z

Young Writers Society


How do I make a good title?



User avatar
25 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 576
Reviews: 25
Tue Feb 03, 2015 10:58 am
bellathebookworm says...



Titles are my least favorite part of writing. I always put them off until the last second, then ad lib whatever comes to mind. When I came on here and published "April 23, 2109, I realized that I really need to find a better way to do this. Does anyone know and could help me with the title for my story?
  





User avatar
44 Reviews



Gender: Nonbinary
Points: 115
Reviews: 44
Tue Feb 03, 2015 1:30 pm
SkyeWalker says...



Usually what I do for titles is I make them symbolic. For my short story 'I Am', I felt that Charlotte Corday being who she was (meaning being the killer of Marat) was symbolic, and it worked.

What most people need is a title that grabs the attention of the reader, and your current title already does that. I saw it, and I thought, "What is that about? o.O" and then started reading. It's a seemingly random date and I liked that. :)

I think you already have a good title. But other suggestions, because you say you need them, would be:

Warning: (Can't think of what to put here you try)
Letters... From the Future

These of course aren't that good because I came up tithe them on the spot, but do you get my meaning? I hope I helped!
My pronouns are they/them.

Formerly Zhia and Reneia
  





User avatar
425 Reviews



Gender: Gendervague he/she/they
Points: 50
Reviews: 425
Tue Feb 03, 2015 4:21 pm
View Likes
Vervain says...



Be comfortable in your knowledge that you're not alone.

Some people may find it a little easier, but as a rule, title-making is one of the more difficult (and disproportionately important) parts of writing. You have a lot to think about—will it attract the reader? Does it accurately display your story? Will people hate it on sight because it reminds them of the name of their ex-girlfriend's cousin's brother's aunt's yappy little Chihuahua? (Okay, maybe that last one is less of a worry for you, but you never know.)

The thing is, titles have a lot to do with the essence of the story itself. They're the cherry on top, if cherries made ice cream palatable, and the only one who knows the story well enough to plonk that cherry down in the right place is you. Personally, I've gone back to the Knowledge Base and read Presenting your Presentation: Titling your Title! so many times, I'm surprised it's not seared into my eyes.

There are a number of other helpful articles on the internet, too, like Choosing the Right Name for Your Story from Writing World, that might help you get a grasp on the basics.

Something that I do, personally, is that I tell myself I'm going to set a working title for as long as I'm editing something. The title is subject to change at any time, and it's less pressure on me to get it right the first time (which no one really ever does). That's why YWS has a thread like Title Feedback (most recent post here), so you can get feedback from other writers who have known your pain, and you can help other people while you do it. Just keep in mind that no one's perfect, and no one really knows your story better than you do.

When posting for review on here, if I don't have a title, I'll usually grab a word or two or a significant idea from within the piece and put that up in the title box. That works for anything, poetry to flash fiction to novel, and for me it's usually a good springboard to find the title I'd actually like to use.

I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors!
stay off the faerie paths
  





User avatar
1272 Reviews



Gender: Other
Points: 89625
Reviews: 1272
Tue Feb 03, 2015 6:52 pm
Rosendorn says...



To add to the article barrage, check out this one.

Titles, for me, are under the "by some miracle I found the right one" category in my head. I usually manage to find something that feels right, and it's usually pretty rare.

What I actually do sometimes is come up with the title first. The title ends up as the kernel of an idea that I build everything else on top. Sometimes the title still ends up wrong (especially for poetry), but it can be a way to think about titling that is a little out of the box.
A writer is a world trapped in a person— Victor Hugo

Ink is blood. Paper is bandages. The wounded press books to their heart to know they're not alone.
  





User avatar
25 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 576
Reviews: 25
Wed Feb 04, 2015 10:30 am
bellathebookworm says...



Thank you for the help!
  





User avatar
7 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 278
Reviews: 7
Sat May 30, 2015 2:51 pm
viclemore says...



I think titles should be sort of deep. Of course depending on what kind of story you're writing. Usually when I'm going to choose a title I look through my text, and find a line that I think "describes" the story in a good way.

for example my titles have been;
"Death can be a beautiful thing"
"The weight of the world"
"Barefoot and bruised"
"Birds always chatter"
"How I messed up"
  





Random avatar


Gender: Male
Points: 240
Reviews: 0
Tue Jun 02, 2015 6:18 pm
Octaclepassing says...



Usually I make the story first, and substitute some element and put that as the temporary title. Now to get a good title it has to ring with it's themes and characters and also what message is conveyed to our reader. Your title so far isn't that bad, but I haven't read the story yet but like another who posted it does make one want to read it. The title must stand out on it's own without being too bland. Titles are after all what make readers intrigue by it or fascinated by it. If it was genre based, I wouldn't make it too much of that genre as it results from being not individually unique. Titles must be something to relate to. Titles shouldn't summarize the story, that'd be too hard and the title might be long. So stick with the themes, character depth, scenery location, whatever makes this feel grandly unique. Something that must rise from the novel to make it diverse from others in the same category. It must distinguish you as writer and the work which is the novel.
  





User avatar
25 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 576
Reviews: 25
Thu Jun 04, 2015 10:37 am
bellathebookworm says...



Thanks, everyone, for the advice! I changed the title of my story to "The Way to Nowhere". I still don't like it that much, but I think it's better.
  





User avatar
1220 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 72525
Reviews: 1220
Thu Jun 04, 2015 4:28 pm
Kale says...



Working titles are a thing. Basically, it's just a title you work with until you find a better one. Titles can be changed and rewritten just like any other part of the story, so I wouldn't worry too much about the title until it's the only thing left you haven't nailed down.
Secretly a Kyllorac, sometimes a Murtle.
There are no chickens in Hyrule.
Princessence: A LMS Project
WRFF | KotGR
  








Oh no, I’m sorry, you’re under the impression that here on YWS we *help* writers instead of just feeding their gremlin tendencies.
— winterwolf0100