Proceeding Titles

Welcome Writers! And a Happy Great Outdoors Month to everyone! 

There is so much to celebrate this month, and not the least of which is today, and here’s why:   Take a look around our awesome group by clicking the links below and check out the extensive list of writing tips and resources offered by the Insecure Writers Support Group, founded by Alex Cavanaugh, right here and right now on this first Wednesday of the month, when IWSG members convene through blogging, Facebook, and Twitter to talk about whatever is on our writing minds and agendas. See what we’re all talking about here. 

As for me:

I’ve chosen to answer the optional question of the month: “What’s harder for you to come up with, book titles or character names?”

When you think about it, Titles are pretty important. In describing your status at work, a title can inspire you to strive for a higher position. Along with a registration, a title will prove that you own the car that might have traveled a half-mile over the speed limit.  If not for titles, can you imagine having to search for the exact piece you’d been working on in an endless succession of unnamed “documents”?  

In fact, I usually have a title in mind whenever I begin a new manuscript, though I know it’s only temporary. For instance, The Lawn Mower Wheel sounds like an absolute yawn of read until you consider the hilarious chain of events that occur after one (wheel) shoots across the lawn on an otherwise ordinary afternoon. Add to that the unfortunate concussion incurred by an over-zealous developer intent on mowing down a picturesque neighborhood for the sake of a glass-walled high-rise and the finished story might well be called “The Mower”; a title more likely to pique a reader’s interest. In relation to books, titles aren’t simply important; they are highly potent marketing tools.

I love naming Characters! I’ve actually named a few who went unnamed in a story, if only for my own reference. On occasion (when it fits) I’ve named a menacing rabid dog Sweet Pea while her diminutive mild-mannered owner went by the name Thor.  In my experience, the perfectly normal propensity to discover and use the most unique, and therefore memorable, character names can backfire.  If the name is too long, too unusual, or frankly, forgettable, so becomes the character to the reader (also my experience). It can be challenging at times, but in the interest of keeping a reader’s interest, it’s worth considering 😉

So, how’s your journey? What will you write this summer? What was the last Drive-In movie you went to see?

Happy Writing!