Titles Come First

In one of my first writing workshops after college, a class on how to write a short story, I came to a class with a story that I had yet to find a title for. During the critique portion of the workshop one of the other members of the class castigated me about not having a title. It wasn't just a tick on a long worksheet of problems with the story, it was a thesis on why titles were so important. I didn't bite. I argued back that I just hadn't thought of a title, that the group should instead focus on the content of the story. Based on P.J. Parrish's post in The Kill Zone yesterday, my fellow writer had a very good point.

Miss Parrish's article, When Titles Go Bad, is a worthwhile article to read for anyone writing or trying to write a book. Among the many things she says is this:

How important? I found a marketing survey that asked readers what was the element that most influenced why they bought a book. Excluding Gigantoid Author Name (ie James Patterson can put his name on an Altoid can and it would sell) here is the order:


1. Title
2. Cover
3. Back copy
4. Opening paragraphs
5. Price


Now, none of what she wrote could be called original (reminds me of this post I wrote on there being no more truly original thoughts), but seeing it listed out like that sure does set ones mind to pondering, particularly when one has a book he'd like to release soon.

1. Title - On the Edge - Not too terribly prosaic, kinda run of the mill, but definitely fitting for a thriller cum mystery. Secondly, once a reader gets into the novel they'll see the double meaning that the title has for the story.

2. Cover - A blatant rip off of Dick Francis' style that looks far more amateurish (see here). Should I go with a professional designer? Sure. My goal however is to hold off on doing that till my hobby actually turns a profit. Based on the fact that cover is number 2 on the list I'm beginning to wonder if I'm not working myself into a Catch-22.

3. Back Copy -  None yet.

4. Opening Paragraphs - Personally I like em. I've got the series on opening lines (see here) and I have made sure that mine is not in the "not good" sub-catagory. Stay tuned for a snippet coming to this space in the next few weeks.

5. Price - $0.99 introductory price, $2.99 regular price. Can't beat that unless it's free and at that pricing level no one takes the work seriously.

Based on the above list of my own work, understanding that I need to update #3 so that I have some back copy to judge, it looks like I'm in trouble. Mayhaps I should spend some dough on a professional cover design before I release On the Edge. Thanks to Miss Parrish for setting me straight.