hey. i think one of the best ways to choose a title is to finish ur book and think of a few words that could describe it. like what ur character wants more than anything in the book (thats what i did) and i agree with the comment that said dont think about it, it'll come to you.
hope it all works out!
-Ranae13

<whisper> don't tell Emma that Meg Rosoff likes 'The Archaeology of Love'

I'm finding that construction difficult to shed, too. I've just done a story which, try as I would to avoid it, had to be called The Taxidermy of Happiness

Think I'll try to train myself to do cool one-word titles from now on. If it's historical, that means things like Rapier or Porringer, I suppose!

dont think about it, it'll come to you.

I think this is often true of the best titles.

Emma

Damn! I was trying to think of at least a working title for my novel-in-progress, because it's easier to have something to call it. I wasn't expecting to stick with my initial idea of "White Noise" but a quick search on Amazon shows there are at least two novels with that name and loads of music CDs! So back to the drawing board...

Deb

one of the best ways to choose a title is to finish ur book and think of a few words that could describe it

But then my book would be called "A Load of Rubbishy Crap".



A

Love it, Andie! But I'm sure that isn't true!

Deb

Try doing a few pages of automatic writing, using as starting sentence the first sentence of your book, and see what comes up from the subconscious?

Interesting exercise, Leila. I always have problems with titles but my first sentence threw up:

Shadow in the Moonlight.

Think of the song that you would most likely use as a theme if it ever gets made into a film and use the title of that.

Hi Roger,

Lot's of death in the book? How about 'Death by any other Name'.

Brian.

Hello, I'm gatecrashing here to say I think I've just found a title for my novel. It's about the political manoeuvrings of a Cambridge college, and it was untitled the whole time I was writing it last year. The publishers, my agent and I have been racking our brains since Christmas when I finished it to come up with something - mainly thinking of puns on words to do with university, like Master/Mistress, etc. (It's about a man who becomes Head of House of a women's college in the face of trenchant opposition from the feminist dons.) I also quite fancied 'Fog on the Cam' (as in.'..on the Tyne', ha ha) because there is a lot of fog in the book, literal and metaphorical.

Anyway, we were toying with 'A Matter of Principle' (as in Principal, too, geddit?) but my editor said the marketing people said it was not 'warm' enough. And I was trying to think warm and I suddenly came up with 'Hearts and Minds'. Agent and editor both love it - we just have to see what the marketing people say next week. But I really hope it will get the go-ahead.

It fits so well for lots of reasons. The new Master spends the whole book trying to win over the hearts and minds of the Fellowship - that's the central narrative thread. For me, 'minds' conjures up academia and the life of the mind, but 'hearts' also tells you it is a book about feelings, with elements of romance. The central female character (the Senior Tutor) struggles throughout the book between 'mind' (college, career) and 'heart' (home and the needs of her daughter). And the phrase also has a flavour of yin and yang, reflecting the gender wars theme which runs through the book. Plus it just sound right, I think - a catchy phrase, with a venerable pedigree (the Prayer Book). I really hope marketing will let me have it - keep your fingers crossed for me! (Or tell me why you think it's rubbish, if you prefer!)

Anyway, just thought you might be interested in an example of the title choosing process.

Hearts and Minds - I liked it, although it did make me think of Iraq/politics, but I think it works just as well in a college setting.

Geoff, I'm not sure a well known song would make a good title, far too corny. However, I may seriously consider LOveShAck for my first attempt at Chick-lit

Naomi, I wish you hadn't said that!! I hate the connection with George flipping Dubyah, and was hoping it wouldn't occur to people! But I'm hoping that particular association might be gone and forgotten by the autumn when the book comes out. It's so much a phrase with an older set of resonances... But maybe I delude myself - in which case the marketing people will duly chuck it out, and I'll be back to the drawing board.

Song titles are a great idea. Maybe I need to think of one of those as a reserve!

Rosy

Rosy, that's really interesting to hear the process. Could you reverse it - Minds and Hearts? It would mean the same, and echo the familiar saying, yet catch the attention by being unfamiliar. Plus shed the George W resonance. And come to think of it, it's quite appropriate for academe, where minds rate higher than hearts quite a lot of the time.

Lola Dane's Rainy Days and Tuesdays (which Myrtle came up with) works on the same principle - the familiar, twisted - and I think it's a terrific title.

Emma

Shadow in the Moonlight is good. You could then flip it around some more, e.g. Shadow of the Moonlight, Shadow by the Moonlight, Shadow, Then Moonlight... Moonlit Shadows... see what comes to mind.

Good idea Emma, Minds and Hearts really pulls the college theme to the fore.

Who could forget Dubyah, Rosy, as much as we try to

I will try the flip, Leila, but I may put a hip out