Picking a good book titles that have been used

As for whether or not its a good idea to go with a title thats already been usedand in the same genre, no lessthats a question best suited for your editor. After these books were successful of course the titles seem great. In fact, it has been said that most titles on bestseller lists are no more than three words long. A number of famous writers have come up with a way to make their titles do extra work for them. Selecting and protecting the title of your book how to use.

When developing charactersno matter what sort of characters youre pursuingheed common sense and consider each of these tips before cho. In that same wildly unsubstantiated study, some pretty amazing book titles have caught my attention. Here are some ideas on how to write a good title that sells. In an attempt to find an amazing and differencemaking title, authors and publisher ignore the obvious one, which is right in front of them. Its getting increasingly more difficult to come up with a title that hasnt been done before, but you must. For example, a paper about maos great leap forward in communist china in the late 1950s may have a title that has a hook catchy phrase, one or two key terms, and the source or location 1950s communist china. The best free book title generators for choosing your bestselling title. So, lets talk about the three elements that every book title should have.

Whichbook a new way of choosing what book to read next. Picking a great title one that will catch people interest and get them to click on your book is an important part of your book marketing strategy. The best place to start is to do check on amazon search to see if there are any books with the same title. For a little more fun and recap on how to come up with a book title, youll want to check this video out. My own experience and how you can do it too april 28, 2015 by joanna penn 194 comments ive just been through a massive rebranding process. You could probably open a dictionary, point to a random word, and have a passable title for a book i just tested this claim and got arrows, hash, and photoautotroph, but. Book title generator make hundreds of book titles with. Any items they receive that they cant sell go directly to a recycling plant. And you really dont want to use a title if its been previously used for a. How to title a book 2020 nyts bestselling book title. How to come up with the perfect title for your novel ny. The fonts we use today tend to have been created in the 14th17th centuries, or at least based on that classical style. K rowlings first book in the harry potter series had a different title in england than it did when it was released in the u.

Alliterations repetitions in letter sounds sound good. They create titles that follow a pattern unique to their particular series of stories. Harry potter and the philosophers stone vs harry potter and the sorcerers stone i have a feeling the american scholastic. So heres what i recommend when you need a title, for either fiction or nonfiction. Youre too close to the project and will make an extremely biased decision. Make sure your book title isnt already taken with placeits book title checker, well cross check with the open library database and let you know if its already in use. Well, honestly i didnt come close to that last year but most years i read 5070 books. I wasnt too sure what the patterns were for finger picking now i know. Jami gold has a great post this week on changing a major aspect of a. Scott fitzgerald, who reportedly took forever to think of a good title. A great title can contribute tremendously to a books success. Here are seven great rules for choosing character names offered up by popular mystery writer elizabeth sims the rita farmer mysteries.

Only thing was, as soon as the thousands of copies of hardcovers were printed and shipped to stores, i heard from a reader who pointed out the simple fact that. Eric reis and others have graciously popularized the methods they used. Can you use the same book title thats been used before. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading 77 picking exercises for modern guitar guitar technique book 1. You probably know that the first book has been a bestseller for almost a. Whether intentionally funny or just completely oblivious, here are some of the worst book titles youve ever seen some of the people who wrote these funny book titles might have been absentminded and out of touch, but it could also have to do with changing. The content of the book isnt important, this is about titles. A great title can contribute tremendously to a book s success. Picking a title for your book is one of the biggest and most important decisions youll have to make in regards to your book. This can be a good choice if the setting is a key part of your work, or if its an unusual setting that attracts attention. Some book titles are changed when the book is publishedoffered in another country. But, i still think its so important to pick the right title to represent your book. Coming up with a good book title or book title ideas can be maddening.

According to research conducted by author, blogger, and speaker michael hyatt, consumers check out a book. Would friends have been the same hit had nbc executives approved its original title. It can also create opportunities for multiple passive income streams from licensing the sale of book related merchandise and paraphernalia. Not only do readers judge a book by its cover, but they pay particular attention to the title. Some of the best book titles today emerged only after much teeth gnashing. Last week we talked about the importance of having an aesthetically appealing book cover, and how a homemade cover can be a death sentence for your book luckily, titles are harder to screw up. Go through the notes in this article to make sure you weed out any book titles that wont get you the best results and sales. A case in point is the girl on the train, by paula hawkins published by riverhead books in january 2015, which ended up as a new york times bestseller, and girl on a train, by a. Ive been told not to judge a book by its cover, but when the cover has a title like reusing old graves, its hard not to. Book title a good book title can mean the difference between a bestseller and a lifeless shelfdweller. Harry potter titles are pretty good examples of that the halfblood prince makes enough sense as a title once harry gets the potions book which seems to have little relevance to the plot, but then you reach the end and spoiler snape kills dumbledore, then revealing he is the halfblood prince well, suddenly the fact the book s title. Tim ferris, eric reis and others have graciously popularized the methods they used for applying ab testing methods like pickfu for picking book titles. Titles cant be ed, so theres no law against naming your book misery or the da vinci code.

But if you want to use a book title, you should first check on amazon to see if anyone else has used that title. Difficult women, the garden of small beginnings, the oneeyed man. Not just a contemporary account, picking up charts new york citys fourhundredyear struggle with trash. But i wouldnt pick a title thats so instantly recognizable. Your book title should, in theory, catch the attention of dozens of readers browsing in a bookstore. This allows focus on the pattern and not the notes. If you are planning to have a website for your book, you need to consider that not all. It may seem like a fairly insignificant choice, your title is only a handful of words long, while your story itself contains thousands.

Jan 19, 2009 i love to read and average about a book per week. Your books chapter titles present chances to play the game again, with linguistic lures that can keep your audience turning pages way past bedtime. According to chandler scholar frank macshane chandlers interest in titles even led him to invent a writer, aaron klopstein, who committed suicide by amazonian blowgun. Dark materials, so many books have used this technique that might also work for you. Your title can address the books themes or inspiration rather than the exact content. Ive researched, tested, and listed all the best book title generators by genre below.

Google your chosen title to see which keywords it has in common with those of previously published works and change it if its not unique. Since many selfpublishing authors are starting out on a very small budget however, homemade, diy book covers are still a popular choice. In this comprehensive guide to picking the perfect book title, i will walk you. Often, book club editions will have an string of numbers on the last page of the book near the margin, running vertically, just before the endpaper. Its difficult because titles are essentially short hooks that advertise your book using the fewest. Why are we bad at picking good leaders a better way to. Nov 17, 2017 a 300 page book will get extremely thick if designed too small, while a larger book needs to be a good length to not feel flimsy and more like a magazine or booklet. The lambs book of life is spoken of in the bible as being a book in heaven that records the names of people who have been spiritually saved. The scribe guide to writing a perfect book title the. When it comes time to decide on potential ideas to pick a title for a new book, there are a number of quick checks that you can do. In his notebooks, the everinventive raymond chandler kept a list of possible titles for books, all of which we think deserve to be written. Most of the titles do have darker words and thus a darker feel to them, but some could work just as well as a title for any other genre. The best books with the worst titles marginal revolution. How to create brilliant book titles with examples bookfox.

This is important, as ive seen humorous books with deadserious titles. I spent so much time agonizing over just the right title for my most recent book, but in the back of my mind im thinking, wont they just change it anyway. Jun, 2012 picking fonts for your selfpublished book the book designer it might surprise you to find out that by far the best fonts for use in books are the oldest or, if not the oldest, the fonts based on the oldest designs for fonts, those that originated in the very beginning of book printing in the late 15th century. In a way, the title should make a statement, so the buyers would take the time picking your book off the shelf. How to create a book title that sells your book for you. If youre an author, there couldnt be a more useless piece of advice. Educated is a memoir of nonfiction but names and identifying details have been changed. When you have a small list of titles you like, get some data. Coming up with great movie title ideas by nailing the storys essence. Even people who get paid to come up with book titles editors, publishers, etc.

Heres a great test as to whether or not you have a good book title. Well also look at elements shared by good book titles. The old adage is to never judge a book by its cover. But if you were planning to title your thriller the da vinci codea specific title associated with a bestselling seriesyoud better make other arrangements. Not in two years of working with keywords have i been able to discover the keywords that my potential readers use, and ive tried so many methods. The entire notion of superheroes have a reputation to hold up, and part of that is to have a really coolsounding name. While youve probably heard a lot about how the first page of your story is the most important when it comes to first impressionsits not. Choosing the title of your book is probably the most important decision you will make. How do writers choose or think of titles for their books.

It would have been difficult if instead of all being called something very nearly like the economics of the soviet union or the soviet economic system they had instead been called a cry for exchange or something. As for whether or not its a good idea to go with a title that s already been usedand in the same genre, no lessthats a question best suited for your editor. If the title has been used in a similar book, you may want to change it to avoid confusion by readers. Lots of books that have made the top 200 seem like blatant spam by selfpublished authors whose work probably wasnt good enough for a real publisher to accept. Aug 30, 2011 hello, years ago, long before the internet was popular and almost before it was invented, i had an old computer a sinclair ql. But on the other hand, using words that are not what people would normally search for, such as invented words, give you little chance of being discovered through search by potential book buyers. There have been too many titles checked out and returned by your account within a short period of time. One of the unique talents of this machine was the ability to load a different font fount, as sir clive called them into memory. If you are not in the book you will suffer eternal. If you choose words that have been used too frequently for other books, it will make your new book difficult to find, which is not what good book titles should do.

You can pick between fantasy, crime, mystery, romance, or scifi. Book title generator the ultimate bank of 10,000 titles. With our new tool, the book title ideas checker our tool works based on the open library database youll be able to see if the title is already in use, and change it in time before spending money on a book cover, publicity or in sending it out for publishing. First impressions of the book have been really good. Just like how browsing a swipe file helps you come up with ideas, this list of books might help kick your brain in the right direction while trying to come up with a book title. The book uses the same gcd note structure throughout the book. On the other hand, if your favorite title happens to have been used on a book no one remembers, feel free to use it. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Ive been keeping track of every book ive read since 1991 i wish i had started that when i learned how to read. According to chandler scholar frank macshane chandlers interest in titles even led him to invent a writer, aaron klopstein, who committed suicide by amazonian blowgun, but not before publishing two volumes of poetry the hydraulic. How to write good book titles authority selfpublishing. Washingtonbased has a commitment to helping the environment, partnering with libraries and other vendors to ensure that used books wind up in good hands rather than in the trash. Book title ideas are crucial to your books success. First, make sure you know the genre of your book, and identify what kind of feeling or tone you want to convey with the title.

When writing my novel the actress, i needed a name for a japaneseamerican criminal defense attorney, and the name gary kwan burst upon me. Dont get caught out be careful not to choose a title that might be offensive in. Book title generator the best free tools to choose a. It can also create opportunities for multiple passive income streams from licensing the sale of bookrelated merchandise and paraphernalia. This is ironic as the music industry is now plagued by piracy like the pirates of the past were plagued by festering sores, rat infestations, scurvy, and bizarre superstitions. It needs to have a nice flow and look good in print. How to find out if your screenplay title idea is any good.

Swank is also a term for stolen goods, the type of stuff pirates used to search long and hard for. Identify a unique point of perspective in your book, then restate your title in a way that makes this point of. If you are still not able to check out titles after 7 days, please contact support. It traces the citys wastemanagement efforts from a time when filth overwhelmed the streets to todays far more vigorous practices, which have made the city cleaner than its been in decades. Drama these book titles are the most dependent on context. Second only to your books cover, good titles for books can be a difference maker. Each title also has interesting tags, which makes searching for similar stories even easier. Below we have taken the top 25 books from each category and listed the title. Here are some examples of book titles that were changed before publication. Click to open up to 4 sliders and move the to set your choices. Once your book is done and youre ready to publish and promote your book, try out placeits book mockups and see how promoting with the right images will increase your sales.

Other genres, such as mystery, occasionally have an explanatory subtitle, such as venetian blood. Dick wasnt always a slang word the way we use it today used to be a shorter version of the name richard and nothing else, and neither was boner a word. A great title is key in getting potential readers to connect with your book. Whichbook enables millions of combinations of factors and then suggests books which most closely match your needs. Jul, 2008 still, i have filled my bookshelves with wonderful books largely by picking according to title.

A few thoughts on writing better book titles april davila. When im searching for a book to read, the title has a ton to do with which book i pick up first. The publisher is usually responsible for the final decision on title, and in the query stage, its not. You have a book or a great idea for a book and you want a title that will immediately grab the attention of your ideal readers and make them want to click on it. Now, i guess i would have to say that i need a lot more sleep than i used to and one of the best times to get some reading in is now a challenge just when i get to bed that night. How to research great book titles for your next book. I also traveled, loved watching movies, and spending time with friends but a good book was always close at hand. I dont have a fancy database or anything but just a list of authortitle in a. Sep 05, 2014 but the little string of words on the outside of your book isnt the only phrase with that power. For example, nineteen eightyfour is a more compelling title than airstrip one or oceania, which are the actual names of the dystopia described in the book. Many times a good title is simply waiting to be discovered in the text of a book the author wrote.

Their prices are extremely low, and they also offer three book. Generate a random story title thats relevant to your genre. However, if you have other title ideas that arent already in use, id recommend considering a changeif only to alleviate confusion in the marketplace down the road. Nonfiction books will typically seek to explain to a reader the benefit they will gain by reading the book, as well as clearly stating the topic they cover. How to choose a bestselling book title for fiction or nonfiction. If you still dont have enough good title ideas, keep brainstorming, do more market research, and ask for input from friends, colleagues, and anyone whos. If you want to see if a title has been trademarked, you can use tess, the online search at the u. How to write the perfect book title ultimate guide scribe writing. Most of these are for nonfiction titles, though some can be used for novel titles. Tim ferris, eric reis and others have graciously popularized the methods they used for applying ab testing methods like pick fu for picking book titles. How to write a book title thats not taken placeit blog. It could be a chapter title or a compelling summaryphrase found in the text. Ive been so close to picking up map a few times, but. The 7 rules of picking names for fictional characters.

Mar 03, 2010 lately ive been coaching several of my clients through the process of coming up with a good title for their book, so i thought id share my tips with you. Tucker has sold over 5 million books as a 4x nyt bestselling author and is the cofounder of scribe. Book club editions also may have four or five numbers printed in a contrasting box on the back of the book. Dec 04, 2012 when you have a small list of titles you like, get some data. How to title a book 2020 nyts bestselling book title creation. Aug 28, 2012 10 questions you need to ask your characters. Plus at the end, i have a little fun covering some of the morehorrendous, terrible, absolutely ridiculous book titles out there. But youve been racking your brain for hours to think of good titles and youve come up with maybe.

Caslon refers to a family of fonts first designed in 1722 by william caslon i, an english type engraver. Aaron, audrey, benjamin, erin, faye, gene, vanessa, judy, peter, sadie, shannon, shawn, susan, robert, and robin are pseudonyms. Book title generators are great tools because they can give you a. You should be left with at least 35 pretty good ideas. Taming amazon choosing keywords on amazon showing 143 of 43. Picking is a great hobby or even a vocation for some, a lucrative business for others.