Coming up with a Title
It’s a democratic process.
When I wrote my first novel, I called it White Stock. The book was about child migrants to Australia and, unbelievably, that is what the children were dubbed by a government keen to ‘import’ Anglo Saxon boys and girls in order to boost their white population and hold back the ‘Asian hordes.’ I was pleased with the title: it was ironic and hard hitting – or so I thought. But my publishers politely suggested that my book was too gentle for such a title – they wanted something more poignant about the mother-son separation – so it became ‘The Oceans Between Us.’
I dubbed my next book ‘Eva’s song’ as it had a musical theme threaded through the story, connecting my protagonist learning a piece of music in the Prologue, to her daughters playing it in her memory, in the Epilogue. But again, my publishers wanted something more heart-wrenching so the novel became ‘The Child on Platform One.’
When people ask me what my third book is called, I jokingly reply ‘Book Three.’ I’ve learned that I am not very good at coming up with titles. Much better to leave it to the experts. But I did have an initial chat to my editor the other day, when we mulled over a few options.
She gave me some fascinating insights into the process of determining a book’s title. It has to be suitable for the genre, it must work well with the cover illustration, it must have commercial appeal, it should convey key themes or issues. It’s best (although not always easy) to avoid titles that have already been taken. It mustn’t be too abstract; it mustn’t have unfortunate connotations or double entendres. Although my editor, agent and I might have some input, the sales and marketing team need to be consulted as they are up with current trends, and they collect data on what titles seem to sell well. In short, it’s a team decision and although my publishers will seek my approval, I generally defer to their expertise.
But hopefully I should have a title for book three very soon. When I do, you’ll be the first to know!