Naming a (Book) Child

When my husband and I were expecting our firstborn, we had many discussions on the subject of names. We ruled out naming our son after a family member, though Joseph Ivan Vrba (honoring his grandfathers) would have been a strong, dignified name. We also ruled out my more whimsical choice, Griffin, as my husband felt his parents would respond negatively to it. Noah was a strong contender for a bit, until I decided that I didn’t like the singsong way it sounded with our last name. I wouldn’t have minded using my husband’s middle name, Anton, as a middle name - but my husband, who dislikes the name, nixed that idea. And so we listed and relisted and talked and pondered, and eventually came up with Daniel Jonathan, a name we both felt was right.

I never would have considered picking a name without my husband… and neither would I have asked anyone else for input. This was between the two of us, and nobody else. I don’t think it would have occurred to anyone else, family or friend, to try to insert their opinion, either.

When it comes to naming a book, on the other hand, it seems all bets are off.

It’s not uncommon for an author to go through several titles in the process of writing a book. My first published book, GOOD NIGHT CONNECTICUT, named itself; it had to match the other books in the series. THE STABLE CAT, on the other hand, was briefly THE CHRISTMAS CAT and A GIFT FOR A KING before becoming THE STABLE CAT’S CHRISTMAS.

My latest project resisted titling for a long while. Not in a rush to name it, I simply called it DOG STORY. Later, I played around with LUCKY DOG and I AM LUCKY… both a play on the protagonist’s name and the fact that he was, in fact, a lucky dog. But I wanted a title that spoke more to the conflict Lucky is faced with: not wanting to accept being adopted, he decides to misbehave until his new owners return him to Tales and Tails Rescue. So… I settled on I AM NOT A GOOD DOG.

Unfortunately, some friends and family members don’t agree with my choice.

”It needs a subtitle.”

”That title is too depressing.”

”Kids won’t read a book that sounds sad.”

All of this rankles me. I truly don’t mind taking constructive criticism- it’s quite handy, in fact, to have another set of eyes on a project. But it’s one thing to receive input on plot lines and details… another entirely to listen to critiques of a title alone.

I know this may seem odd. After all, advice is advice is advice, isn’t it? But critique of a plot is usually broad, well considered, looking at the bigger picture. Feedback about a title feels as subjective as reacting to a child’s name. And when it comes down to it, only a parent has the right to name a child.

I’ll continue to listen to whatever feedback I receive. As much as it rankles, I do appreciate that these are people who genuinely feel vested in the success of my book. But until the manuscript is picked up by a publishing house, until a trained editor tells me otherwise, the title I’ve chosen will stay.

I get to name my baby.