Story Titles?

[AJPages]

Hey Everyone / Anyone!

I'm having a hard time coming up with a title for a new story. Does anyone have any general tips or thoughts about titles to share?

Thanks in advance

 

[NewOldGuy77]

Hey Everyone / Anyone!

I'm having a hard time coming up with a title for a new story. Does anyone have any general tips or thoughts about titles to share?

Thanks in advance

I usually find a song that relates somehow to the story and use the song title, as with my stories I Used To Have Money One Time (Jimmy Buffett) and Roll Me Away (Bob Seger).

 

[SpindleTop]

I always find coming up with titles difficult too! Just a few thoughts:

** Short titles generally work better than longer ones

** The following are useful in catching the eye
- Alliteration
- A pun or variation (with innuendo) on a well-known phrase
- A title that makes the reader ask "what's that about?"

 

[AlinaX]

I often go very brief, but a line from a song can work, or something poetic, or even just a name. The description is where you really have to try to indicate the content and kinks.

 

[NewOldGuy77]

The description is where you really have to try to indicate the content and kinks.

This is the bigger challenge, due to limited # of characters

 

[Carnevil9]

The purpose of the title is to intrigue potential readers enough to give your story a shot. That's true everywhere. Here at Lit, we also have the description, so you can think of the Title and the Description as a tag-team, giving your potential readers a one-two punch to try to drag them in.

 

[Lifestyle66]

Hey Everyone / Anyone!

I'm having a hard time coming up with a title for a new story. Does anyone have any general tips or thoughts about titles to share?

Thanks in advance

Lacking any idea of what your story covers, the only real guidance is: This is LitEROTICA, so sex sells!

Don't try to be subtle. If you want readers, then shout SEX in both the title and description! IE; "First Orgy", 'Two sex-crazed wives are the life of the party!

 

[NewOldGuy77]

Lacking any idea of what your story covers, the only real guidance is: This is LitEROTICA, so sex sells!

Don't try to be subtle. If you want readers, then shout SEX in both the title and description! IE; "First Orgy", 'Two sex-crazed wives are the life of the party!

Agreed. No use trying to couch your description in genteel language: "Biker Amy discovers her sexuality" not as effective as "Biker Amy unexpectedly rides a crotch rocket"!

 

[SimonDoom]

The purpose of the title should be to catch the attention of those who might like the story.

This is an erotic story site. Make it erotic, stimulating, and/or titillating.

Specific v. vague or abstract or allusive. Ex: "Mom Blows The Team" is better than "A Memorable Day During Spring Training."

Verbs are good. Especially sexy verbs. Like "blows" in the example I gave above.

It's fine to be artsy and intellectual if your story calls for it. Most Literotica stories would be better off with simple and to-the-point titles.

The title should describe subject matter that falls within the category. All my mom-son incest stories have "mom" in the title, because that's what the readers want. I wrote an exhibitionist story called "Hotel Exhibitionist." It's about a woman who engages in exhibitionism in a hotel. It worked and drew readers, and it still does.

Use the tags search system to look for tags associated with certain categories, and then put those tag words in your title. This works.

Develop a feel for words that are titillating and provocative. This ability will really help.

 

[NewOldGuy77]

Use the tags search system to look for tags associated with certain categories, and then put those tag words in your title. This works.

Good suggestion!

 

[Rork80]

A bit of intrigue and the general gist should help with searches, in addition to a relevant description. The stories I have read of yours achieve that and seem very appropriately titled .

 

[Cagivagurl]

Hey Everyone / Anyone!

I'm having a hard time coming up with a title for a new story. Does anyone have any general tips or thoughts about titles to share?

Thanks in advance

I have struggled with the same thing.
Best bit of advice I was given regarding story titles is....
Read through the story and pick some favourite lines from within the story itself...
You can often find a gem hiding in there already.
Cagivagurl

 

[KeithD]

Something catchy, if possible. More suggestive than revealing. The titles I like best are ones that initially catch my attention and then, after reading the story, make me think "Oh, yeah, that was the connection" and then laugh.

 

[Devinter]

Personally, for the most part, I put a title that pleases me, and not the reader.

This is not the way to go if you want to achieve as many clicks as possible - but I like a title that is either a little clever, alludes to something that you can read between the lines in the story so that it adds something, or when the title is mentioned by a character in the story itself.

For example, in the first book of the Song of Ice and Fire series, one of the characters (Cersei) says: "When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground." I like stuff like that.

Sometimes I name the characters something that works for a good title too, intentionally. For example, I am currently working on a story about a blind girl. So I intentionally named her Faith so that I could name the story Blind Faith. Similarly, the reason I named the main character Dawn in my "Dawn of Corruption" series, (which is about her getting corrupted) is because it sounds a lot better than Jessica of Corruption. You see what I mean?

Also, this might just be something I appreciate, but I like when several of the words in the title start with the same letter. "Tale of Two Thieves" just sounds better than "Story of Two Robbers" to me, for instance. But that might just be my brain being wired strangely. I'm not sure.

Good luck with your titles though!

 

[Mastered_again]

Simply, The Bikini worked for me. By far the most popular chapter in my series. (E&V category)

 

[djrip]

I named the main character Dawn in my "Dawn of Corruption" series, (which is about her getting corrupted) is because it sounds a lot better than Jessica of Corruption. You see what I mean?

Maybe the sequel though?

 

[WyreBendr0417]

I hadn't really been happy with any of my titles until my last story got published a couple of weeks ago, 'When One Door Closes'. It's about two strangers that meet long after their marriages don't quite turn out to be what they hoped. Lately I've been trying to go that route, taking a new twist on an old saying, or song or movie title that fits the story's premise.

One that prematurely popped into my head was, 'The Hills Have Bi's'. A twist on the horror flick title. Now I may have to see if I can come up with a story to use it on. Perhaps about a totally bi-sexual commune in the Ozarks or Appalachia.

WB

 

[AchtungNight]

Use titles that describe a major theme of the story and sound cool to you. Multitasking is good, so is irony. Example- if you want to write fanfic about the video game Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous, only you’re doing a hookup after the game, “Pathfinder: Union of the Righteous” works.

 

[FifthEstate]

Something catchy, if possible. More suggestive than revealing. The titles I like best are ones that initially catch my attention and then, after reading the story, make me think "Oh, yeah, that was the connection" and then laugh.

This is great advice and exactly what I try to do with my titles.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

If it's a story for an event or contest, people will only see the title, not the category nor description, until they click. So you want to attract people with just the title.

For other stories you have category, title, and description to attract your audience, so you can afford to have a cryptic title and a clarifying description.

Some types of story have obvious keywords (bikini, Mom, Sister, slut, slave, punishment, vampire...). Others don't.

Sometimes I ignore all the above advice because I like a title. Inspiring curiosity may not attract readers who just want a quick read meeting their subject matter reqs, but may be better at luring in only those interested in more of a storyline.

Hence I stuck with my recent very bland title, Image Nine Point Four - for some reason it seemed a better number than various other numbers I had in draft...