In the blogs section there is a shortlist of finalists in the Flash-Fiction competition.
Three of the titles intrigued me. If you could only see the title of a novel, would that alone grab your attention?
In the blogs section there is a shortlist of finalists in the Flash-Fiction competition.
Three of the titles intrigued me. If you could only see the title of a novel, would that alone grab your attention?
I remember seeing a book titled "Swallows and Amazons" with a rather odd cover picture This was in the school library was when I was about 11. I was totally put off and as a result missed the reading the excellent series of books by Arthur Ransome until I was in my 20s. If only it had been called something dreary but informative like "Adventure in the Lakes"!
Victoria mentions blurbs. I never read blurbs.
I believe it's not unusual for a publisher to change the author's title to give the book a more instant appeal. Victoria's right - the blurb sells the book, but the title has to be the first hook.
Interesting subject.
Titles are hard to get right. With hindsight I probably chose the wrong one for my first story: it relies heavily on the cover to give an idea of what the book's about. The second is more generic action/adventure but this time there's a subtitle because the cover, while relevant, is not so specific unless you're familiar with the subject.
I've noticed prize winners often have odd or vague titles - Hilary Mantel's 'Wolf Hall' and 'Bring Up The Bodies' give no idea of content but might attract attention, whereas 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time' says children's or literary fiction to me, and it's neither.
And who on earth would read 'Life of Pi' based on just the title?
Nice thread :)