Young Writers Society

Most recent novels I've scanned do not contain chapter names. Are they obsolete nowadays, just being used for reseach-based or inspirational books?

Is "Chapter One" better than "Our First Encounter" for editors and readers?

I don't know which editors prefer, or if they even have a preference.

Chapter titles can be used to excite the reader: he or she may guess at the meaning behind the title, like in the Harry Potter books.

Because I usually read without glancing up to see what chapter I'm on, sometimes it's a good thing if there aren't chapter titles lol. I don't pay attention to them much anyway. As for my writing preference, I'm just too lazy to think of good titles. And they might distract from the story.

I really like chapter names...especially the ones in A.A Milne's 'Winnie the Pooh' books. Very cute chapter names.

I (personally) enjoy adding on chapter names. Though when it comes to reading, I have no prefernece (as long as the name doesn't give away any of the story).

I like both reading and writing chapter names. Books seem kind of ... empty, to me, without them. It's like the chapters arn't there at all. I love writing them too, it's just so much fun. Usually, the don't give away any of the chapter (well, how would you interprit "twenty-one fingers"?), they're just an example of me messing around with words.

I like to read them but i hate writing them. It's like, the title defines what is going to happen in there and I tend to rant so it won't work for me.

Chapter names are often the authors choice.
When someone reads the chapter name they often become intrigued because
1. The reader might not be sure of what the name is
2. It might be THAT chapter in which the reader really wants find to out about something
3. It can offer make Suspense
4. It can keep you interested if you've been having a full out reading marathon.
5. It can often help guide the writer in the task set before them.

Of course the Editor will always need to go through it and make sure the Chapter names aren't just to help the writer out, but to help the reader out.

Its all about big style.

I love them. Though, for this new revision of FREAK (it was needed, honest) I don't have them yet, I did on my last version. Whenever I would read them, they would give me small clues of what was going to happen, and they inspired me.

But... it's strange. I will notice chapter that are ordered numerically, but I will ignore chapters that have names to it. Even so, the numerical ones don't seem... as fun.

sometimes i like them (in harry potter for instance) but mostly i prefer not to use
them. if you do use them, you need to make sure you don't give too much away,
have a name which is too long etc.

I like them, it gives you a slight idea what's going to happen next.

There's just not enough chapter names...

Chapter TITLES are tricky. I like them sometimes, but in general you don't need them. Chapter titles generally work if your chapters work like episodes, the way they do in The Lord of the Rings, the Narnia books, and Harry Potter. I tried using them with The Pastel Unicorn, but it became too difficult to keep thinking up a suitable title for each chapter.

Chapter titles/names/who-cares-they-mean-the-same just spring into my head whenever I need them. It's handy, and it's fun.

I think it's all a matter of preference. When I write, I don't use them that much, although I'm working on a story right now where I am naming the chapters, just because I thought of a lot of good names for them. When I read, however, I just unconciously ignore chapter titles, I don't know why.

I've never used them in my writing. I never could figure out how to do it without making whatever was about to happen totally obvious. The only time I ever paid attention to the chapter titles while reading was when I was in the middle of InkHeart... but I don't know why they caught my fancy so much.