Choosing the Right Title for Your Memoir
Posted by Kathleen Pooler/@kathypooler
“Next in importance to books are titles.” ~Frank Crane
Photo Credit: Free Image from Pixabay
Choosing the Right Title for Your Memoir
We all know that a book’s title needs to pack a punch right away.No matter how great our story may be, it will be the title that catches the attention of the reader.
The book’s title is a promise to our readers.
When I think of my own reading habits and what goes into my decision to read a new book, I know the title matters.
My Story…
Over the course of the twenty years I have been writing my current memoir, I have accrued many different titles:
To Lovingly Detach: A Mother’s Journey Through Her Son’s Addiction
The Edge of Hope: A Mothers Journey Through Her Son’s Addiction
Daring to Hope: A Mother’s Journey Through Her Son’s Addiction.
Hope is indeed a main thread in my narrative and yet I wanted to find a title that would make me stop in my tracks and say, “Aha!”,especially since the trajectory of my story took on a new twist with the diagnosis of cancer in the midst of my son’s addiction, leading to the narrative question :
How does one handle simultaneous life-threatening battles and come out on the other side?
The title needs to give a glimpse of the book’s main message or theme without giving the whole story away all at once.
That happened with my first memoir, Ever Faithful to His Lead: My Journey Away From Emotional Abuse during an open mic reading of an excerpt at a IWWG writer’s conference at Drew University in Madison, New Jersey in 2013.
I was waiting for that same “aha ” moment with this memoir and it came at a most unexpected moment during another open mic reading of an excerpt of my current memoir at the same writing conference at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania in July, 2018.
Drum roll…
Just the Way He Walked: A Mother’s Story of Healing From Cancer and Her Son’s Alcohol Addiction
In both cases the right title came from my writing. The story revealed my title.
These are the questions I am asking myself:
* Is the title catchy?
* Does the title strike at the heart of my story?
* Does my title reveal my promise to the reader?
* Does the title create interest for the reader?
Here’s why it feels right:
It resonates with a main thread in my story of a young man who struggles with the absence of a strong father figure in his life.
It highlights the mother’s perspective of fearing her son will turn into his father, the alcoholic.
It underscores the heart of my story that addiction is passed on through the generations and is a force to be reckoned with.
The subtitle focuses on the overall narrative arc of hope and healing through simultaneous life threatening challenges.
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The title guides the journey
Now that I have a title that fits the vision I have for my memoir, I can develop a marketing plan that aligns with my memoir’s main theme.
For example, I can generate topics of interest for guest posts or speaking engagements after the book is published.
Now, the next important decision will be the book cover.
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How about you? Do titles matter to you as a reader? As a writer, how do you decide on your book’s title?
I’d love to hear from you. Please join in the conversation below~
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This Week:
Monday, 7/30/18:
July 2018 Monthly Newsletter: Updates, Memoir Musings and Max Moments
“The Freedom to Choose”
If you are interested in receiving this monthly newsletter in your inbox, please sign up in the right side bar. I’d love to have you along!
Thursday, 8/2/18:
“Simplicity in Life: A WOW Blog Tour with Memoirist Jo Ann Simon.”
Jo Ann is the author of Rose Colored Glasses: A Memoir of Love, Loss and Hope, the poignant story of how one woman stayed afloat, upbeat and connected to her husband while he was suffering from a debilitating illness.
Next Week:
Monday, 8/6/18:
“My Journey to Memoir by Lyndon Back”
Lyn is the author of Treading Water at the Shark Cafe, an American Quaker woman’s extraordinary journey of witness and discovery from her suburban Philadelphia home to the war zones of the former Yugoslavia.
