naming a short story collection

[Michael]

Hi everyone,

Happy New Year!

I was just wondering if I could have some advice as I want to publish a collection of short stories but I'm unsure what to call the title on Amazon. I've seen other authors just go with: "A collection of Short Stories" but are there any specific rules?

One of my short stories is called Garden Hopping, so I was thinking of just calling the book that and then in the description write that this is a collection of short stories. I just think the title is then a bit neater and more catchy.

Thanks.

[Jim]

Well I like your idea, 'Garden Hopping' is both neat and catchy

[Michael]

I've only done one collection of short stories but I used the name of one of the stories as the name for the overall book.

[Michael]

Cheers Jim and Michael, I think i'll go with 'Garden Hopping' as the title!

[Michael]

Thanks also Jacquelynn, it will be an ebook and i'll make sure to put everything i can into the description then so not to mislead the potential reader!

[Rosemary (grooving with the Picts)]

I like Garden Hopping. It is something I do often ;)

[Jim]

It sounds a bit intriguing , somehow related to bed hopping ;-)

[David]

Naturally you mean flower beds, Jim ;~)

[Gingerlily - The Full Wild]

Ribbit, ribbit...

[Jim]

No one should hop on flower beds, makes them untidy

[Gingerlily - The Full Wild]

You could plant hops in the flower beds instead.

[Patti (baconater)]

Oh Lordy.

She at it early today.

[Gingerlily - The Full Wild]

I ate it early?

[Darren]

If the blurb makes it clear it's a collection of short stories then you should call it whatever you want. The title of one of the stories included is perfectly fine, but so is an overall title. Stephen King's used both methods and he's not suffered.

[Michael]

Thanks Darren, and everybody else!

[A.L.]

I have a question on this. How long is a short story? When does it stop being flash fiction? Is there is list somewhere?

[Kath]

Wiki says,

over 40,000 - Novel
17,500 - 40,000 - Novella
7,500 - 17,500 - novelette
under 7,500 - short story.

I've seen other definitions though. According to this I've written a novel, 40,500 - but it doesn't feel like one to me!

[Jim]

I seem to remember reading a comment by Asimov where he set a novel at 60,000 words and above.
Mind you I think it was also him who pointed out that kids comics at the time also contained about 60k words so your immediate post war small boy was reading a novel a week.
I suspect that the total has been dumbed down :-(

[A.L.]

ok thanks.