Obviously
I can’t speak for anyone else and usually my titles come out of the
blue. But sometimes I have a title for a book before I even start
writing it. This was the case for my first published book (not the
first written), The Pig Farm, also the first book in my (Human) Zoo
Trilogy. Not only were no pigs harmed in the writing of this book but
no pigs appeared either unless one considers the human kind. But
something happened when I lived on a real Caribbean island that gave
me the idea and I couldn’t get it out of my mind. I also had the
titles in mind for the next two books in the trilogy: The Pool
Lizards and The Groundhog Lounge. No lizards or groundhogs appeared
in those books either but something or someone just happened to
inspire those titles.
My first
title choice for Amorous Ambush was Airport Ambush but that was a
ridiculous choice for a romance novel. And the ambush in the novel
was very amorous in my humble opinion.
While I
was writing my first group of Twisted Tales (Margarita, Phoebe, City
Girl-Country Girl, Nicolas), I hadn’t thought of any particular
title for the whole collection. After I read through all four of
them, I discovered something repetitious in each of them and, at
first, I was dismayed. In each book there was a pivotal scene where
the doorbell rang. And then it hit me—that should be the title of
the book. Never mind that many authors have used that title but
titles can’t be copyrighted. So, for Part One of Twisted Tales
(another common title), I titled the little book The Doorbell Rang.
The
easiest title was Death by Salsa because it referred to two real life
friends who were arguing over who had the hottest salsa. I jokingly
said, “I could write a book with the title Death by Salsa.” And I
did.
A
Caribbean Summer was a fantasy I had before I went to the Caribbean
where I lived for four years. Nothing in the book resembled anything
that happened to me in real life and I created the fictional island
of Palmaltas to replace the island where I had lived.
I can’t
remember when I came up with the title The Chameleon Chase. The story
began in my mind during the 1980s and 1990s but it was the only title
that could fit the story.
And so it
goes. I may start with a title already in mind (such as The Pig Farm
or Death by Salsa) or eventually discover something that holds the
book together (The Doorbell Rang). Sometimes I write a story and
still don’t know what the title should be after I have completed
it. I wrestled with A Colorado Destiny for a long time before the
title jumped out at me.
But
titles are important and play a big part in how some readers choose
what to read. Many people look at The Pig Farm, The Pool Lizards and
The Groundhog Lounge and think they are for children. They aren’t.
Yet, those are the only titles that fit the stories.