Writers please help me - I can't think of a good title!

[Kathyis6incheshigh]

OK so I have been working like a maniac and have nearly finished my second draft. Several friends have read my first three chapters and the alterations I need to make as a result of that are manageable.

But my title is utter shit.

I have surfed the net, trawled through dictionaries of quotations and read relevant poetry, come up with something reasonable only to find it had already been used a million times before.

My question is: would I be stupid to try to get an agent if I don't have an eye-catching title? Or wouldn't it matter given that all the how-to-write books say that publishers often change titles anyway?

And does anyone have any good tips on how to think of one?

I think it's possible to combine quality and well-written with cool. Quality writing will always speak for itself but the title and jacket must have "kerb appeal" to the target market to help potential customers select it in the first place. People really DO judge books by their cover!

Oceanspace fits really well if it's quoted within the book. Especially if you dream up an exceptionally good strapline which encapsulates the "real-life" wreck situation within, thus eliminating any assumption of fantasy.

Ooh, I'm getting excited for you! Be sure to keep us updated on how it goes!!

love that poetic reference...

my fav is Seafever...

that's a good title too!

oceanspace is great

I'm liking Seafever too, Casbie, you are excellent at titles!!! Do you work in advertising?? "Seafever" hints at mystery, desperation, intrigue and darkness to me. Perhaps backstabbing too of some kind. In-fighting maybe. Hmmmm!

no i work as a toy designer, and often having to make up silly names for products...

it all relative though. you need something specific to your story.

i would put 'Oceanspace', as working title, watch for repsonse under S P Smyth and see how you do. Post it off.

Then, try something like 'Seafever' written by Real Name, and see how that does.

I think more often then not publishers are looking for a certain type of book, a certain type of reader. From what your suggesting your book is like try 'Chicken House', 'Bloomsbury' (of course) and 'Penguin' publishing houses. This is just from a reader's perspective, though. Write to the publishers of your choosen genre and hope for a response.

OK I've printed synopsis etc out with 'Oceanspace' as the title and it does look plausible. I can always send it off with 'Wrecked' if it comes back as it is fairly certain to do.

Sea Fever is a chicklit novel set in the glamorous world of yacht racing, apparently - sort of Jilly Cooper but with extra moisture.

It's also a Keeping Up Appearances video.

Otherwise it is indeed good, just doesn't quite work for me as the feverish stuff happens on the island rather than at sea. (Sorry, I know I'm horribly hard to please.)

LOL @ Casbie being a toy designer - must say it is pretty cool to get advice from someone who makes up names for toys! I do like Mumsnet!

I'm also excited, Sparklepop. Despite reading all UnquietDad's healthy-dose-of-reality threads about how hard it is to get published. I'm just happy to have got this far with it.

Will keep you all updated, promise.

Good luck, it is not always that hard to get published!
Are you sending it out to agents or a publisher?

I like oceanspace - now I have a little context to work with.

Ocean's Pace would make a good title for an Anita Shreve market...

Slowreader - after that other thread where people gave me advice about it, it looked like there were good reasons to go either way. Then I went through the Writers' Handbook and there actually seemed to be very few that will look at manuscripts of novels for children unsolicited, so I may end up trying a few publishers but agents as well. (And not submit simultaneously to start with, but if everyone seems to be taking ages to get back to me I will rethink.)

Anyway, Kathy, even if it is hard to get published - why shouldn't yours be one of the ones that do?

Casbie you lucky person - toy designer - what a cool job! I always wanted to be a toy buyer (am in Buying but not that area)

I say go for it, you've only got Pride to take a knocking, they're not judging you personally.

And you might get good feedback about what they would accept!

Good luck with it, Kathy. Let us know how you get on.

Oh I've just discovered 'Wrecked' has been done twice in recent years, once in 2001 by Robert Swindells and once in 2005 by E.R.Frank. What a pity.

Thanks everyone for good wishes - I will definitely be posting if anything comes of it! But it may take a while.