Book Title Ideas: Choosing Your Own & Generators to Use

I get how frustrating it can be.

Writing the book might seem like the most difficult part…and then you have to actually title the darn thing!

When it comes to writing a book, coming up with reasonable book title ideas is surprisingly one of the hardest parts to complete. It’s difficult because titles are essentially short hooks that advertise your book using the fewest words possible.

It’s also what readers look for first when they discover new books, and can take less than 5 seconds to make a decision.

This is why it’s so crucial to craft a perfect name.

Need help selecting a perfect title for your book? Use our tool below to get as many ideas as you need:

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Here’s how to come up with book title ideas:

1. Use a book title generator tool
2. Write down the problem you’re solving
3. Create a subtitle to clarify
4. Make it memorable
5. Make sure it’s genre-appropriate
6. Create it to stir intrigue
7. Include your character in the title
8. Get feedback from your target audience

To help spur your creative process, we’ve created a few essential guidelines for you to follow as you craft the perfect book title ideas for your masterpiece.

Since there are different title considerations for fiction and non-fiction, we broke these two topics down separately into:

• How to Choose a Book Title for Non-Fiction
• How to Choose a Book Title for Fiction

Let’s create your bestselling title!

How to Choose a Book Title for Non-Fiction

Before you publish a book, you have to come up with an effective title. For some authors, this is easy and the most fun part. For others…it can be what holds them back from publishing.

As you begin crafting your book title ideas for your non-fiction book, the key is knowing that non-fiction readers are looking for solutions. 

Whether it’s losing weight, becoming a master in sales, or becoming better at fostering relationships, they’re simply looking for a book that will solve their problem. After all, most people who write nonfiction books are looking to help people in some way.

To leverage this idea, here are a set of rules to consider:

#1 – Book Title Generator Tools to Use

There are a ton of book title generators out there. And if you’re someone who lacks even the inspiration for a title, these can help you big time.

Book title generators are great tools because they can give you a wide range of different names to choose from.

One thing many authors face when choosing a title is sticking too close to the name they previously thought of. This can blind you to potential other titles in various formats.

However, some of these tools can fall very flat, resulting in names that don’t make sense and should not be used as actual titles.

Therefore, we didn’t just round up a list of every book title generator we could find. Instead, we tested a huge list and decided that these are truly the only ones worth your time.

Here’s a list of the best book title generators:

• Nonfiction – Title Generator – Check out this awesome Nonfiction Book Title Generator Tool from SelfPublishing.com!
• Fantasy – Fantasy Novel Title Generator
• Fiction – Create Your Own Story Title Generator
• Science Fiction – Pulp Sci-Fi Title-O-Tron
• Sci-fi and Fantasy – UKRifter’s Book Title Generator
• Fiction – Story Toolz Half Title Generator
• Nonfiction – Portent’s Content Idea Generator
• Nonfiction – CopyWritingCourse Book Title Generator
• Nonfiction – Book Title Generator

Give these a try, and comment down below your favorite! Also, let us know if you want any book title generators we should add to this list.

#2 – Your Title Must Include a Solution to a Problem

Your title should be crystal clear on what your readers will achieve by reading your book. Experts say that a title with a clear promise or a guarantee of results will further intrigue your readers.

Here are some questions to consider when creating your title:

• Are you teaching a desirable skill?
• Can your personal discoveries impact someone’s life?
• Can your book solve a very difficult problem?

Here are our favorite book titles that offer a clear solution to a problem with promising results:

• Asperger’s Rules! How to Make Sense of School and Friendship by Blythe Grossman
• How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease by Michael Greger
• The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss

ACTION STEP: Write down the best solutions or teachings your book offers and form these into potential book title ideas.

#3 – Use a Subtitle for Clarity

A great non-fiction title employs a subtitle to clarify what the desired outcome will be from reading your book.

In this video clip, Chandler explains in 5 simple steps how to create a compelling subtitle:

Here are some questions to consider when creating your subtitle:

• How can your subtitle further expand on achieving a desirable outcome?
• What are the biggest pain points that your subtitle can provide a solution for?
• How can you further address your innovative solution in the subtitle?

Here are our favorite book subtitles that spell out what their readers can expect from reading their books:

• The Crossroads of Should and Must: Find and Follow Your Passion by Elle Luna
• Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives by Gretchen Rubin
• Work Rules! Insights from Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live and Lead by Laszlo Bock

ACTION STEP: Make a list of 10 attention-grabbing subtitles that promise big outcomes and other positive benefits.

#4 – Make Your Title Unforgettable

Make an effort to be more creative and fun with your book title! Use alliteration to make your title easier to read and remember. A memorable and light-hearted title adds additional character to your book and is also a great way to attract readers.

Catchy titles are memorable, boring titles are not.

But also keep in mind: if your title is overly clever and not clear, it can cause more confusion than it’s worth. The key is using catchiness in a way that is clear. That’s what will make your book title stand out.

Here are some questions to consider when creating your memorable title:

• Will a fun title turn a normally boring subject into something more interesting?
• Will adding humor to your title further entice readers?
• Will a cleverly written title stand out from other books in this genre?

Here are our favorite books that engaged us with clever titles and subtitles:

• Me Talk Pretty One Day and Let’s Explore Diabetes With Owls by David Sedaris
• Trust me, I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator by Ryan Holiday
• Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt

No matter which method works best on creating a compelling title for nonfiction books, a good thing to remember is to always test multiple titles with different audiences to determine which book title generates the biggest response.

Getting good feedback is the only way to know for certain which title is perfect for your book.

ACTION STEP: Experiment with different types of styles and poll your audience to determine whether a comedic, shocking, or even bizarre title will be the most appealing to your target audience.

How to Generate Book Title Ideas for a Fiction Novel

Generally, fiction titles are allowed more creative wiggle room than their non-fiction counterparts. That being said, an effective fiction title must still pique your readers’ attention.

And while it’s true that you can title your fiction book with random names, it still must catch the reader’s attention.

Here are some key guidelines to keep in mind:

#1 – Your Title Should be Appropriate to Your Genre

Your novel title should use language that resonates with both your book genre and target audience. For example, a romantic book can call for dreamy language whereas an action book can warrant strong and powerful words.

This means that you must know your book’s genre that best fits the style of title.

Here are some questions to consider for appropriate genre titles:

• What genre best fits this story?
• Which are the perfect choice words for your genre?

Here are our favorite fictional titles based on genre:

• Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• The Godfather by Mario Puzo

ACTION STEP: Based on the genre of your book, pick out a few keywords that best suit its category and evoke strong emotions in your readers.

#2 – Your Book Title Should Pique Your Reader’s Interest

Create fictional titles intriguing enough to capture the imaginations of your readers, and get to them to read your story.

A great fiction title teases and leaves your audience wanting more. You want your audience to read your title and think, “I must read what’s behind that great book cover!”

Here are some questions to consider on how to pique interest with your title:

• Which key components of your story best captivates your readers?
• What emotions do you want your readers to have once they read your title?

Here are our favorite fictional titles that drew our attention:

• Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
• The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
• Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson

ACTION STEP: Choose a theme that will best draw your reader’s attention. Come up with 5 titles that will catch your reader’s attention and pique their curiosity.

#3 – Look to Your Characters for Book Title Inspiration

A great book title captures the spirit of the protagonist. Some authors simply use the hero’s name for their title.

Others have combined the names of their hero along with their special qualities to inform the audience about their protagonist’s accomplishments like Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White.

On the flip side, a formidable antagonist can also be an amazing book title.

A sinister name can convey a sense of dread and expectation for what’s to come like Doctor Sleep by Stephen King. Both choices are great title ideas and should be seriously considered for your fictional book.

Here are some questions to consider when including a character as a title:

• Between the hero and villain, who impacts the story more?
• Are there any stunning qualities from your characters that will draw a reader’s emotion?
• Can the plot of the story be summed up as a title?

Here are our favorite fictional books that use characters for its title:

• Harry Potter (Literary Series) by J. K. Rowling
• Bridget Jones’ Diary by Helen Fielding
• Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

ACTION STEP: Determine which character best conveys what the story will tell in your title. You may also include creative words or themes to further showcase the character’s unique qualities or the journey itself.

#4 – Get Feedback From Your Target Audience

The people who will know if your title is a good fit best, are the people who would pick your book out of a lineup. This is why it’s so important to know the target audience for your book from the start.

This can be difficult if you’re not a part of a writing group or aren’t active on social media.

However, here are some tips for getting book title feedback:

• Create a poll in a Facebook writing group
• Reach out to some friends or family you know read in your genre and ask for their feedback
• Post a poll on Twitter with your various options
• Do all of these in order to get a wide variety of input

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Your Next Steps

Ultimately, the title of your book depends on you, the author. By following these constructive guidelines, you will be able to generate a number of book title ideas you can use to find the perfect one that grasps the attention of readers and soon become an Amazon bestseller in no time!

#1 – Join your FREE training!

This training was created just for you. Make sure to save your spot and sign up right now so you can learn exactly what it takes to write and publish your book within 90 days…or even less!

You won’t find this guide anywhere else. Take advantage of this offer so you can spark multiple book title ideas in as little as an hour!

#2 – Create a list of book title ideas

Now is the time to fire up that imagination and start brainstorming! We gave you a number of different actionable steps to help you generate book title ideas that work well.

Now is the time to make a list of every potential book title you can think of! The more, the merrier.

When this is done, you’ll want to go through and jot down any that really make you feel something in a separate list. These are the ones you’ll use for the next step.

#3 – Get feedback about the top title

It’s hard to pick a title by yourself because you’re too close to the book. What will help you find the best title is putting the options out there for your target audience to choose.

A fantastic way to do this is to join writing and publishing groups online where you can post polls.

For example, our Facebook Mastermind Community has a very large number of experienced authors who respond to polls just like these on a near-daily basis.

Locate a group you like, join, and start polling about your title!

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