Are punny titles the kiss of death for picture books?

[JoeEkaitis]

I'm tinkering with a story to go along with this. Does a pun in the title turn off editors?

http://us-p.vclart.net/vcl/Artists/Joe-Ekaitis/Dan_Sneegle.gif

[Inspired]

I don't think so. In fact, punny titles usually attract adults. They pick it up, give it a look, like it, then buy it.

If it's really lame, sure, it'll turn people off. But, usually the publisher prevents that from happening.

[rich]

But, make it original, and most of all, witty.

[Inspired]

True. Especially for editors. They are the typical parent. You could always go with a more editor-friendly title for your submission, then add some suggestions for the final title.

[cwgranny]

Puns work for Dav Pikey -- Dog Breath: Horrible Trouble with Hally Tosis,
Dogzilla, Kat Kong, Halloweiner -- the man is shameless.

g

[Stephanie]

Something more than just "The" would be good.

Oh - punny!

Sorry, I thought it was PUNY.

;-)

[mistri]

Puns are pun-alicious. I actually have two ideas for kids books where the idea actually came from the pun, as opposed to having a story and then finding a pun for it. Of course I've no idea how saleable they are, as they're nowhere near finished (or even begun, really).

[stormie]

Punny titles are funny. (Oh brother, I think I had too much coffee today....) Seriously, as others have said, parents will pick up a book if the title grabs them, and puns are one of the ways to do this.