Blogger: Janet Kobobel Grant
A single word as a book’s title is all the rage. But do they work?
Here are a few books populating current best-seller lists:
In fiction–Blue, Breakdown, Brooklyn, Burn–hmm, maybe “b” titles are a thing too–Friction, Room, January, Legend, April, Home, Deadlocked, Mystery, Eve, Risen
In nonfiction–Originals, Gratitude, Quiet, Outliers, Service, Imagine, Bombshell, Unbroken, Screwed!, Bossypants, Fervent, Audacious
Children’s Picture Books–Bumble-Ardy
Middle Grade–Pax, Wonder, Crenshaw, Chomp
Young Adult–Passenger, Ascend, Destined, Insurgent, Divergent, Bitterblue
Note: I didn’t include titles that used an article, just single words.
I recently read an article in which the writer complained that single-word titles are relatively meaningless and unimaginative.
Wouldn’t it be better to make your book stand out by giving it a more memorable title which didn’t seem like it was lifted from a dictionary of unusual words in a desperate attempt to sound unique? I love interesting words as much as the next person and I love to use them in stories but when I look at a shelf full of these single-word titles I find them rather formulaic.
As your eyes scanned the titles I listed above, did you slip into a mental haze? Or did you respond to titles differently–maybe Blue didn’t do much for you but Bitterblue intrigued you?
I do have to agree with the article writer when she said single-word titles within a series can sometimes become stretched to the imagination’s breaking point.
To make matters worse, all these books seem to have endless sequels, with increasingly nonsensical titles in an attempt to make them match.
One of my clients (Dani Pettrey) created a five-book “Alaskan Courage” romantic suspense series with one-word titles that each began with an “S.” I think these titles all worked (Submerged, Shattered, Stranded, Silenced, Sabotaged) because they each suited the story they were teamed up with and each cover was a strong reflection of the word. But Dani and her publisher agreed that her second series, “Chesapeake Valor,” would consist of two-word titles for each book. Being squeezed into having to come up with an “S” word that fit the tone of the series and each story-line was challenging work.
Nonfiction titles have the distinct advantage of the single word being followed by a subtitle, to give some definition and shape to what the book is about. For example: Service: A Navy SEAL at War or Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking make a great tag-team. The subtitle infuses the title with meaning.
But then, sometimes nonfiction titles don’t include a subtitle, as is the case with Gratitude. I didn’t immediately remember who the author was so the title holds neither attraction nor revulsion. Just indifference.
For fiction, the cover art has to do the filling in since there is no subtitle. Let’s take a look at a couple of one-word titles that seem obscure if they aren’t accompanied by their covers.
The concept of Passenger is beautifully conveyed in this YA book’s cover. We see a modern city in a bottle, like a tall ship created in a bottle and suggesting the worlds that ship has traveled to. The word “passenger” also is written in a formal script, which suggests another era. Through these graphic devices, we realize this is a time travel novel. Having to put those puzzle pieces together makes me want to pick up the book and find out more.
Brooklyn takes place in Ireland and Brooklyn during the 1950s and tells the story of a young immigrant to America. The cover readily conveys the era through the protagonist’s clothing, luggage, and the car. It fills in a number of blanks for the reader so you can decide if that era interests you.
Do you like one-word titles? What do you think they can convey more effectively than longer titles? What one-word titles have you especially enjoyed reading? Did the title entice you or put you off?
TWEETABLES
Can one-word book titles work? Click to tweet.
What makes a one-word title work–or not? Click to tweet.
Light bulb image courtesy of Keerati at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Shelli Littleton
I’m okay with one word titles, as long as the title works with the book, like you mentioned. My girls love Divergent, etc … they don’t care how many words are in the title. I love the Passenger cover, even the title … makes me very curious and makes me want to pack my bag. And there is always something intriguing about a bottle … a ship in a bottle, etc. How on earth did that get inside that bottle? 🙂 Let’s open the page and find out …
Janet Grant
I, too, love the Passenger cover. I think the graphic designer did an amazing job of conveying so much but doing it simply.
Andrew Budek-Schmeisser
Interesting topic, Janet, and one upon which a dissertation could be based. Herewith, the abstract…
* First, it seems to me that at least a couple of examples (“Passenger” and “Brooklyn”) are not really single-word titles at all…they’re mixed media, and their impact would be lessened without the cover art.
* One might categorize ‘blind’ single-word titles thus –
1) Those that describe a cultural icon; Carlos d’Este’s “Patton – A Genius for War” hardly needs a subtitle. “Risen” falls into this category as well.
2) Those written by an author whose name and career are iconographic; Elie Wiesel’s “Night” is an example, since few would miss the connection to the Holocaust. In a less sublime vein are Michener’s later works, such as “Space” and “Poland”…the phrase ‘epic tome’ comes to mind. Don’t drop one on your foot.
3) Those which accurately describe the subject matter, of which Martin Middlebrook’s history “Convoy” is a good example. Though the currency of the term is dated now, it is a description of a North Atlantic convoy during WW2. (Middlebrook blew it with another one-word title, “Battleship”, about the sinking of the ‘Repulse’ and ‘Prince of Wales’ at the beginning of the war…first, ‘Repulse’ was a battlecruiser, rather a different sort of beast, and second, the title would be more apropos to a battleship v. battleship encounter than the lethally languid aerial target practice of the Japanese on the brightly fell mid-day.)
4) Titles that may mean a lot to the writer but are enigmatic to those not vouchsafed his truths…like Leon Uris’ “Trinity”. Did he mean the Holy Trinity, Trinity College in Dublin, or perhaps the Trinity Site near Alamogordo? None of the above, though it is set in Ireland. (Uris also wrote “Exodus”, about the famed Israeli refugee ship and the events surrounding its interception and eventual landing.)
5) Titles that are well-thought-out allegories to the plot, like Nevil Shute’s “Pastoral”, an evergreen and gentle love story that invokes several meanings for the word, notably drawing on the idealization of county life in pastoral genres of literature, poetry, and music (recall Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony, “The Pastoral”.)
6) Titles that are simply epic fails (well, to me), like “Blue”, “Bossypants”, and “Friction”. All they do is point toward marketing cleverness that falls on its…face.
* On the whole I’m more fond of descriptive titles, and descriptive chapter headings…H.G. Wells’ “Tono-Bungay” has a chapter with the irresistible title, “How I Stole The Heaps Of Quap”. It’s an obvious spoiler for the action, but does its completeness of description make one want to simply skip over the chapter? I think not.
Janet Grant
Andrew, thanks for the examples of well-executed one-word titles and poorly executed ones. I agree that Passenger and Brooklyn rely heavily on the cover’s image to convey more fully what the story is about, but I think that’s often true of fiction. Beautifully done covers intertwine design and title seamlessly.
By the way, Blue is by Danielle Steele. It could be titled, “Danielle Steele #3498,” and it would sell. But it does have a pretty cover.
Shirlee Abbott
“Room” works for me because it is symbolic of the story, as sparse as the setting.
*I agree with Andrew about title failures that try to be clever but leave me clueless. There are books I enjoyed reading but can’t remember the title, simply because the title didn’t click to the content.
*Titles that tie so closely with the cover work well for a book I’m holding in my hands. But would I search for it based on someone’s recommendation? Maybe not.
Janet Grant
I love Room as the title for Emma Donoghue’s novel. Especially because her son thought noun’s were the names of objects since he only knew of the existence of that single object. So he never used articles. There was Room, Lamp, Ma, etc.
Lara Hosselton
A single word title isn’t a problem for me as long as it peaks my interest, but the cover needs to be equally intriguing. With that said, I think the cover’s designer has a better opportunity to something interesting with one word, as with Passenger and Brooklyn.
Janet Grant
Lara, you make a good point that too many words on a cover clutter it up and leave little room for a stunning graphic.
Carol Ashby
For fiction, I think one-word titles can be very effective when they capture a critical characteristic of the plot or characters, whether for books or movies. Movie examples include Fireproof, Courageous, and Risen. (If you haven’t seen the new movie, Risen, do. It’s a compelling, well-acted story of a man transformed, inexorably drawn toward faith even though initially against his will.) Two-word titles that combine an adjective and a noun may be easier to craft to both intrigue and describe. Anything beyond four words feels long for a work of fiction, to me at least, but I’m reluctant to say any number of words is superior to any other number. It all depends on the specific title for me.
Janet Grant
Carol, I agree that longer fiction titles are harder to remember, which can be a problem. But here are three that sold like crazy: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society, and Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day.
Sometimes a long title is just the right title, but generally speaking, not.
Carol Ashby
Janet, in general, do you think longer titles work better for kids/YA or for adults?
Janet Grant
Carol, I noticed, as I checked various best-seller lists, that very few books for younger children consist of one word. Single-word YA titles glut bookshelves; it’s quite the trend for that age group. I personally think a longer title works better for adults because it helps to differentiate your book from others similarly titled. And we might have more knowledge of phrases as adults than children would. So phrases like Code Blue, Fatal Trauma, or Critical Condition all hold layered meaning for an adult while a younger reader would just grasp the concept of tension in the titles. (All of which are titles for Richard Mabry’s medical suspense novels.) The longer our conversation goes on, the more I realize how often a single-word title isn’t the best choice.
Carol Ashby
Thanks for sharing your insights!
Jeanne Takenaka
I tend to agree with what’s already been said. If a one-word title is unique and descriptive of the story (i.e. Divergent and that series), one word works. But titles like Blue or January hold no meaning, and are not alluring enough to tempt me to look at why those titles are significant to the story.
*And I definitely agree that the cover art makes that one word title pop. The examples you shared both intrigued me.
*Or a one-word title that is later in the series but is significant. Mockingjay from the Hunger Games series works because there was a build up in book two that led to an understanding of this title for book three.
*I did read James Michener’s, Centennial, and it felt longer than one hundred years in the beginning of the book. 🙂 It was descriptive of a greater time span than one-hundred years. Once the story got underway, I really enjoyed the story.
Janet Grant
Jeanne, I agree that Blue and January, by themselves without a graphic are nothing words. Blue is written by Danielle Steele (so it will sell), but the cover is a lovely snow scene with lots of blue tints. January is the first novel in the Calendar Girl Series, which is about a woman who sells herself as “high-priced arm candy” (escort service). I guess the series is pretty sexy, but the covers just swap out the month as the title and use a different color on the title and a band. The covers wouldn’t make you pick up these books; you’d need to know what it’s about and that you like to read that sort of thing.
Jennifer Zarifeh Major
On the rare occasion, they do. In the case of Dani’s, they work very well.
Rarely do I see one word titles as much more than attempts at pretentiousness. Like big words on a Monday morning. 😉
Andrew Budek-Schmeisser
How about “Paaschendaele”?
Jennifer Major
Ahh, now THAT name is in a league of its own!!
Andrew Budek-Schmeisser
Indeed it is, and forms part of my morning prayers.
Janet Grant
I think single-word titles can work well on certain types of books: thrillers, suspense, romantic suspense. They suggest a fast-paced, breathtaking story.
Gayla Grace
Because I do a lot of magazine article writing, I immediately began to consider the subject as it relates to articles. One of the publishers I write for monthly likes one or two-word titles, and since each issue has an overall theme, it works nicely to find a one-word title with a punch that ties in with the theme. But in other cases, when it’s a stand-alone article, it’s hard to grab the reader’s attention with a one-word title that entices them enough to read the article.
As others have mentioned, whether referring to a one-word book title or magazine article title, does it work? It depends…
Janet Grant
Gayla, I think making a one-word article title work is even harder than making a single-word book title work. With an article, you do have the tagline, the art, and perhaps a quote from the article to entice a reader in, but still, it seems that it’s asking that one word to carry a lot of freight.
Sue Harrison
I love clever single-word titles, although I’ve never been clever enough to think of a single-word title for any of my novels! For me, single-word titles are easier to remember with one exception, which is one of my favorite memoir/biographies of all time, so I’ve recommended it to many readers. However, UNBROKEN is very difficult for me to remember, and I believe the problem is that the word begins with a vowel. Even with longer titles, if the dominant word begins with a vowel, I have trouble remembering the name.
I don’t know if that’s my own particular brain glitch or if it’s common to other readers.
Janet Grant
Sue, I’ve never thought about vowels as being a stumbling block. I never had trouble remembering Unbroken, but I always have to look up the title of one of my all-time favorite fiction reads: The Imperfectionists. I don’t get why the book was titled that way; so all I can ever recall is that it begins with an “i.” That doesn’t get one too far in even located it via Google. I’ll pay more attention to whether vowels make a title harder for me to remember.
Wendy Lawton
Interesting, Janet! I have loved single word titles because they are large on the cover and can be powerful but looking at the cover for Brooklyn, it made me wonder. Which is more evocative, Brooklyn or A Tree Grows in Brooklyn?
Janet Grant
I’m voting for A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. So much more interested and evocative.
But I’m not sure I could improve on Passenger.
Bill Giovannetti
Excellent
Janet Grant
Thanks, Bill.
Andrew Budek-Schmeisser
Janet, I have a question –
* To what degree do you think the current trend for one-word titles is driven by the need to be distinctive and memorable on an Amazon thumbnail image?
Janet Grant
Certainly a one-word title gives more space for an intriguing graphic that, even thumbnail-size, can draw potential readers in.
But I think the trend is more about trying to sound relevant in a world slathered with words. So much is coming at us from so many directions that if you can reach me with one compelling word rather than four okay words, it’s easier to get my attention.
Stephanie Whitson
I tend to expense suspense or thrillers when I hear a one-word title. I’m obviously behind-the-times. If that trend ever carries over into historical romance (my genre) ever, we’re all going to be in trouble. Then again, maybe I’ll just use Wedding 764, Love 1,777, and Bride 423 and hope for the best LOL.
Janet Grant
Stephanie, you make a good point that it might be harder to find one word to work for a historical novel. Because of the punch of a single-word title, I would think the more leisurely tone of historicals doesn’t lend itself as readily to that simple title. The only historical I can think of, beyond the ones mentioned in previous comments (Exodus, Centennial), is Geraldine Brooks’s March, about the absent father in Little Women. But I agree with you that one-word titles tend not to work well for historical fiction.
Kristen Joy Wilks
I like one word titles. But I also like longer titles as well. I think both the titles “Legend” and “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nigh-time” work well. But one word titles used to be rare and are quite popular now and as something grows to be popular, the effectiveness does wane.
Janet Grant
Kristen, good point that overuse of any device can make us weary. If the trend went toward long titles, we’d probably end up feeling muddled about how to arrange all the words in the correct order to come up with a single title we’re trying to recall. At this point, sometimes all I can remember is that a particular book has a one-word title that begins with the letter____.
Richard Mabry
My publisher renamed my first novel, saying the one I’d chosen didn’t reflect the medical aspect. I didn’t particularly like the one chosen, but I did think a two word title worked well. Publishers have accepted the ones I proposed ever since, and I’ve stuck with two words for each. When I chose a title for my second novella, I picked a four word title, and I’ve been sorry I did it. One or two words seem to be the sweet spot.
Janet Grant
Thanks for telling us about your experiences is varying lengths in titles, Richard. I think since you write suspense, a shorter title is more likely to serve up the tension you want to convey.
Catherine
I think one word titles are fine, but I’ve been known to buy books just because they have a longer and interesting title. Yes, I’ve bought books because of a cool title.
We are current reading as our breakfast book (with my 13 year old son) Scumble the second book in the Savvy, Scumble, Switch series.
http://buildinglifelongreaders.blogspot.com/2016/02/im-hungry-dinosaur-by-janeen-brian-and.html
Janet Grant
I would think one-word titles could be very appealing to younger readers, especially if the words are just right: Scratch, Punch, Sweat…you know, boy kinds of words.
Elisabeth
Yes. And no. Carl Hiassen has a great series like that: Hoot, Chomp, and…..I can’t remember the others. Easy to forget– especially for kids. But it doesn’t matter because he’s Carl Hiassen. That said, Ingrid Law’s Savvy, Scumble, and Switch are wonderful!
Elisabeth
I’m a library worker, and one-word titles drive me crazy! It makes your book harder to find and easier to forget. Patrons often come in looking for a book they saw or heard about. Was it Longer? Linger? Lover? They’re not sure, but it was definitely a romance. Well, that could be any one of a thousand books! If you’re a popular author with an established name and following, you can get away with it, but if you’re not, I think you may be losing readers who might have found your book with a more memorable title. Do a search on the word Survivor at your local library and you’ll see my problem!
Janet Grant
Thank you so much for your perspective, Elisabeth. So I’m guessing “survivor” shouldn’t be on my Top Picks list for a title.
Davalynn Spencer
In the cover for Passenger, I like the way a ship in a bottle reflects in the “water” rather than the city in a bottle. Another huge clue. (That is a ship, right? Hard to stand on my head on my desk …)
Shelli Littleton
Yes … that is so neat.
Janet Grant
I totally didn’t see the ship reflected. Thanks for pointing that out!
Becky Ann Savoie
I think it’s all a trade off. One word titles are easier to remember. There’s a reason when referring to HP books you usually refer to them as things like, “The Prisoner of Azkaban” or just “Azkaban” rather than keeping the “Harry Potter and the…” each time.
On the other hand they can possibly get confused with other books with similar titles. Or, like with Scott Westerfeld’s “Uglies” I always find myself referring to it as “THE Uglies” because it feels wrong saying it without some kind of article in there.
In the end as long as it fits the book, I say go for it 🙂
Janet Grant
We do tend to shorten titles to their key word when we talk about them, but we’ve already mentioned the entire title earlier in the conversation or know that the person we’re talking to knows the book and would connect it to the shortened title.
Angela Mills
Funny, I was just thinking about titles this weekend. I am working on ideas for my newest book and I was scribbling titles. Sometimes I find one-word titles seem to make the book sound like a different genre. Many times, it sounds like a suspense or thriller or YA dystopian. Maybe that’s just me. I do agree that the cover art makes quite a difference!
Janet Grant
Angela, I agree with you that one-word titles suggest suspense, thriller, or dystopian books. Fast-paced, survival types of stories. So if an author of a different genre used a single-word title, you’re swimming upstream. Doesn’t mean it can’t work, but the book cover will have to work harder to be effective.
Elissa
Dick Francis used many one word titles (Longshot, Proof, Refusal etc.) but not exclusively. Many of his titles come from horse racing–specifically steeplechasing–for obvious reasons, but they always relate to the story.
**
I think having a title that relates to the story is more important than how many words comprise it.
**
My husband frequently relates this anecdote (I don’t know where he got it): Writer is pondering what to title his opus. Friends asks, Does it contain any drums?”
**
Writer, “No.”
**
“Does it contain any bugles?”
**
“No.”
**
“There you go! Call it, ‘No Drums, No Bugles’!”
Janet Grant
Thanks for the reminder of Dick Francis’ books. If you write about a specific area (steeplechasing, auto racing, wrestling (????)), one word can really work to brand your books. Outside of that, I think it’s much more challenging.
Love the “No Drums, No Bugles” story. That sort of thinking opens up all sorts of title possibilities,doesn’t it?
Teresa Tysinger
I’m late commenting (what a Monday!), but tend to agree with those who feel it’s a package deal. If the one word is paired well with cover design, and relevancy to the story, it can be very intriguing. For some reason, a random thought just occurred to me. The Great Gatsby is an interesting title. But Gatsby has a unique enough ring to it that it could have worked on its own. Smith, however, would not work well on its own….there’s got to be a uniqueness to a one-word title to catch my eye.
Janet Grant
Teresa, I so agree with you. Not only does the word need to be unique, but it needs to fit the book. That’s something we haven’t really talked about. If a book is entitled Relevant, could that title fit lots of other books? Probably. Actually, in one way or another, every book is relevant. That’s why I think Blue is a weak title but Bitterblue is much more interesting. And, by the way, it is the name of the protagonist. Bitterblue, meet Gatsby.
Lori Benton
Talking about title lengths makes me think of Diana Gabaldon’s titles for her Outlander series. There’s the one worders: Outlander and Voyager (#1 and #3). There’s the three worders: Dragonfly in Amber, Drums of Autumn and The Fiery Cross (#2, #4, #5). Then the titles get longer. A Breath of Snow and Ashes (#6), An Echo in the Bone (#7) Written In My Own Hearts Blood (#8). Which are the more memorable? I tend to get those last three confused even though An Echo in the Bone is one of the more evocative titles of the lot to me but that could be it’s speaks to themes that run deep in my own writerly soul. 🙂 So lets set that one aside. I’d say my favorites are 2 and 4, the three-word titles. But I do like one word titles when they fit the book, not when they are forced.
Janet Grant
Lori, what an interesting exercise to look at one author’s titling escapades for a single series. I’m partial to Outlander, partly because it holds so much meaning for me, having watched the TV series. Dragonfly in Amber is evocative and paints a picture in my mind; so that wins second place for me. All of the others feel as though they could appear on so many other books; they just don’t feel as distinctly “outlander-ish” to me. I agree that An Echo in the Bone is lovely, but I’d never be able to recall that title. I don’t associate it with anything so I can’t find a mental slot to put it in.
Jen Freeman
I don’t mind one-word titles, as long as they make sense. I think a lot of books name themselves. In my case, the title for the first in my trilogy just came to me. Basically, l felt as if l had no choice…it called itself ‘Web Island.’ The title has a multi-faceted meaning, which reveals itself by the end of Part One. Have no idea, yet, what the other two titles will be…maybe one word.
Janet Grant
Jen, when inspiration strikes, it’s generally best to bow to it. Wishing you more inspiration on the other titles.
John Wells
As Juliet says to Romeo in which those famous lines “…a rose by any other name…”
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title.
Even so, there are certain biographies in which one word titles can be appropriate: Hitler, Einstein, Washington, Napoleon, etc.
Janet Grant
Biographies of renowned and infamous people are probably BEST served by having the name as the book’s title.