How do you choose your title?

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Maiya

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(I apologise in advance if this topic has been done to death. I attempted to search for a similar thread but couldn't find one, so if there is one then please delete this one.)

How do you choose the title for your short story? I find that choosing a name for a novel might be easier because there's more content to find inspiration in (although I am open to arguments to the contrary), but what about a story that goes for about 3k words?
What's your creative process in naming your story and what do you base the title on?
 

Polenth

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I go through and highlight interesting words and phrases. Sometimes one of those works directly as a title. Sometimes I pick something that sums up those words/phrases in some way. Either way, I find the highlighting process helps me focus on what the story is about.
 

King Neptune

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I give a story a title early on, so the interesting words aren't there, yet, and sometimes I change titles somewhere along the line. From both sides of stories, etc. I know that titles can be important.

I look for titles that I will remember, so that I will be able to find the file and that will attract readers. I just named a blog entry "Atlantis Discovered, or something like that", and it is attracting more than 40 hits an hour. A bad title can make a story difficult to sell.
 

threetoedsloth

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I just go with a working title while I write and pray something good comes to me before I finish.
 

Chris P

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Most of the time I try to use a simple one or two words that describe the story in some way. But sometimes the title comes to me first and I build the story around it. Other times it's based on something one of the characters say that describes what's going on. The one I liked the most gave away the ending of the story, but you didn't know it until you'd read the story. The editor wanted it shortened and I had to change it, though :(
 

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You could try Dean Koontz's advise, here, at post 22:

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=287596&highlight=Dean+Koontz

Any event (The Hunger Games, The Fall of the House of Usher), person (Hamlet, Coraline, Dracula), place (Salem's Lot), or object/thing (The Yellow Wallpaper, The Time Machine), can be used as the title as long as it's important to the story. A quote straight out of the story can be used as well (Game of Thrones, I Am Legend), as long as it's evocative of the story and appropriately eye-catching. Themes can work, too, but I've never quite gotten the hang of these and mine always sound cheesy. Others have had success with them, though.

I, personally, mix it up between the examples listed above. I don't stick to any one method and sometimes I'll still have a story that refuses to be titled. Other times I have a great title, but no story, so it waits in a word document until its time has come.

Not sure if any of that helped, but it's my two cents.
 

Jamesaritchie

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Like Ray Bradbury, I have to find a title I love before I can write word one of any story. And much like Bradbury, I mix and match words, verbs and nouns, until I find a title I realty like. The title itself then generates the story.

It works very well for me, and the title always matches the story because the story comes from the title.
 

Locke

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Like Ray Bradbury, I have to find a title I love before I can write word one of any story. And much like Bradbury, I mix and match words, verbs and nouns, until I find a title I realty like. The title itself then generates the story.

It works very well for me, and the title always matches the story because the story comes from the title.

I sometimes feel this way, but sometimes find myself changing the title after the story's evolved into something else entirely. Or because my wife looks at me and says "I love it, except for the title."
 

etherme

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I always end up with one word titles, so apparently my brain likes to keep things simple! That said, something usually just 'comes' to me, so I've been lucky in that regard.
 

Maiya

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Lots of great tips!

Like Ray Bradbury, I have to find a title I love before I can write word one of any story. And much like Bradbury, I mix and match words, verbs and nouns, until I find a title I realty like. The title itself then generates the story.


I find this process really interesting because I've never done it (or even once thought of a title that made me want to write a story for it). I have always viewed the title as the "cherry on top" and attended to it as absolutely the last thing before sending the story off, but it seems I may be in the minority with this approach. Perhaps viewing it that way is why I sometimes come up with lacklustre titles haha. So do you use the title as a sort of creative prompt during writing? Does it help bring you back to the core of the story?


Themes can work, too, but I've never quite gotten the hang of these and mine always sound cheesy. Others have had success with them, though.

I have considered using a theme as inspiration for a title but I find it difficult to craft a title that doesn't totally give away the "point" of the story. I feel that themes are something meant to be mulled over by the reader, rather than being outright identified.

A bad title can make a story difficult to sell.

Do you think that when you submit a story to a publisher/editor with a bad/boring title, they might not even look at it? I always figure if they like the story enough they can work with you to change it prior to publishing.
 

Jamesaritchie

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I sometimes feel this way, but sometimes find myself changing the title after the story's evolved into something else entirely. Or because my wife looks at me and says "I love it, except for the title."

You let your wife see your writing before it's published?
 

Jamesaritchie

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Lots of great tips!




I find this process really interesting because I've never done it (or even once thought of a title that made me want to write a story for it). I have always viewed the title as the "cherry on top" and attended to it as absolutely the last thing before sending the story off, but it seems I may be in the minority with this approach. Perhaps viewing it that way is why I sometimes come up with lacklustre titles haha. So do you use the title as a sort of creative prompt during writing? Does it help bring you back to the core of the story?


Do you think that when you submit a story to a publisher/editor with a bad/boring title, they might not even look at it? I always figure if they like the story enough they can work with you to change it prior to publishing.

I've known or read about quite a few writers who work this way. The title is a creative prompt, and really generates the entire story. It keeps me on focus, stops me from drifting off in bad directions, and, as I said, always fits the story.

As for agents/editors not even looking at stories with bad titles, it does happen, but I think it's pretty are. The story speaks for itself, and they know the title can always be changed. A bad title certainly doesn't help, though, especially when it's been a long day, you're tired, nothing you read is any good, etc.
 

Jamesaritchie

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I let my wife see a lot of things :p

Besides, if I didn't, she'd never get to read anything I write.

My wife's reading and critique skills frighten me too much. If she doesn't see something until after it's published, I can say, "Wow, you''re right, but it's too late to change it now."
 

StoryofWoe

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I find it easier to decide on a title before I write the story, but that's probably due to the fact that I'm mostly a plotter and have a good idea of where I want to take things from the get-go (not that I'm opposed to making changes midway through). Not sure why this is the case. It's possible that I just get bogged down by all of the details once the story is already written and find it harder to hone in on one thing in particular.
 

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I try to find a running theme (or a gag for a dark comedy), as well as a way to allude to a line in the story.
 

Maiya

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I find it easier to decide on a title before I write the story, but that's probably due to the fact that I'm mostly a plotter and have a good idea of where I want to take things from the get-go (not that I'm opposed to making changes midway through). Not sure why this is the case. It's possible that I just get bogged down by all of the details once the story is already written and find it harder to hone in on one thing in particular.

I think this is a handy way to keep the story focused on the point you originally had in mind. Sometimes without a title, you get a little too much freedom and the possibility of drifting off into a different theme or story arc becomes a lot easier (which is a nightmare to edit/rewrite later)
 

Jamesaritchie

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This site's a lot of fun...

http://www.mcoorlim.com/random.html

Aside from the entertainment value, deciding why you like some random titles and not others might help you make your choice.

Tried it for a time, but almost none of the titles made any sense. It does, however, work pretty well for the mix and match way I find title. I got "The Caesar Inheritance", and "The Aztec Murders" by mixing and matching. Both will work for mystery short stories.

The only title that came up sensible as is was "Imitation Suicide", which I won't use.

I think I will play with this site on occasion. It does seem a good way of quickly mixing and matching words to get a title I can write a story from.

And I'm not sure why I like a title, but a good one generates a story, and this is all I go by. I get the right title, and a story jumps out of it.
 
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B.G. Dobbins

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I title my stories a variety of ways, though I like to develop a title before I start writing. I try to use important ideas or things within the story I'm planning to title it. I've used a quote once for a short story that accurately...enveloped the idea of the story. I'm currently using my MC's name for one of my stories, because it's a unique name that can kind of be a play on the theme, too. Her name is Genesis, and the story is basically the start of a particular way of life for her, so the genesis of that way of life.
 

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It varies. Sometimes I have a title early on, at others use a placeholder and a title comes to me partway through. One early novel had no title until I wrote the words "Maybe he saw a kindred spirit in her" about five or six thousand words in, and it became Kindred Spirits from then onwards.

My short story "Second Contact" (published in F & SF) was "Total Eclipse 1999" starting out, as it is set during that event. However it soon became "Second Contact", which is term for the point when an eclipse becomes total.

Some other stories ended up being published with working titles which stuck as I couldn't think of better ones.

I do have some titles which I'd like to use for stories, when I can think of a story which will fit the title.
 

Maiya

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http://www.mcoorlim.com/random.html

Aside from the entertainment value, deciding why you like some random titles and not others might help you make your choice.

This is a great generator, if just to get the brain working. It gave me this title ("The Chicago Gods") and I quite like it for some reason. So you're right, it's an interesting insight into how certain titles stick out to us. Knowing that can help focus the writer's attention in the right direction. I think I'll give it a whirl next time I feel stuck.



I've used a quote once for a short story that accurately...enveloped the idea of the story.

I too have used a quote, or more accurately a line from an obscure song and I felt that it embodied the story and helped keep me focused on the plot and themes. To be honest, I did end up keeping the title, knowing there is no copyright on that sort of thing but if the piece ever got published I suppose I'd think twice about using it.

Sometimes I have a title early on, at others use a placeholder and a title comes to me partway through. One early novel had no title until I wrote the words "Maybe he saw a kindred spirit in her" about five or six thousand words in, and it became Kindred Spirits from then onwards.

I'm fond of this method. It's meaningful when one of your characters stumbles upon the title for you.
 

Dipa Suresh

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I too love looking at songs for inspiration on titles. All of a sudden something may appeal to you and this will be your final choice, after plenty of agonizing and turning it round and round, of course. For my book to be published soon, '66, In Conversation with India' I had a tough time deciding on the title, but I heaved a huge sigh of relief when I stumbled upon it by chance. I'm glad I used the song method for inspiration!
 

IdrisG

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I usually have a title first and the story evolves from there. I only re-name a short story if the story fundamentally changes during the writing.
 
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