How Difficult is it to Create a Book Title?

Titles vary between genres.

Every writer of fiction or non-fiction considers the question, 'What shall I call my book?' The title is the first visible element of a book, and even articles need a lead to show what content best attracts the reader. How difficult is it, therefore, to create a book title?

The second element of a title is to lend intrigue. If you like, a call to action - or what might the book intend to convey?

Stepping away from books,

'The History of Bee Keeping' clearly describes the chronology behind this craft. 'Making Honey' is NOT about keeping bees. 'The Bee Keeper,' however, might be a thriller, as evidenced by a recent film written by Kurt Rimmer and starring Jason Statham.

In  1850, a chiropodist named Lewis Durlacher created the title of his non-fiction book, which Simpkin, Marshall & Co. of Burlington Street originally published-

A TREATISE ON

CORNS, BUNIONS

DISEASES OF THE NAILS,

AND THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF THE FEET

Such a title today would be considered lengthy, although the layout in the Victorian era (1850s) was as published, highlighting corns and bunions. Treatise is an older term for a systematic exposition or argument in writing including a methodical discussion of the facts and principles involved and conclusions reached.' Miriam-Webster. The book remains in print from archive publishers.

Covers & Imagery

Cover designs are even more powerful than titles. The world of imagery drives us to desire, want, and engage. The adage, a picture paints a thousand words, bears this out. We process images faster than reading. A picture depicting a knife and blood does not mean the book covers a love story, although romance might be part of the story arc. The reference to ARC means the storyline with some reference to time but also action between characters and their environment.

A picture of one or more people in close proximity creates an image of harmony, slightly fuzzy in appearance, with a pleasant background. It has less of a reference to a thriller, violence, or warfare. However, the image does not exclude these genre concepts from being supplanted in the storyline. One of my favourite authors—Ken Follet embraces romance with an element of brutality in many of his books. And so I come to my book, FATAL CONTRACTS, a series of nine short stories that span the globe and different periods between the 20th and 21st centuries.

The book cover has a secondary title or sub-title, which informs the reader about the style. The critical part is that each story has fatal consequences and unpredictable twists.

We all know what a contract is, but how many of us realise that we sign contracts each day, often without realising the importance of accepting something such as cookies when searching the internet for a service?

Genre

Autobiography - non-fiction - politics - war - thriller - romance etc, etc...

This term sounds high-brow but refers to a style of creation, whether in art, music, or literature. As we can see from the examples above, a genre can be determined from the title, but not always, especially if trapped by the newspaper style of heading. The author will receive a low rating in feedback if this is considered misleading. Mind you, I still chuckle over the response from one book — Podiatrist On A Mission —  my autobiography, and the feedback-

'A great effort to write and publish your own memoirs. However, this is a book with an audience of one. The author.' *

The statement above contrasts with -

'It is a fantastic story, riveting. I read it for pleasure, and what a pleasure it was.' *****

People often let you know the extremes when it comes to feedback. Wisdom decrees it is seldom helpful to reply or explain. 'Fatal Contracts' falls under thriller, supernatural, historical, and medical because it covers a broader range of genres - but then it is a book of many stories

Fiction v. Non-Fiction

I write under RC Blyth, my pen name, to maintain clarity and prevent confusion with my other book stream under David R. Tollafield. These types of books are not fiction and yet carry the same idea behind titles, whether autobiographies or health books, intended to guide.

My latest non-fiction book, co-authored with Tim Kilmartin under my non-pseudonym, is an example of a title clarified in the main line—a guide, a book about a theme (bunions = feet), and a question acting as a sub-title—is surgery necessary? The sub-title clarifies the main title and is helpful. We see this in fiction as well as non-fiction although generally fictional titles are shorter—punchier, more direct. The 'complete' within the title doesn't mean everything that has ever been written, but it refers to the fact that there are books published under my name and others that might cover parts of the subject. We, the authors, combined two other books to form this one book.

The book is directed at people with the condition who want to know more, and in particular, those who do not wish to have surgery in the first place. This title can be contrasted with that of Lewis Durlacher, who was mentioned earlier in this article.

Title choice can be tricky. Please read about the title choice for my latest fiction book by clicking on the image.

 

How do we choose a non-fiction title?

A rough title works for a draft of the book. Once the manuscript emerges into a story and the plot is more visible, an opportunity might work to change the title for a better fit.

I'm currently working on a novella that started as a short story (3500 - 5000 words). It developed into a story of 34,000 words. The Crimson Joker fits the idea and then becomes Shadows of Envy, as the plot works around one of the seven deadly sins. Then, as the narrative matured, a single character appeared to be the protagonist's saviour. So it changed to reflect a character that was a protector and so became the Guardian Angel. More about this book in a newsletter as it is still being developed. As the story continues, both the title and cover will no doubt develop until it arrives at something that resonates.

Once we select a title, we might think it works; sometimes, a beta audience or group can aid us. Asking people to help is reassuring that you are on the right track. Modern publishing, called print-on-demand, works well for authors who want to refresh their titles or covers. A book that fails to grip after a period in circulation is better with a new title, but the more you embrace opinions from a circle of those who know, the more sense it makes in the first place. Now, the wonderful thing about publishing online is that once the book has been refined, I can add the final title and cover...watch this space.

Thanks for reading How Difficult Is it to Create a Book Title? by R.C.Blyth.

One author uses two names.