Titles are the bane of my life! They are as elusive as the slippery fish you can see in the water but just can't get a hold of. I get sidetracked from my actual writing by pausing to think of a better title for my WIP. It matters not that I already have a reasonably good one, my brain will refuse to accept there is nothing better. It roams ceaselessly, turning over words, rhymes, sayings and phrases until utter confusion rampages across my thinking processes. It picks out words from my work like jigsaw pieces and tries to fit them together into what may well be the absolute best title in the whole world - it thinks!
Why, oh why do I get stuck like this? I have been known to wake in the night with random titles jiggling together like pac-men (oh dear, that dates me!) in some old computer game. When I finally do get the words together I then start juggling them around to try to get the best impact!
Generally speaking, in the final draft I use the words I first thought of anyway, so what was all the fuss about? I just don't know... And there again, publishers can suggest their own and not go with yours... Maybe, I should just use numbers...
What do you think?
http://www.patricianewcombe.webnode.com/
Hello Pat, I must admit it took me almost to the last of my edits before I eventually came up with the title for my latest book...! It so distracts you when you can't get it right...laugh! Nice to see you back xx
ReplyDeleteGo with numbers!
ReplyDeleteI hear you - finding the right title can be like an obsession. Good luck!
Hi Patricia - I followed your link from Twitter! Enjoyed your post - I can't write a short story or get on with a novel unless I have a title - it's the same with names of characters!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I'm not alone in the title dilemma. Titles really aren't my strong point!
ReplyDeletehttp://leointransit.blogspot.com/2011/05/ten-lame-titles-for-my-book.html