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Naming My Book

Posted: 3rd December 2013 16:19

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Hello everyone! I am writing a book and am trying to come up with a good name for it. I know that the publisher will probably end up having the final say; but I want to have a good, strong title to start with. So tell me what sort of impression this gives you:

Rebelling Against the Dragons

Does it sound like a good book, or one that might stand out to you? Is it something that would interest you? Feel free to be negative. smile.gif
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Posted: 3rd December 2013 17:05

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Quote (RavenLalonde @ 3rd December 2013 17:19)
I know that the publisher will probably end up having the final say; but I want to have a good, strong title to start with.

At this stage, I think the best thing you can have as a title is one that YOU like. I don't think I've read a fantasy book since, like, Lord of the Rings 10 years ago, so I definitely wouldn't be your target audience.

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Posted: 3rd December 2013 18:48

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What is it about? I can't think of a title without knowing the main story line.


Also, i'm writing a series of books, do not think will get published, just for pleasure and fun. Here's my title.

Locked

Anyway, tell me the storyline, then i can help u

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Posted: 3rd December 2013 19:09

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Yeah, I gotta say I can't tell from the title whether this is epic fantasy fiction or non-fiction analysis of east-Asian geopolitics.

Well, from the fact that it's being posted here, it's probably the former. I picture a world where humans live under the whim of, and serve, various dragons, in exchange for the provision of things like food or defense from invasion, and maybe the dragons are kinda jerkish and the humans are tired of ilving under their thumbs.

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Posted: 3rd December 2013 20:58

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I think if you're in the process of writing, it's not really a good time to give it a name. Working titles and such are great, but I think the story you're writing will probably inform the title as you go. I don't think many musicians name albums before they're recorded, or painters name their works before they're on canvas (OK, sure, there must be some, but you get the point).

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Posted: 4th December 2013 21:57

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I have actually already decided pretty much the whole story, I am just working on getting it on paper. I am trying to see what sort of book it seems like based primarily on the title, since that is mostly what you would have to go on if you saw it in a bookstore. Although it occurs to me that books do tend to have those plot-summary thingies on the backs of them nowadays... I have also considered "Fiery Like a Dragon", which, based on your feedback, might be a more fitting name.

It is about a girl who is part alien and she can shapeshift and has magical powers and whatnot, and she and her friends are trying to defend the planet from invading aliens and such.

I must confess to having quite a lot of trouble telling you what it is about without spoiling everything... one of the themes is racism, which I hope I can do correctly (kind of a tricky subject to address without going over the top). Dragons are heavily involved, since the natural form of these strange cliché changelings happens to greatly resemble a dragon. I know that a bunch of teenagers defending the world from psychotic aliens is about as original as Twilight, but I tend to prefer the more "traditional" types of fantasy with a bit of a personal twist. I would have an easier time talking about the mechanics of this particular fantasy than telling you what the story is about, actually.
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Posted: 5th December 2013 01:21

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I would end up calling it something stupid and sarcastic like "Tipping the Scales"...

Let's see...rebellion against Dragons...

The Dragonbusters?

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Posted: 5th December 2013 18:48

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Let's See....
Dragon war
The Girl who saved the world
The Dragon Destroyers
Not-so-human things all in one?
Ok, last one was a joke.
The top one might work, I like your new one RavenLalonde.
I'll post again if i think of more


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Posted: 6th December 2013 00:31

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Thank you for the feedback, everyone!
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Posted: 6th December 2013 07:46

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Raven I'm asking you, is it just a one time book or a start of a series of books? Is there already a book called Half-Breed? If not, call the series Half-Breed and just keep changing the subtitle like Half-Breed: Dragonfire for example if you know what i mean. If not call it either Dragon breath or something like The Last Hybrid. Yeah.. my ideas kinda suck but i hope it helps.

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Posted: 6th December 2013 16:50

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Quote (bakedsabbath @ 6th December 2013 02:46)
Raven I'm asking you, is it just a one time book or a start of a series of books? Is there already a book called Half-Breed? If not, call the series Half-Breed and just keep changing the subtitle like Half-Breed: Dragonfire for example if you know what i mean. If not call it either Dragon breath or something like The Last Hybrid. Yeah.. my ideas kinda suck but i hope it helps.

Hmm... I kind of like that name, but she is not exactly half-and-half. I mean the genetics got all mixed up a long time ago, so "Half-Breed", while it sounds kind of awesome, would not really quite fit. It is just the one book (at least that's my plan... my stories have a tendency to get long).

Well, that was a poorly organized paragraph. I think my writing skills are getting used up....
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Posted: 6th December 2013 21:38

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Does this girl have a name? Cos i could think of a title with her name in it.

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Posted: 8th December 2013 00:33

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Quote (HolyCeles @ 6th December 2013 16:38)
Does this girl have a name? Cos i could think of a title with her name in it.

Dana Alison. Another equally important character is a fellow called Daniel Strider.
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Posted: 8th December 2013 17:49

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Dana Alison: Dragon war

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Posted: 9th December 2013 23:00

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Here is a snippet from the first chapter. Tell me what you think!



Fiery Like a Dragon
Otherwise entitled, Dragon War, or, Dragonbusters


He walked up to the young man, and noticed that while he showed no stress from the previous encounter, he was visibly wary now that he was drawing near. He spoke, “Young man, aren't you really a girl?”

She started and said, pretending to be offended (and doing a very good job at it), “What gave you that idea?”

He smiled. “I suspect you are hiding from Drakon?”

Now it was hard to tell what she was thinking behind her mask of confusion. Then, realizing that she could hide little from him, she let go the pretense and, lowering her voice, said, “Yes,” this time using her natural voice, but still hiding her emotions. He suspected that her front was no longer one of deception, but was simply how she had trained herself to act, in order to keep her thoughts a mystery to those around her. It was a common way to respond to her former (or at least hopefully former) situation.

“How would you like to join an underground resistence group against him?” he asked her.

She paused for a moment, still showing no hint of emotion in her face. “Then you are Keiss.”

“Yes.”

“I think I will, then.”

“You know it will be dangerous.”

“Yes,” she replied. “Almost as dangerous as running from him on my own, without help.”

He smiled. “Come with me.”

This post has been edited by RavenLalonde on 9th December 2013 23:12
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Posted: 10th December 2013 17:52

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That is great! I really want to know more! smile.gif

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Posted: 15th December 2013 03:35

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Old-timers here probably know that I'm an aspiring author. I've been writing for almost the entirety of my 30+ years, and recently took the important step of acquiring an agent.

The title to your book sounds perfectly fine for the fantasy genre. It might sound a little derivative, but honestly, that's true of the genre as a whole. Things like title and cover art are important for catching a potential reader's eye, but it ultimately will not determine whether or not your book becomes a bestseller. What will do that is the words on the pages between the covers.

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I have actually already decided pretty much the whole story, I am just working on getting it on paper.


That's the hard part. Many people have ideas for stories, but it's the expression of those ideas, fixed in a tangible medium, that requires dedicated work (and, not coincidentally, the standard by whether or not something is subject to copyright). I largely second R51's advice, which is to write the story, and rewrite the story. Then hopefully your title will be easier to derive from that.

As for general writing advice, this is cliche but I think applicable to your style - try to "show" more than "tell." Your narrative sample that you posted seems to rely more on informing the reader how a character feels at any particular point rather than using descriptive language (such as the physical actions of the characters) to let the reader reach that conclusion through implication.

Good luck! And above all else, have fun. Writing is work if you take it seriously, but there's also really no point if you're not enjoying yourself. smile.gif

This post has been edited by MetroidMorphBall on 15th December 2013 03:37
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