Finding a Title That Earns Its Claim
Launch library · evergreen read
A memoir's title makes an implicit promise about what the book actually contains, whether the writer intends that or not from the outset. Titles reaching for drama or grandeur that the actual material does not support tend to leave readers feeling misled, however striking the phrase might sound on its own.
The strongest titles usually emerge from something specific within the book itself, an image, a phrase spoken by a key figure, a small recurring detail woven through the chapters. This is rather than an abstract theme imposed from outside the actual material the writer has patiently built over many drafts.
Testing a title against the finished manuscript, asking honestly whether the book earns what the title claims to promise, is a useful final check. It often sends writers back to something quieter and more precise than their first, more ambitious attempt at naming the work. A title worth keeping usually survives more than one honest, searching revision.