad, isn't it?
BBC for the WIN!!!
DeleteI feel your pain.
HMG
I have the hardest time with titles! It took me over two years to come up with a title for my WIP that I actually liked.
ReplyDeleteYikes. Okay. I don't have that kind of time. I'll have to work harder.
Delete:)
TY
HMG
I found the title of my new book(when and IF it gets published)quite easy this time.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the book also getting a title.
Yvonne.
Thank you! And, good luck to you! That's WHEN it gets published.
DeleteTY
HMG
I struggle with titles, too. Every WIP I have goes through two or three titles (at the very least) before I settle on one I actually like. Or can tolerate. Except for my current WIP. My friend actually named it years ago, and the name stuck—I think he knew what it was supposed to be before I did.
ReplyDeleteBut in the absence of someone to do it for me, I usually start off with a song lyric (you know, one that relates to the story) and free-associate from there.
That's a good idea. I need to listen to some songs.
DeleteThanks M.J.!
TY
HMG
I once came up with a title for an author as a suggestion and she ended up using it. If you need any help feel free to give me a brief idea of what your story is about and I can see if I can drop a line. Names come easy for me. especially book titles. The best I can tell you is that when the right name comes you will know it. Plus it helps to know your audience. A book for five year olds involving stripping paint should not be called 'The Stripper.' Better title 'The Mess'.
ReplyDeleteThat's good to know! Thank you for the offer!
DeleteTY
HMG
It took me almost two years to settle on the title for A Tale of Fairies. Underwood had about 6 titles before the final one. Westley and the Witches got its title 10 minutes into me writing the first chapter because I thought it sounded cool.
ReplyDelete....^like Sheena said, I think most of the time the right name just arrives when it feels like it. :/
I hope it comes to me soon.
DeleteThank you!
HMG
Two of my titles came from the seminars I teach, so that was easy. My husband came up with the name for my fictional series.
ReplyDeleteI always recommend a search on Amazon once you have title ideas, just to make sure a bunch of other books don't already share that title.
That's a great idea, L. Diane!
DeleteThank you!
HMG
I once took a single-session writing class taught by someone who worked for The New Yorker; she said that a lot of writers pull their titles from the story. For example, consider the fact that Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club is named after the joy luck club that the women formed in the book. It can be hard to choose a title, though, especially because that's often the first thing a reader notices when he or she is browsing for something new to read.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could help but I suck at titles too. I currently have a story titled "I'm not saying it was aliens" because I can't figure out a decent title. Another is "Mmm, brains". I'll probably blog about the stories and ask people for ideas.
ReplyDelete