Does The Book Title Matter?

Ahoy and welcome to 2012!

Today in The Locker I want to talk about book titles. When I began this writing gig, I had no idea that one of the most difficult concepts would be the title of the book. We pore over the details and the blood, sweat, and tears of getting just the right words to match a scene to transport our readers to our world---in the book. We hope to maintain their attention for a few hours, and want to weave a story free of ambiguity and boredom.  We want a best seller ready to sell thousands of copies.

However, what might really grab our readers’ attention is the book title. It will not matter if we rival Walt Whitman,  Jane Austen, or Stephen King- if we do not have a creative title, we risk our book being passed over in lieu of the one with a title worthy of bumper sticker or movie screen status.

So, I ask you, readers, would a title encourage or discourage you to read a book? Would you even flip to the blip giving you the synopsis if the title was bland? Or is the title just an identification for you, with no real drawing power? I want to know.

Authors, do you fret over the perfect title? How much priority do you give it in regard to the unique story you’ve written?  Do you choose it first and build your framework around it? Or, does your muse slap you upside the head with the perfect title when you least expect it?

In my opinion, there is not a detail too small to be considered when it comes to book publishing.