Great Minds Think Alike

by Gary Fearon, Creative Director, Southern Writers Magazine


You may have heard the expression "Putting the fun in dysfunctional."  It's a phrase that's been around for years and shows up from time to time.  I'm proud to announce (trumpet fanfare) that I came up with that very slogan. Yes, it's true. The only thing is, so did a thousand other people.  It seemed original to me when I first thought it up, but within a short time I was hearing it on TV and reading it in magazines.  Apparently it was a phrase whose time had come, and obviously not just to me.

I had a similar experience this very weekend, recalling the children's chant "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream."  (Full disclosure: I have never actually screamed for ice cream, but I've come close over a Chocolate Stampede at Longhorn.)  Anyway, it occurred to me that I Scream, You Scream would make a perfectly clever title for a novel. Out of curiosity, I checked to see if any books by that title already exist.

 
Well, fine.  I wasn't planning on writing that book anyway.  But it got me wondering whether some other well-known phrases that might make a catchy book title are readily available. How about "In your dreams"?

 

Strike two.  Apparently my muse gets around.  Not to be defeated, let's try again with a different phrase, maybe even something a little positive like "It's nothing personal."

Alright, I'm ready to say nasty things about my muse, but not out loud, because she's elusive enough as it is.

Maybe a different approach altogether is in order.  Surely a song title like "Can't Buy Me Love" hasn't been turned into multiple books.

By now you get the point.  You could spend a hard day's night going down that long and winding road, trying to come up with a common phrase that hasn't already been taken.  Rather than risk getting lost in the shuffle, you may be better off creating a title that's never been done before. The more original, the more memorable, such as How Come Boys Get to Keep Their Noses?  (Yes, that's actually a book.)

Not to suggest that there isn't value in borrowing a phrase that's already in the public consciousness, since the familiarity factor could pay off in extra recognition for your novel.  But if someone else should use the same title, remember ... it's nothing personal.

In Search of Titles

by Gary Fearon, Southern Writers Creative Director

Choosing the right title for a book can be as agonizing for an author as how to start the first paragraph. With an infinite pool of possibilities, how can you narrow it down to the most fitting, most irresistible title?

As always, it helps to take a cue from the pros.  In reviewing book releases from 2013, titles can be sorted into four categories:

• Simple Nouns
• Descriptive Nouns
• Situations
• Statements

Excellent examples of each can be found in our own Southern Writers Bookstore, where you'll find every author who appears in the magazine.  Let's look at a few:

SIMPLE NOUNS
A single evocative noun or nouns, conjuring curiosity.
Partholon by D. Krauss
Dollface by Renee Rosen
The Scroll by Miriam Feinberg Vamosh
Wink by Eric Trant
Moonrise by Cassandra King
Shattered by Rita Schulte
Sick & Tired by Kimberly Rae
Unseen by Karin Slaughter


DESCRIPTIVE NOUNS
Getting more specific, narrowing in on a particular subject.
Song of the Meadowlark by Sherry Wilson Johnson
Starry Night by Debbie Macomber
The Wishing Well Curse by Lynn Donovan
Shug's Place by Bob Strother
The Tempest Murders by p.m. terrell
Millie's Treasure by Kathleen Y'Barbo
The Gentleman Poet by Kathryn Johnson
Two Little Girls in a Wading Pool by Sara M. Robinson
Relative Danger by June Shaw
Tinseltown Riff by Shelly Frome
Glimpses of Glory by Peggy A. Keady
The Parchman Preacher by Michael Thompson


SITUATIONS
Identifying the central premise in the story.
Murder on the Orient Espresso by Sandra Balzo
Breach of Power by Chuck Barrett
Falling for the Lawman by Ruth Logan Herne
Taming the Sheriff by Cynthia Hickey
Being Santa Claus by Sal Lizard
Murder at Castle Rock by Anne Marie Stoddard
Quest for the Nail Prints by Don Furr
Last Chance for Justice by Kathy Macias
Looking for Me by Beth Hoffman
Death of a Dowager by Joanna Campbell Slan


STATEMENTS 
A complete sentence alluding to the idea behind the book.
Mama Was the Queen of Christmas by Linda J. Gilden
Mama Was Trashed by Deborah Sharp
The River Is Home by Patrick D. Smith
Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams by W. Terry Whalin
Murder Has Consequences by Giacomo Giammatteo
Nothing Gold Can Stay by Ron Rash
Sometimes a Light Surprises by Jamie Langston Turner
March with Me by Rosalie T. Turner
Give the Lady a Ride by Linda Yezak

So which seems to be the most common choice?  Scanning the latest releases of the 511 different authors who've appeared in Southern Writers magazine, the percentage of those title categories breaks down into the following pie chart:

At 44%, nearly half of the titles are descriptive nouns, identifying the subject of the book up front.  That's not to suggest that one choice is better than another, but it may be a trend to consider if your current work-in-progress has a unique character, setting, or issue you can capitalize on when naming your noble novel.

Fortunate is the author who finds just the right title and never has to look back.  But you can make Christmas shopping something you won't have to second-guess by visiting the aforementioned Southern Writers Bookstore, powered by Amazon. Not only will you find the right titles for everyone on your list, you'll discover a few you can't live without either.  Happy holidays!

Fish Hooks and Writing

By Annette Cole Mastron, Communications Director for Southern Writers Magazine

While doing some research at a local bookstore, a title hooks my brain. This is not a recommendation for a book or an author, but to pose several questions. Would this title draw your attention? Or am I the only one that finds the title curious? "Why Fish Fart and Other Useless or Gross Information about the World"  It catches my eye and draws my hand to reach for the book. The point is, the title intrigued me enough to pull it off the shelf surrounded by hundreds of other books vying for my attention. At home, still curious by the title, I researched the title and author. Why? Because the title stuck in my brain and I had to know more about this book and author. 

The teachers who most impressed me in school are those who made their subjects spring off the pages of the textbook and land upside my skull. Writers need to learn, from their own great teachers, how to hook their readers. 

A search for this book yielded a couple of review pages telling me the book is not the humorous tongue-in-cheek satire I'd expected. Rather, it is an organized book of scientific animal factoids that are most unique and interesting. Several I recognized as crime plots in a current police television dramas. 

More of the author's catchy titles are, "Why You Shouldn't Eat Your Boogers and Other Useless or Gross Information about Your Body" and "Why Is Yawning Contagious? Everything you ever wanted to know about the human body and some things you'd rather not know". There is no doubt author Francesca Gould has found a way to make science fun and contagiously intriguing.

Armed with scientific factoids and a catchy title, books can be born. Does this give you a good idea for a book?