Titles (I write) & Titles (I read)

Coming up with a title has never been easy for me. In fact, it might be the only time I get “writer’s block” in the course of writing a book. If one doesn’t readily appear, I look for patterns in the book, lines that speak to the work as a whole. I’ve even read poems and Bible passages looking for a word or phrase that triggers a response.

Right now, I’m in the awkward position of having spent several months outlining a novel –– that I’m now writing –– with no clue whatsoever as to what I’ll call it. Usually, by now, I have some concept, however abstract, as to what the book might be called. I’m not sure if I should be concerned.

Billy Collins’s great line about the importance of the title of a poem –– stepping from the title to the poem’s first line is as important (and tricky) as stepping from the dock into the canoe –– speaks volumes.

Does the title of a novel impact the reader’s experience the same way the title of a poem does?

I don't know.

Do I buy or read books based on titles alone? Never. Am I person who can’t remember the title of a book but can usually tell you the protagonist’s name? Yes, I’m that guy.

Titles are important. I know that. How important? That, I do not know and would love to hear from readers on this topic.

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Some titles I’m reading right now:

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami

How To Read A Book by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren

How To Read A Book is fascinating and worth a post in and of itself. It talks about the art and honor of struggling with a text. If you don’t own it, you ought to.