What makes a great title?

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Wed, 2012-02-08 16:13

I believe many great books are buried under obscure or mediocre titles and not a few crappy books have become international best sellers because their titles radiantly promise infinitely more than they actually deliver. Rightly or wrongly, we apparently like or dislike someone we meet in the first five seconds of seeing their face and I suspect the same sort of thing often applies to book titles/covers. I don’t know what makes a great title and if you have a theory I’d be delighted to hear it.

There are thousands of remarkable titles but a few favourites that come to my mind are: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, Heart of Darkness, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Lord of the Flies, Confessions of a Justified Sinner, Tale of Two Cities, The Kite Runner, Catcher in the Rye, Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy. They’re all great stories in different ways.

Extraordinary books which I feel undeservedly never made it as best sellers because their titles were too obscure or too boring include The Clamour King, Foe, and Disgrace. The last two were written by J M Coetzee, winner of two Booker Prizes and the Nobel Prize for Literature. I doubt whether all his books combined have sold even one hundredth of one per cent of blockbusters such as The Da Vinci Code and Twilight. I think I may be the only one who’s ever read The Clamour King. The title gives nothing away, least of all that it is set in a British boarding school and concerns the strange trials and tribulations of a young boy cursed with great beauty.

It’s commonly accepted that particular books catch on through word of mouth (in the broadest virtual world sense) but if the words coming out of people’s mouths when they mention a book sound dull or are difficult to remember the message dies there, no matter how much a friend or acquaintance may enthuse about a particular story or how accomplished it may be in any objective sense. Any thoughts, anyone?

Wed, 2012-02-08 17:40

shep5377

I agree whole heartedly. I read primarily fantasy books, so the range of titles in that genre is massive. There are some which are instantly grabbing like 'The Kingkiller Chronicles' or 'The Stormlight Archive'. The ones that turn me off are ones that are very difficult to pronounce, with lots of X'x and K's. I do have to say though, I find it very difficult to come up with a good name for any of my stories. Nothing ever seems to do do them justice, so I appreciate how tough it must be to name finished novels!

Wed, 2012-02-08 17:45

renderedtruth

I believe many great books are buried under obscure or mediocre titles and not a few crappy books have become international best sellers because their titles radiantly promise infinitely more than they actually deliver. Why not just try to remember the things that are important about the creative culture's 'overall concern', that is, to take care of itself, and to remain a thriving entity, capable of enduring hardship and tumult.

renderedtruth

Wed, 2012-02-08 20:53

Florian

I may be wrong but I think To Kill a Mockingbird and Gone with the Wind had very corny Mills & Boon type titles originally - i.e. given by the author - and it was the publisher who came up with the catchy titles in both cases. I wonder whether either of those novel would have risen above the hordes of similar but largely unnoticed stories if that hadn't happened. Stan, Things Fall Apart was also in my head when I jotted down my short list. It maddens me that some titles work so well, like that does, and yet I can't work out why exactly. Some wag said that a great novel is usually a little more intelligent than its author and I feel that likewise great titles can actually convey more, evoke much more than the 80-100 000 other words between the covers, almost or maybe exactly like poems. I had a good friend once who didn't read much, other than the blurb on a book's dust cover, but he collected and tucked away good titles like trophies. He could rattle them off and in consequence always sounded incredibly erudite. I used to think he was a superficial fraud but I wonder now whether he wasn't onto something.

Wed, 2012-02-08 21:20

Denzella

I think titles are important and for me a title should cause me to be curious and should perhaps seem to hold out the possibility of more than one explanation. To Kill a Mockingbird or To Kill a Mocking Bird. Perhaps not the best example but at least it was to hand. I definitely think the story should somewhere give explanation of the title. But hey ho what do I know I'm a rubbish writer and I come from Barcelona so "I know nothing!"

Wed, 2012-02-08 22:56

Cavalcader

New Denzella Hi! I totally agree with StanTheMan you are a good writer. What is the saying "you can;t judge a book by it's cover? Depends on the reader what they are lokking for, everyday we find ourselves in different moods maybe. But I feel the Title shopuld definitely have more of the story in. Like an (IP) really! Got to draw the person reading it in. A beginning middle and ending. julie xx Like our own names,some are shortened,some are changed,some like and some don't. Sometimes a chapter can have title in,never brought or mentioned again. Oh! what am I talking about? It is more like categories. My point of view,have interesting in all kinds of things,and twists and turns,good and bad. julie xx

Thu, 2012-02-09 01:48

grover

I never go by the titles - I normally read the blurbs and ignore the title. Harry Potter and the Philosphers Stone is a rubbish title, but the book is good. Hence the yanks tried to change it to sorcerer's stone - who cares, it's the same book. In the fantasy genre I read you look for a book that might have dragons in, or wizards, perhaps some sort of great war... I've never not bought a book because the title is rubbish. Trudi Canavan or whatever her name is wrote the Magician's Guild - quite a good title, god awful book.

Thu, 2012-02-09 01:50

grover

But in answer to the Thread's question - what makes a good title? A good story. Tip there is to write a great title and then you'll write a great book ;)

Thu, 2012-02-09 04:51

Dynamaso

I'm with Grover on this one - if I'd been the sort who goes by titles alone, I probably would have completely bypassed such wonderful books as 'The Book Thief', 'A Secret History' or even one of my most favourites, 'Rant'. Thankfully, I tend to read the dust cover or the back of the book and make a decision based on whether I like the summary. Of course, this can lead to reading such dreadful dreck as the aforementioned 'The Da Vinci Code'.

Thu, 2012-02-09 11:49

#10

h jenkins

As people have already said, there's no real rule about what makes a good title. Also, a good title doesn't mean a book is necessarily good though it can add to the memorability of a well-written story. However, I think that there may perhaps be one approach that can often pay dividends. It seems to be used less often these days but is still worth considering. The idea of a title is to reflect, in some way, an important aspect of the story in a few words. If that title also has resonance to potential readers by alluding to something that they recognise, it can act like a magnet. What I'm talking about is a quotation. In the past it was often taken from poetry though snatches from well-known songs or even nursery rhymes are just as effective. About half a dozen of Agatha Christie's titles for instance are quotes from Shakespeare and she also used Tennyson among others. Think of the titles that people have already mentioned - To Kill A Mockingbird - taken from an aphorism Catcher in the Rye - a nursery rhyme The Lord of the Flies – either reference to name for Satan (Beelzebub) or quote from King Lear For Whom the Bell Tolls - John Donne Heart of Darkness – referencing HM Stanley’s description of the Congo as ‘the dark heart of Africa’ Gone With the Wind – poem by Ernest Dowson And here’s a few more – The Sound and the Fury – slight misquote from MacBeth Far from the Madding Crowd – Keats Of Mice and Men – Burns Inherit the Wind – The Bible Closer to home as it were, there’s a very good poet on ABCTales who regularly uses titles or quotations from modern pop songs. Presumably the titles have meaning for her and she instinctively understands that might also be true for others. It’s a very powerful idea. Anyway, I’d say that if you’re looking for a good title, try to think of an appropriate quotation that encapsulates an important aspect of your story. Helvigo Jenkins

Helvigo Jenkins

Thu, 2012-02-09 21:25

#11

scratch

Helvigo, thanks for your contribution it really contextualised the conundrum. Florian, your observation regarding titles as poetry is something that I had never considered but now I can see the complete sense in it. This last juxtaposed with Helvigo's input seem somehow to capture and enlighten the whole thing. It is something that I have often thought about and this thread has really helped. Thanks to one and all.

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