How many words should be in a book title ?

Question

How many words are really too many in a book title ?

For maximum effect how many words should be the limit ?

Answer 1

i would say between 1 and 5 is good,,,,, you dont want it much longer then that,,,, unless you are writing for a specific limited audience or its an academic book(even then some titles are way to long)

Answer 2

Don't make it too long! Short and to the point. It should be clever, and maybe a play on words. But if ppl are talking about ur book, if the title's too long, they'll give it a nickname. And the nickname might not be appropriate to the book! I find that the best titles have 1-3 words in them, up to 4 is ok. You want to be able to say a lot in a few words.

Answer 3

As few as possible. Stick to between 1 and 4. 4 should probably be the maximum.

I read a brilliant book a few weeks ago called "I Sat By The River Pieta And Wept". Wonderful book and I love telling people about it - but god, I hate the name. Too much of a mouthful.

2 or 3 words would be the best.

Answer 4

A book's title needs to be only as long or short as will fill the need.
The real question is, does the title relate to the contents?--Does the title describe the contents?--Is the title readable? Does it make sense?
You can have one-word titles, or titles as long as your arm, it's the inside of the book that makes the title of any value.

Answer 5

You have to be careful with single word titles. Your title needs to pull in a reader, and make them interested before they even start your story. Even "The lost ship." is a pretty mediocre title. It's cliche, and makes me think of at least a dozen other books and movies.

Answer 6

I say the more the better, just for the sake making it easy to search for. Trying to find one book titled "Night" is a lot harder than finding one book titled "The Day They Came to Arrest the Book." Using proper nouns makes a book title easier to search for too. It's a lot easier find "Moby Dick" than finding "The White Whale" or "Ramona the Brave" rather than something like "The Annoying Little Girl."

Answer 7

My favorite books are usually limited to three. One word titles can have a strong impact though.

Answer 8

as few as is possible and yet still able to represent the spirit and premise of the books contents. 1 word titles are best: "Jaws" "Poltergeist" "Rebecca" "Misery" they really stand out and grab your attention initially. of course if the story isnt good then the title wont make or break it.

Answer 9

You should keep it short and try to avoid articles ("the" and "a"). Without them a title often is more catchy.

(But we all know great books with long titles, so for every rule there is an exeption.)

Answer 10

It's cool to use one word that grabs someone's attention and has something to do with the plot.
A title like that also has to sound random to someone who hasn't read it nor knows the plot. That gets their attention.