How good is the title of your Novel? Find out here!

[Prawn]

Here (http://www.lulu.com/titlescorer/index.php)'s a toy for you: It is a database of titles of bestsellers in the past 50 years or so. If you put the title of your novel in, it will tell you what chance it has of being a bestseller! My novel "Across the Green Line" has a 41% chance. What about your novel?

[Stew21]

my first MS has a 63.7% chance of being a best seller! HA!

my second, which I think is so far a better manuscript doesn't yet have a title.

[MajorDrums]

oh god. only a 26.3% chance for my title. i'm too embarrassed to say it, now.

[veinglory]

Oh dear, and today is pretty much my last chace to change it, I'm submitting the blurb form!

The title King of Dragons, King of Men has a 10.2% chance of being a bestselling title!

[MidnightMuse]

I wanna play a different game :(

44.2 percent chance. Guess I'll keep my day job.

[veinglory]

Hey, nobody has beaten my low score yet :)

[Momento Mori]

Hmm ... 45.6% for my title. That's encouraging!

[Stacia Kane]

41.4%

Eh. I still love my title.

[Stacia Kane]

41.4%

Eh. I still love my title.

[Prawn]

So nice you had to say it twice, december!

How about this result:
The title the davinci code has a 35.9% chance of being a bestselling title!

[BruceJ]

Mine was 14.6%. I hope this is like golf...

[Elektra]

So nice you had to say it twice, december!

How about this result:
The title the davinci code has a 35.9% chance of being a bestselling title!

That's weird--I got a 45.6% for it.

[Shadow_Ferret]

Drat. Now I have to rethink my titles. Both "Don't Anger the Demon" and "Atlantis Rising" come in at 10.2%. :(

[alices]

Poor TC!

Without Remorse – 26.3%

Executive Orders – 10.2%

Clear and Present Danger – 10.2%

[icerose]

Six of my titles had around a 10% chance and two made it as high as 20%.

[kuatolives]

Harry Potter and the Corporate Cash Grab - 14.6%

[Bufty]

69% - Hmmm - maybe I answered the questions wrong.

[blackbird]

This means nothing. I intentionally typed in the title of several novels that I happen to know are bestsellers. Two of those, The Bridges of Madison County and The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint, came up with only a 10.2% chance of being bestsellers. Which goes to show, this little test has no actual merit when it comes to predicting what will actually sell. It's merely based on analytic probability-evidently, for example, titles containing the preposition "of" seem to have an automatic mark against them. But as reality has proven, those kinds of statistics have little value when it actually comes to what people will or will not read. It's a fun game, but take it for what it's worth. Don't go into a panic thinking you must suddenly change your title.

[Elodie-Caroline]

How do you know they aren't just looking for titles that have never been used before... someone on there might want to get some new ideas? lol ;)

Ellie

[kristie911]

My first MS title got 20.1%...and amazingly the second is exactly the same.

Hmmm...interesting, the way it's going, I'm thinking the chance will be much, much lower!

[aruna]

Here (http://www.lulu.com/titlescorer/index.php)'s a toy for you: It is a database of titles of bestsellers in the past 50 years or so. If you put the title of your novel in, it will tell you what chance it has of being a bestseller! My novel "Across the Green Line" has a 41% chance. What about your novel?

Hey!
The title White Night has a 69.0% chance of being a bestselling title!.. wait for it, folks!

[Haggis]

It seems as though my first novel, The Sun Also Rises, only has 10.2% chance of making it big. On the other hand, my other novel, Atlanta Nights, gives me a whopping 45.6% chance.

:rolleyes:

[jbal]

Hey, nobody has beaten my low score yet :)
I tied it with 10.2% for The Malignancy. Better odds than I expected actually.

[Codger]

"The Shining" and "The Godfather" both scored 10.2. I guess that titles aren't everything.

[smiley10000]

So I guess I shouldn't get too excited that I have a 51% chance of hitting the bestsellers list...

ah well... It's worth hoping anyways...
:)10000

[MidnightMuse]

Drat. Now I have to rethink my titles. Both "Don't Anger the Demon" and "Atlantis Rising" come in at 10.2%. :(

Well, "Don't Anger the Ferret" and "Ferret Rising" also came in at 10.2%

[Shadow_Ferret]

Well, When Ferrets Attack! came in at 20.1%. :)

[blackbird]

I can't resist the urge to keep playing with this thing...

Interview With the Vampire scored 10.2%.

Other titles that fared (somewhat) better...Cold Mountain and Gone With the Wind (in the 40% range).

According to the test, my only title that has a snowball chance in Hell is the proposed title for my third novel, Elmer & Leonard (46%). Maybe because it has two proper nouns and (unless you count the ampersand) no prepositions or articles.

[Stacia Kane]

So nice you had to say it twice, december!



Oops, sorry. My computer went all funny so I hit "submit" again.

[IrishScribbler]

76.9% for me.

[johnzakour]

It gave my "The Plutonium Blonde" a 10.2 but it gave it's followup "The Doomsday Brunette" a 62.3. DDB did better on Locus' SF best seller list, but TPB has sold more to date.

[Mr. Funktastic]

Mine grabbed 41.4%. I'm not too concerned with the number, but it was fun.

Well, The Holy Bible was given a 63.7% chance, and its sold well.

[Jaycinth]

'Sources Code' = 10.2%..( I've already changed the title to 'Alien Source'. I should have checked that, too)
'Parallel Course' = 26.9% ( I hate that title and my betas are competing for cookies to think up a new one.)
'Shiva's Dance' = 63.9% I guess I better finish this one up and sub it out pronto!

[David McAfee]

I checked all 3 of the titles that I have considered for my book. The highest I got was 35%. The lowest (my wife's favorite, I might add) was only 10%.

However, for my second WIP, the title has a 41% chance.

[Stacia Kane]

Gone with the Wind has a 63.7% chance!

[CaroGirl]

Mine has a 44.1% chance. That's not bad, I guess. But I suppose what I really need it for an agent or editor to like it, not a machine.

[blackbird]

Gone with the Wind has a 63.7% chance!

Hmmm...I typed that one in and only got a range in the 40's. Perhaps I misidentified one of the parts of speech in the title? (I had some trouble determining exactly what "Gone" would be when used in this context...adverb? ahhhrg, I really should know this stuff!:D ).

[blacbird]

The Da Vinci Code has a 10.2% chance of becoming a best-seller.

caw

[Andre_Laurent]

My title got 69%...

[Vomaxx]

The Great Gatsby gets 10.2%
The Red Badge of Courage gets 26.3%
The Lord of the Rings gets 10.2%

But "Firecrackers Eldosirian" gets 63.7%

What a valuable resource!

[Stew21]

I'm starting to see that Article Adjective Noun is bad according to this thing. :) LOL.

[Azure Skye]

69% for my working title.

[Prawn]

Mine grabbed 41.4%. I'm not too concerned with the number, but it was fun.

Well, The Holy Bible was given a 63.7% chance, and its sold well.

That's probably just the author's name recognition that did it.

[Julie Worth]

Can we trust its opinion if we have to tell it the difference between a noun and an adjective?

[Silverhand]

Are you guys with such low numbers actually filling out the extra questions? hehe

Mine came in at 46.4%.

[James D. Macdonald]

Land of Mist and Snow has a 63.7% chance of becoming a best-seller.

Atlanta Nights has a 72.5% chance of becoming a best-seller.

Woo, go me! Way to choose titles!

[CrankItTo11]

Wow! The title ASugoijeksguihoesouidfgsrheryh has a 59.3% chance! That's great, I'm changing the title on my new WIP.

Oh, Internet, is there anything you can't do?

[rwam]

79.6!

[AdamH]

This means nothing. I intentionally typed in the title of several novels that I happen to know are bestsellers. Two of those, The Bridges of Madison County and The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint, came up with only a 10.2% chance of being bestsellers. Which goes to show, this little test has no actual merit when it comes to predicting what will actually sell.

Or....

...it could mean that they beat the odds of it making in on title alone because they're good stories...at least, that's what I'm telling myself. :)

[Haydee]

83.1, 69.0, 34.8, and a whopping 8.6! Ironically the 8.6 is my favorite, while 69.0 was a novel I was just now procrastinating about editing for the umpteenth time. Guess I should stop putting it off...

FYI, the 83.1 was "Michelangelo's Son." It's not done yet, but when it is, you just wait... ;)

[civilian chic]

69.0% for mine, too. Them's good odds ... anybody want to sign me up?

[Rolling Thunder]

Six and a half cats: Secret Lives 72.5%
Pennsylvania Rising 45.6%

Looks like magical cats are a better choice than nuclear explosions, diamonds and earthquakes.:flag:

[LunarMoon]

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone received a 10.2% chance of selling for peanuts. The factors that draw readers to a book seem to be more complicated, hinging not only on whether a word is an adverb or noun but also on the actual association the reader has with that title based on past experiences. Typical of this is a painting called "Hands Resist Him" which bares associations of a happy childhood to the creator though has gained a reputation of being creepy and even haunted among others, greatly affecting its fame (infamy?). In other examples, a book titled "Rain" would be given a depressing interpretation by some but a happy association by others, which would affect its sells by a decent amount. Things such as this are difficult to predict due to the heterozygous nature of readers and would seem to require more answers to questions than they ask for.

[RoadandtheRadio]

The title Beneath Guiding Lights has a 79.6% chance of being a bestselling title!

[engmajor2005]

Both my completed MS and my WIP received a 10.2% chance of being a chart topper.


...So you're saying there's a chance! YAY!

[James D. Macdonald]

A book's title (so long as it isn't difficult to spell or embarrassing to say aloud) seems to have about zero relationship with how well that book will sell.

[Akuma]

69%.

But...I've been liking the title less and less so I guess I'm not too rattled. :)

[Haydee]

A book's title (so long as it isn't difficult to spell or embarrassing to say aloud) seems to have about zero relationship with how well that book will sell.

On this note, I would like to say that I find it embarrassing to walk into a bookstore and ask them if they have something like "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time" (just a recent favorite), because the clerk will undoubtedly go, "Say again?" Another bad one was attempting to say/spell "Niffenegger," which got me a very strange look from the lady behind the counter.

Anything that has some weird unpronounceable scifi/fantasy name... I'll look for it myself or buy it off Amazon.com, thanks. :-D

[TrainofThought]

20.1 %. - It's better than my ACT score, so I’m happy.

[janetbellinger]

My title, Rain has a 63.7 % chance, for what it's worth.

[Elektra]

On this note, I would like to say that I find it embarrassing to walk into a bookstore and ask them if they have something like "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time" (just a recent favorite), because the clerk will undoubtedly go, "Say again?" Another bad one was attempting to say/spell "Niffenegger," which got me a very strange look from the lady behind the counter.


My mother cracked up when I had to special-order Gargantua and Pantagruel (by Francois Rabelais, to make matters worse) over the telephone.

[mkcbunny]

I got 79.6. And I see there are a few of those exact number, which makes me wonder. I think it's starting with a verb that bumps it up. Marketers think verbs mean action in the mind of the consumer. Just curious, did the other 79.6ers start with a verb?

[Angelinity]

'through iron gates' got 26.7% -- one out of 4 chances (right!!) -- wonder just what kind of research they based it on!

[rwam]

I got 79.6. And I see there are a few of those exact number, which makes me wonder. I think it's starting with a verb that bumps it up. Marketers think verbs mean action in the mind of the consumer. Just curious, did the other 79.6ers start with a verb?

Yep...."Healing Chiron" got a 79.6 for me.

[virtue_summer]

A book's title (so long as it isn't difficult to spell or embarrassing to say aloud) seems to have about zero relationship with how well that book will sell.

Well, I have to admit that if I'm not already a fan of the author and the book wasn't specifically recommended by someone, the title is often the first thing to draw me in and get me to pick up a book. There are so many books out there, I mean there's got to be some way to begin narrowing things down. The title is the first thing you see. It seems to me that makes it pretty important.

[KiwiChick]

If my book really has a 10.2% chance of being a bestseller, I'll be stoked! (But still too embarrassed to say the title.)

KiwiChick

[Bravo]

10.2%

woohoo!

bookstores of the world, here i come!

[Pike]

Okay, tried out my title Frenzy and nabbed a 59.3%! That's like, almost a "D". Kind of reminds me of my days back in school.

[louisgodwin]

A Guardian of Innocents

20.1%. Ah, hell. .

[Eleasha]

Very nifty.
The scoring system is based only on the parts of speech; not the title. I tried too different titles but filled in the same parts of speech, and got the same result, down to the decimal.

[Eleasha]

Incidentally, the titles (just so that you know I'm not too mortified by them) were:
The Bleeding Moon, 69.0%
The Maze, 41.4%
The World, 41.4%

[aruna]

I think there are certain words in titles that automatically the sales people in publishing like, because it;s proven that they sell more books. I think "love" is one, and "marriage", as well as "child". I assume "death" and "murder" would alo be relevant. Proper names are fronwed upon, and I think the formula "The.... of..." is also not popular, can't be sure though,
I myself hate proper names in titles.

[J. Weiland]

Don't trust lulu. That's all I'm saying.

[Higgins]

Hey, nobody has beaten my low score yet :)

Is 14% low enough?

[Higgins]

I think there are certain words in titles that automatically the sales people in publishing like, because it;s proven that they sell more books. I think "love" is one, and "marriage", as well as "child". I assume "death" and "murder" would alo be relevant. Proper names are fronwed upon, and I think the formula "The.... of..." is also not popular, can't be sure though,
I myself hate proper names in titles.

I'm starting to work on Love Marriage Child and Love Marriage, Child

[Julie Worth]

Don't trust lulu. That's all I'm saying.

Are you saying that lulu titles don't become best sellers?

[Julie Worth]

I think there are certain words in titles that automatically the sales people in publishing like, because it;s proven that they sell more books. I think "love" is one, and "marriage", as well as "child". I assume "death" and "murder" would alo be relevant. Proper names are fronwed upon, and I think the formula "The.... of..." is also not popular, can't be sure though,
I myself hate proper names in titles.

Next, by Michael Crichton
Cross, by James Patterson
For One More Day, by Mitch Albom
I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, by Amy Sedaris
Dear John, by Nicholas Sparks
Treasure of Khan, by Clive Cussler, Dirk Cussler
Wild Fire, by Nelson DeMille

These are the top adult fiction titles at Amazon this morning. None of them are any good, in my opinion. If your name is Cussler or Sparks or Patterson, that seems the more important thing.

[DamaNegra]

Aw, 39% of probabilities. But I'm sticking to the title, I adore it :D

[aruna]

With few exceptions I dislike one word titles. Even worse, titles that are simply "The Something". They tell me nothing at all about the book. Guess they're pretty successfull, though - The Client. The Firm.
There was a craze in germany a couple years ago for books to be given the most boring, say-nothing titles possible. The Shop. The Girl. The Table. Honestly!!!!

[Julie Worth]

With few exceptions I dislike one word titles. Even worse, titles that are simply "The Something". They tell me nothing at all about the book. Guess they're pretty successfull, though - The Client. The Firm.

There was a craze in germany a couple years ago for books to be given the most boring, say-nothing titles possible. The Shop. The Girl. The Table. Honestly!!!!

It, by S. King
Me, by K. Hepburn

[eldragon]

14% and change.

So, that's what went wrong.

[maddythemad]

Heehee, my mom's college textbook has a 8.6% chance of becoming a best seller-- and on the site, it says every book has between a 9- and 83-percent chance!

[batgirl]

So, you could just go back and forth between the Fantasy Novel Title Generator (http://nine.frenchboys.net/novel.php) and Random Title Generator (http://wordsmiths.net/Maygra/RTG.htm), and have titlefights (http://www.lulu.com/titlescorer/fight.php) on the Lulu Titlescorer all day?
By the way, I ran The Willow Knot through the Titlescorer as a title fight with only one thing changed - whether it was literal or figurative. Figurative gives a standing higher by over 20 percentage points.
-Barbara

[RumpleTumbler]

I tried the random title generator and it spit out "Slave of Misty." Pretty cool. ;)

[engmajor2005]

Okay, my MS title is Element Child. The random title generator thingie spit The Elandria Child.

Weird.

[J. Weiland]

It seems as though my first novel, The Sun Also Rises, only has 10.2% chance of making it big. On the other hand, my other novel, Atlanta Nights, gives me a whopping 45.6% chance.

:rolleyes:

Is that you, Ernest?

[sanctuary6284]

I don't have a set title, so I decided that I'd temporarily use something abstract from my story. So when I plugged "Last Moon" into Lulu I get a 69% and I think it matters if you use figurative or literal.

[J. Weiland]

If a book is titled bestseller is has a 63.7% chance of becoming a bestseller. That is, however, only if you imagined the title to be figurative. If you were pretentious and named it after your deepest desire, you are in deep trouble.

[aruna]

An article on this very title generator:
http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,6109,1674327,00.html
And I got it wrong, The... of.... counts as a successful formula.

I don't think this method could ever work. It's the words themselves, their meanings, the emotions they convey, that cout more than their grammatical function.

[TsukiRyoko]

45.6% of becoming a bestseller. Well, that put a damper on my day.


I wonder if anyone was ever given 100% on that?

hmm...