How we usually begin preparation stage in writing process is…

We think of an idea for a story We think of a suitable theme We plot

Once we come up with a theme and we begin plotting, we have to see how theme and plot match up. Sometimes as we plot we find that theme we had initially chosen won’t do.

For example…

‘Winning The Lottery Makes Your Life Easier’

Plotting with this theme in mind, we have our characters pay off all their debts, go on endless shopping sprees, go on holidays, etc. We find though that this won’t make a very interesting story. So we spice it up, adding to theme or coming up with a different one.

“Winning The Lottery Makes Your Life Easier But Everything Has Its Price.”

We all have different tastes in what we like to read. Some have a particular taste for horror, while others prefer romance or fantasy or crime stories, etc. My favourite genre in short stories is horror, so once title grabs my attention, I will enthusiastically read story.

You may want to leave your readers in no doubt of type of story you have written. That’s fine. You want to grab all fans out there and/or recruit new readers into genre you are so fond of writing.

So, how do you select a title that reflects your story?

Should title always reflect story?

Not always. But your title must have some sort of connection with your story.

Is There A Connection Between Your Title And Your Story?

If you choose not to have title reflect story that’s fine too. But there should be some relevance between them.