Choosing a Perfect Title
by Marti Talbott

As an author, an avid news hound and editor of two websites, I pay very
close attention to titles. Next to the actual writing of a book or an article,
choosing the perfect title is beyond a doubt the hardest, but the most important
part. It can make the difference between getting published and being ignored.

Imagine a whole list of titles that begin with "How to" and trying to find
the one article that answers your question. Or looking for an interesting
novel and having to swim through pages and pages of titles that begin with
"The." Very soon, readers become discouraged and bored.

Does the alphabet count? You bet it does. "Stormy Night" goes to the bottom
of an alphabetical list while "A Stormy Night" goes right to the top. Believe
it or not, a lot of places still list books alphabetically. For example,
the old Mightywords site listed their bestsellers in each category first,
then listed the rest of their titles in alphabetical order.

What about category? For novel writers, how to categorize a book is a never
ending dilemma. "A Stormy Night" is set during the Civil war, the characters
are in love, they're both spies for opposite sides and they're both trying
to find a missing person. So is it a political thriller, a romance, a
historical
romance, or a mystery? The perfect title can solve this problem - "A Stormy
Night" can become "Action Zone - a political thriller"

But before you change the title, do a little soul searching. Sometimes
a writer gets stuck in a category they don't really enjoy because their
novel becomes a bestseller. Readers often expect more of the same, so if
you enjoy writing romance, try not to tag yourself with "political thriller"
even if you think it's a better market.

Choose your nouns well. Certain words trigger the imagination and are more
exciting than others - fire, ice, love, sex, dead, earthquake, murder, football,
etc. Using a trigger word will draw instant attention. "Action Zone -
a political thriller" could become "Fire Zone - a political thriller."


Finding the right title is indeed difficult, but it is very very important.
The way to success is truly in the title.

Marti Talbott is the editor of:
Carson Books - book publishing news - www.carsonbooks.com
Now What - shocking news from around the world - www.wwnowwhat.com



Marti
Carson Books - book publishing news
www.carsonbooks.com