Title: A Rose by Any Other Name…
Do you start with
one, or does it emerge organically from your writing process? How important is
a title in shaping your project—or even selling it?
The title is the
second most important thing in my writing process. The first us the the
emergence of the main character—protagonist or antagonist, doesn’t matter. I find
that I can’t write a word until that main character walks onto the stage that
is my brain and introduces themselves and tells me their story.
Even as the story is
forming so too is the title. Kinda like giving birth, out comes the baby and
very soon after we label it. Occasionally the label/title may come first, but
never before the conception of the story. That’s my process. Is it weird? I
don’t know, but I know the one time I’ve tried to write a story without a
definite title has been hell and I’ll never do it again.
Why is that, you may
wonder. I’ve had plenty of time to think about it over the past year and I
think that for me a title means the idea or story is fully baked and ready to
go. It’s like my writing brain has done all the pre-work and delivered this
thing to me with clear instructions on where to go leaving me with the
beautiful job of filling in the blanks that will maneuver me through all the
twist and turns that will pop up. Yep, just like parenthood.
Writing without a
title feels like I skipped a crucial step. The story doesn’t feel quite right
or ready. Ever bit into a piece of chicken after taking it from the grill and
seeing the telltale pink that says, not quite ready yet. Or pulled cake
from the oven just a bit too early, if meat isn’t your thing. That’s me when
trying to write without a title firmly in place.
This isn’t to say
that it can’t be done. Sure, it can. But the road ahead feels a lot rockier, at
least for this writer. Now, I’m sure there are plenty of writers who would read
this and scratch their heads having no idea what I’m blathering on about. And
maybe they’re right. Especially since we all know that it is foolhardy to
become attached to a title when your publisher could be waiting to get their
hands on it and change it without any regard for the work that went into naming
your book baby.
Let’s be honest
though. No method is 100%. The first book I published started out being called
Fat Girl, slowly over time it evolved into Fat Chance, a decision I made on my
own without any poking, prodding, or threats from any other party. As the story
evolved, naturally the title did too. I’m guessing I’m not the only writer who
has had this experience. It happened again with my first traditionally
published novel, which started as Hurt Farm, but became Hurt Mountain in the
end. A change that caused me some anxiety in the beginning. Until I heard that
whisper from my characters that said, yes, this is alright.
To start with a
title or not, that is the question. I think we all know where I stand. What
about you?
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