Hazel Edwards
Very carefully. With the experience of over 200 books whose titles have had to be written multiple times , I now favour one word or short titles. An ideal title would be one word, which is ambiguous but all the ambiguities apply to the story. Adding a sub-title is a compromise which provides a clue about the genre for the potential reader. ' Celebrant Sleuth: I do or die' is my latest adult mystery and although some get confused between 'celebrity' and 'celebrant' the sub title indicates the murder mysteries associated with the sleuth Quinn who celebrates weddings and funerals. ' 'Ho!Ho!Ho! There's a Hippopotamus on Our Roof Eating Christmas Cake' is VERY long, but uses the familiarity of readers with the original book title. I also name all my chapters, and pinch the best chapter title as the eventual book title.
More Answered Questions
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more