The Da Vinci Code is a great title. Why? Because it couples “code” with the name of a famous Renaissance artist everyone will have heard of. It gives a clue what the book is about and hints at mystery. What more could you ask?
Having a descriptive title is obviously an asset and wherever possible that’s what you should aim for. If someone is searching the shelves for a romance and they come across Erich Segal’s ‘Love Story’, then that would work for them. Similarly, ‘The Perfect Murder’ for the mystery fan and ‘The Terror’ to seekers of macabre fiction.
But beware. As a new author, you should avoid picking a title that has already been used. Jim Kelly recently wrote a novel called ‘Death Watch’, joining books of the same title by Sally Spencer, Cynthia Harrod-Eagles, John Dickson Carr, Elizabeth Forrest, Jerry Ahern and others. Great title, but does that cancel out the downside of its multiple use?
Imagine the scenario: you hear somewhere that a book called ‘Death Watch’ is worth checking out. You didn’t catch the author’s name but you search for it by title on the internet. You find 14 different books called ‘Death Watch’. Which one do you go for? The chances of your buying Mr Kelly’s are less than 14-1. No sale.
You should also consider the length of your title. The usual advice given by publishers and writing “gurus” is to keep it short. Let’s examine the number one titles in the New York Times Bestseller fiction list for 2009:
‘Black Ops’, ‘Plum Spooky’, ‘The Associate’, ‘Promises In Death’, ‘Handle With Care’, ‘True Detectives’, ‘Long Lost’, ‘Turn Coat’, ‘Just Take My Heart’, ‘First Family’, ‘The 8th Confession’, ‘Dead and Gone’, ‘Wicked Prey’, ‘Gone Tomorrow’, ‘The Scarecrow’, ‘Skin Trade’, ‘Relentless’, ‘Knockout’, ‘Finger Lickin’ Fifteen’, ‘Swimsuit’, Black Hills’, ‘Best Friends Forever’, ‘The Defector’, ‘The Girl Who Played With Fire’, ‘Bad Moon Rising’, ‘South of Broad’, ‘Alex Cross’s Trial ‘, ‘Dark Slayer’, ‘The Last Song’, ‘The Lost Symbol’, ‘The Gathering Storm’, ‘Ford County’, ‘Under the Dome’, ‘I, Alex Cross’, ‘”U” Is For Undertow’.
You will notice that the list contains just one six-word title and that the vast majority are between one and three words. From that you might deduce that a short title will sell better than a long title – just don’t tell J.K. Rowling!
Think too about internet searches. If you Google “Wicked Prey”, the first result up is the novel by John Sandford. In fact, all the results pretty much refer to that novel. But if you Google “Bad Moon Rising” you’re swamped by Creedence Clearwater sites. Remember Google when picking a title.
One last word about titles: don’t get too attached to the one you finally decide on. Publishers and their editors have a nasty habit of renaming books. Just remember, they’re the experts!
For more help writing a novel that will sell, check out www.60daybooks.com
