Choosing a Brilliant Title

Your title is the very first thing a reader sees, often before they read a single sentence. It's like a shop sign. A boring sign makes people walk past. A brilliant one makes them stop and peek inside.

Write the title last

It's fine to use a working title while you write. Once your story is finished, you'll know what it's really about, and the perfect title is much easier to find.

Six ways to find a title

• A character's name with a twist: Mabel and the Upside-Down Day
• A strange object: The Umbrella That Rained Upwards
• A question: Who Stole the Seaside?
• A place: The House at the End of Crumble Lane
• A promise of trouble: Never Feed the Snowman
• A line someone says in the story: Don't Open the Blue Door

The first title tells us almost nothing. The second one makes us laugh and wonder what happens. That's exactly what a title should do.

Don't give the ending away

How Jake Found the Lost Treasure tells us Jake succeeds. Jake and the Map With No X keeps the mystery alive. Hint at the adventure, but save the answer for the last page.