You're not alone! I see it all the time! And unless the series is *already* popular, it's impossible to do a search for the title. So approaching everything like you're interacting with *some* new audience will put your title in front of readers again and again. :)
I appreciate these so much, even though the road to get anywhere near this point is still years away. #2 is a fascinating perspective; I feel like I see some authors constantly promoting books even from the pre-querying stage.
I see that sometimes, too. And in some cases, it works! When the book sells, people who followed its drafting and sub process are on board and the book does well. But . . . I think those cases when it does well are generally ones where the draw is the author -- like, they already have a platform built on their own personality.
For most people, the danger I see is that the book doesn't get picked up. It doesn't sell. Then they've spent all this time hyping a book that's going in the trunk and they have to start over.
That doesn't mean I think writers should never talk about their WIPS! It's just that the traditional publishing process is slow, so if there's nothing to buy yet, what is the author selling?
So on the topic of #1, this is something I really struggle with, and would love your two cents on. My publisher got, ahem, very enthusiastic about squeezing in keywords into my title. So my followup question is... Do I still mention the entire title of it's really long and unwieldy?
My current title is *checks notes* "Dumbledore: The Life and Lies of Hogwarts's Renowned Headmaster." I feel like by the time I rattle off the whole mouthful, eyes have glazed over.
So I usually say "Dumbledore: The Life and Lies" ... Should I stop the shortening?
Oh, wow, yeah, that's a mouthful. On socials where space is limited, I'd use the shortened version, because that's enough for a Google search. And when speaking in public, I'd use the full title at least at the beginning, then shorten to something that feels natural for the rest of the talk/conversation. I'd also make a little joke of it? Like, "Brace yourself, this title's a mouthful" and then deliver the entire thing, because then they're paying attention and there's been a bit of an icebreaker with you acknowledging that the title is a lot.
Primarily, this advice is meant to encourage people to use searchable words. For example, the title of my middle grade is BYE FOREVER, I GUESS, which isn't *long*, but naturally shortens to "Bye Forever," which I do with my agent and editor and author friends. And if I used it in public, people would still be able to figure it out. But if I went with BFIG -- that's not as clear. The alphabet soup just isn't as memorable, and doesn't turn up my book in the top search results. (If I use my name, it does bring up my website, but not the book.) When I search the full title, however, even without my name, the top results are my newsletter and website, the PRH website (PRH distributes for my publisher), and buy links with all the major retailers and One More Page. That's a lot more useful!
That's a huge help, thank you for the thorough answer! I like your idea of turning the length into a joke to riff off of.
The searchable words thing is something my current publisher explained to me, since I was in the habit of using "Life & Lies" and they pointed out I was ommitting whose life and lies it was!
Good tips! I finished the first draft of my fantasy novel over the summer and am currently working on draft 2. Still lots and lots of work to do before I can even think about publishing, but this was still a good read! Gets me excited about writing :)
errm....I'm definitely guilty of #1 hahaha Excellent tip
You're not alone! I see it all the time! And unless the series is *already* popular, it's impossible to do a search for the title. So approaching everything like you're interacting with *some* new audience will put your title in front of readers again and again. :)
Repeats to myself: "Not everything is content...relax...not everything is content...relax...not everything..."
I have a whole letter dedicated to that topic that I'm working on, because I truly think it's *that* important!
I am ready to read and pin it to my fridge lol.
I appreciate these so much, even though the road to get anywhere near this point is still years away. #2 is a fascinating perspective; I feel like I see some authors constantly promoting books even from the pre-querying stage.
I see that sometimes, too. And in some cases, it works! When the book sells, people who followed its drafting and sub process are on board and the book does well. But . . . I think those cases when it does well are generally ones where the draw is the author -- like, they already have a platform built on their own personality.
For most people, the danger I see is that the book doesn't get picked up. It doesn't sell. Then they've spent all this time hyping a book that's going in the trunk and they have to start over.
That doesn't mean I think writers should never talk about their WIPS! It's just that the traditional publishing process is slow, so if there's nothing to buy yet, what is the author selling?
So on the topic of #1, this is something I really struggle with, and would love your two cents on. My publisher got, ahem, very enthusiastic about squeezing in keywords into my title. So my followup question is... Do I still mention the entire title of it's really long and unwieldy?
My current title is *checks notes* "Dumbledore: The Life and Lies of Hogwarts's Renowned Headmaster." I feel like by the time I rattle off the whole mouthful, eyes have glazed over.
So I usually say "Dumbledore: The Life and Lies" ... Should I stop the shortening?
Oh, wow, yeah, that's a mouthful. On socials where space is limited, I'd use the shortened version, because that's enough for a Google search. And when speaking in public, I'd use the full title at least at the beginning, then shorten to something that feels natural for the rest of the talk/conversation. I'd also make a little joke of it? Like, "Brace yourself, this title's a mouthful" and then deliver the entire thing, because then they're paying attention and there's been a bit of an icebreaker with you acknowledging that the title is a lot.
Primarily, this advice is meant to encourage people to use searchable words. For example, the title of my middle grade is BYE FOREVER, I GUESS, which isn't *long*, but naturally shortens to "Bye Forever," which I do with my agent and editor and author friends. And if I used it in public, people would still be able to figure it out. But if I went with BFIG -- that's not as clear. The alphabet soup just isn't as memorable, and doesn't turn up my book in the top search results. (If I use my name, it does bring up my website, but not the book.) When I search the full title, however, even without my name, the top results are my newsletter and website, the PRH website (PRH distributes for my publisher), and buy links with all the major retailers and One More Page. That's a lot more useful!
I hope that helps!
That's a huge help, thank you for the thorough answer! I like your idea of turning the length into a joke to riff off of.
The searchable words thing is something my current publisher explained to me, since I was in the habit of using "Life & Lies" and they pointed out I was ommitting whose life and lies it was!
Fantastic advice in here. 💗
This is so helpful!
Good tips! I finished the first draft of my fantasy novel over the summer and am currently working on draft 2. Still lots and lots of work to do before I can even think about publishing, but this was still a good read! Gets me excited about writing :)
Excellent! Having fun with the writing is the MOST important part!