One of the most fun and sometimes hardest things about getting a book finished to send out to readers is picking the right title. A title can pull you into a story and make you look closer at this or that book. I’ve had titles that jumped out at me from a bookstore shelf and just almost demanded I pick the book up to give it a closer look.
Well, of course, that is the kind of title every author and every publisher wants on their books. When you have favorite authors, the author’s name is often enough to make you give a book a second look. That’s great and I appreciate some of you readers trusting me to bring you good stories. But I also want to get new people to read my books. I’m hoping my titles might have gotten the attention of some of the readers who did the Scavenger Hunt this weekend. I know some of you did and I hope you won some of the prizes, maybe even the Grand Prize. I can only imagine how fun going to the mailbox will be for those winners that get a copy of all 26 books featured on the hunt. They could have a huge To Be Read stack or maybe be way ahead on their Christmas shopping if they have readers in their family.
So, I want my book titles to grab the attention of readers. The same for my book covers. Stay tuned for the cover reveal of When the Meadow Blooms here on Wednesday or Thursday. I sent out a newsletter with the cover reveal this weekend. If you didn’t get it and would like a copy of the newsletter, just let me know. Or you’ll see the reveal later this week and the winners of the Scavenger Hunt giveaways.
Great titles and covers may be even more important in our internet bookselling world now. In a bookstore, the books practically call to a reader to pick them up and give them a better look. Internet shopping is different. A picture of the cover, the wording of the title has to pull in the reader for a closer look at the information about the book. A good title can pull you in.
Sometimes I come up with a title that fits my story and that the publishers agree might catch the eyes of readers. Other times, the title I’ve chosen isn’t quite up to snuff and then a committee of editors, sales representatives and other people at the publishers have a brainstorming session to try to come up with a perfect title. They decide on something and then ask me if I’m okay with it. Most of the time I am because these people have worked hard to come up with the best title. A few times I’ve asked them if they can go back to the drawing board for another try, and they will. I think we went through more than one title for These Healing Hills, but I really like the one we ended up with.
You might be curious about which titles are the ones I used originally for my stories. Scent of Lilacs started out as The Smell of Lilacs, but as the book was going through edits, it dawned on me that Scent sounded way better than Smell. At my request we changed it. So, it was still my title. So was Orchard of Hope. My Sunflowers of Joy for the third Hollyhill book was adjusted a bit to Summer of Joy. With my Shaker books once we settled on The something with the first one titled The Outsider, I did suggest some of the names of other books in the series like The Gifted and The Blessed and maybe The Refuge although my first title when I was coming up with the story was The Shaker Widow. Angel Sister was the first and only title for that Rosey Corner book. It fit and the publishers agreed. And now my book coming out next spring has the title I gave it, When the Meadow Blooms. When you read the story you’ll know why that title fits.
For Along a Storied Trail, I really liked something with Book Woman in the title, but a couple of other books recently published about the packhorse librarians had already used that in their titles. The publishers’ titling committee came up with the title, Along a Storied Trail, and I love it.
An editor who has worked with me on many of my books once told me I write to title. She’s right. I do that when I think I have a title that fits the story well. If you read Scent of Lilacs or Angel Sister, you’ll know what I mean. But sometimes that perfect title eludes me and then I’m glad for the brain power at my publishers to come up with something better than I did.
Have any of my book titles really grabbed your interest? Which of them do you like best?
Comments 12
I’ve always loved Scent of Lilacs. It makes me remember their showy lilac blooms and fragrant aroma.
Author
That book is special to me, Lucy. Since it brought me into the Christian publishing world and started me on this story road where I’ve met so many lovely readers like you.
Happy Monday! I’m finding it hard to believe that it’s almost November. Yikes!
River To Redemption and Angel Sister grabbed me with their titles. But the covers helped a lot too. After reading Angel Sister, I went on a reading binge with all of your books. I haven’t been disappointed with any of them. I can’t wait to hear more about the new one and read it as soon as it’s available.
Author
I love that you went on a reading binge with my stories, Lavon. That makes me smile. Those two stories, Angel Sister and River to Redemption are stories that mean a lot to me. Glad you think the titles and covers work.
Winter is coming but today the sun is shining and that’s good. Hope you are getting sunshine too. Thank you for reading my stories.
These Healing Hills, An Appalachian Summer, Along a Storied Trail, all of these stand out to me because I love reading stories about the mountains.
Author
I enjoyed writing those mountain stories, Connie. I’ll be going back to the mountains for another story soon. Right now I’m on the River. So we’ll see how that turns out.
Angel Sister and These Healing Hills. I love those covers!
You are a superb storyteller!
Author
I love it when people call me a storyteller, Paula. Thank you for that. And those are great covers to go with the titles.
Along a Storied Trail
Author
That is a great title, Lisa. Glad you think so too.
Happy Monday, Ann! When I saw the title Angel Sister, it peaked my interest and made me want to find out more about that book. Once I started reading it, I was hooked on the characters and wanted to read more about them–so, while I like the next two titles, I would have read them, no matter what the title was. Angel Sister was the first of your books that I ever read and now have a collection of your stories on my shelf, so I can see how important a title can be for an author to capture new readers. I had never thought about it before now though. I think that both you and your publishers have done a good job with your book titles. 🙂
Author
I’m glad my title, Angel Sister, was a good incentive to have you give that book a try. I loved writing about the Merritt family and Rosey Corner and I’m always happy to hear that readers enjoyed their visit to my little Kentucky community in the 1930’s and on into the 1940’s. I just did the narration for Love Comes Home. Angel Sister and Small Town Girl were already on audio, but somehow Love Comes Home missed out. So, it was fun going back into that book and remembering my fictional family. I do so appreciate you reading my books, Hope, and joining the conversation here.