Choosing Titles for a Series

D.L. Shepherd · Jul 27, 2017

Hi all...I'm hoping I'm posting this in the correct spot. If not, I apologize. I'm working on a series, and I am having a hard time with titles. I thought I came up with something I liked, but I was just reading that series should have a series title, as well as each individual title. For the life of me, I can't come up with a series title that matches the three individual titles that I came up with.

I was wondering if you always need an additional series title, even if the series titles all go together anyway? For example, if you wrote three novels with titles like these:

Dance of the Spiraling Sparrows
Dance of the Circling Crows
Dance of the Whirling Woodpeckers

Would that be sufficient, since they all start out the same way? Or would you also need to add a series title title like "The Dancing Bird Series" or the "Spinning Bird Trilogy" or something like that?

(Just wanted to add, these are NOT the actual titles I'm considering for the project I'm working on.)

Richard White · Jul 27, 2017

Do you need? No.

Are publishers likely to add a sub-title to help people know which is Book One, Book Two, Book Three ... (esp. if they're not stand-alone stories)? Yes.

For example: I remember grabbing a book to read on a long road trip. It was great reading but it was very confusing. I felt like these characters must have met each other before, but the story was good enough I kept plowing through. It was only when I got to the last page, did I realize that The Courts of Chaos was actually Book Five of the Amber Series. It would have probably been much easier for me if I'd started at Book 1.

Now, it's possible your books won't need them if there's a clue in the title (Dawn of the ..., Twilight of the ...., Midnight's Sorrow, as a horrible example), but many publisher's seem to think that giving the audience a clue (Hey, this is Book Three, maybe you should buy One and Two also .... *ka-ching*) is useful.

D.L. Shepherd · Jul 27, 2017

Richard White said:
Now, it's possible your books won't need them if there's a clue in the title (Dawn of the ..., Twilight of the ...., Midnight's Sorrow, as a horrible example), but many publisher's seem to think that giving the audience a clue (Hey, this is Book Three, maybe you should buy One and Two also .... *ka-ching*).

Good point, but do you think as the writer that I would need to worry about that, or just write the book(s) and let the publisher worry about the series title...if I even manage to get the books published? It was so difficult just to pick individual-yet-related titles that I liked AND weren't being used already.

I can't imagine what I might choose that would compliment the ones I already decided on. These titles took me *forever* to come up with. I finally got over a very long case of writer's block, and now I have title phobia instead.

Richard White · Jul 27, 2017

Depending on the publisher, any title you come up with may not be the title it goes to press with. Just like cover art, publishers generally have a feeling about titles based on what's sold before, what fits the genre, and what best emphasizes the story in the book. Some publishers may take your titles, think they're good enough, and run with them (most of mine have), but others may make changes ... esp. if the title's too long - shorter titles mean bigger fonts, easier for people to read at a distance.

rchapman1 · Jul 31, 2017

Having a series definitely helps with sales of earlier books. I think you'll find if you finish the series the title will suddenly become obvious.

D.L. Shepherd · Aug 1, 2017

Thanks...I hope it will. I'm usually a *title first* type of writer, so it stresses me not knowing what I'm going to call the series while I'm working on it. Figuring out the individual titles helped a lot though.

WeaselFire · Aug 2, 2017

D.L. Shepherd said:
I'm working on a series, and I am having a hard time with titles.

Are you self publishing? If not, don't worry too much. It's not uncommon for you to write book 1, 2 and 3 and the publisher to print book 2, 3 and 1. You'll also get a subtitle, such as "Book Three in the Arthur Frogstaff Mysteries" added to your books. Use a title that makes sense for the book, if it fits in the series, fine. If not, also fine.

So far, my favorite play has been Janet Evanovich's One for the Money, Two for the Dough, etc. Stephanie Plum series.

Jeff

D.L. Shepherd · Aug 3, 2017

WeaselFire said:
Are you self publishing?

I don't plan to at this point, but who knows what the future will bring.

Thanks for the advice, I think the individual titles I have planned fit the books and the series well, but I don't even have an inkling of an idea about the umbrella title for the series. I'll try not to stress over it while I write.

Singcali · Aug 30, 2017

I love reading sagas. What I have noticed is that the naming the whole series depends on the overall idea that each book will follow.
Like Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time. The premise that events repeat in the cycle of time.
David Eddings Belgariad follows the life of MC -Belgarian.

What is the overall idea for your series?
I like the word Dance. It implies a lot. But the whole picture? Look at other series and their premise and see how they name them.
Might take a while but it's fun. I think it adds to your book and creates an anticipation.

Good Luck.

Caroline J. Thibeaux

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