One of the most important things an author can do when selling a book is to choose the right title. Since readers select books to read on a variety of factors, making sure you choose the right title is more important than ever. Below are 5 tips on choosing the best title for your book.
Choosing a Title for Your Book
Title Based on Theme:
Some of the best selling books in the world are based on themes. For example, Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice and New Breed by M. A. Marrissette are two great examples of book titles chosen on the basis of the book’s overall theme. Both of these books are superb vampire novels.
Giving a book a title based on theme is a common method used in non-fiction and academic publications. If you are one such writer, this will be your best option.
Name of the Protagonist:
There are a great many books written using the main character’s name. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J. K. Rowling is a prime example of this method. Harry Potter is a young boy who discovers he is a wizard and has many fantastic adventures.
Sometimes an author may be writing a biography about a famous person, like George Washington or Mahatma Gandhi. In such cases, using the name of the subject person will help you sell more books as readers will be able to quickly identify the individual whom they find of interest.
Title Based on a Song or Poem:
Sometimes a novel will be named after a song or a poem. My Country ‘Tis of Thee by Congressman Keith Ellison is an example of such a title. This novel is about the first Muslim Congressman in the U.S.A.
Protagonist’s Job:
There are many famous novels that use a protagonist’s occupation or other qualities as the title. For example, The Once and Future King by T. S. White which is about King Arthur and Henry’s Demons by Patrick & Henry Cockburn which is about Henry Cockburn’s struggle with schizophrenia.
This method is an excellent choice for a variety of fiction and non-fiction applications.
A Line in Your Manuscript:
This method is frequently used in both songs and novels. For example, the 1908 novel A Room with a View by E. M. Forster used a line from the novel in its title.
Summary
Whether you are writing a book based on a character or an event, a location or an intellectual concept, choosing the right title for your book can either increase or hinder sales of your work. The best thing to do is to use one of the five methods above and gear your work towards the audience you are trying to capture.
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