What's the most marketable title?
I am writing a novel about someone being chased by the Russian Mafia. A hitman is sent to save her and that's where the books takes off. I have way too many titles floating in my brain - three to be exact. They are "Slap-Dash", "Tooth and Nail", and "Hang Fire". What is the most marketable title? Why do you think so?
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I rather like "Hang Fire." Sounds mysterious and dangerous, it isn't quite grammatically correct as a phrase but it could be in the right context so it's got some tension pushing me towards exploring it, and it's visually evocative.
I also encourage you to find a phrase or proverb in Russian which makes sense when translated to English and see if that works.
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Hit Man
Just kidding. Maybe "Guardian Angel" since the hitman is not exactly a saint.
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You are asking the wrong people. Ask a sample of people whom you have imagined would enjoy the book best. For eg. If you are targeting people who likes Tom Clancy type novels, find a few of them and ask them what grabs their attention the most.
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I would definitely avoid Tooth and Nail - it's already heavily overused.
I confess, all three titles sounded very generic and indistinct to me. They tell me this is an action-packed thriller, but nothing more specific than that. I'd recommend you consider what you find to be the most interesting, important, and/or unusual elements of your book, and try to construct a title referring to one or two of those (even if the reference oblique, it's still individual!). Of the three, Hang Fire stands out most for me, but I would really consider it worthwhile to look for something a little less generic - a title that applies to your book, that wouldn't apply as easily to scads of others.
Without knowing more about your book - central themes, conflicts, characters, motivations, location - I'd have a tough time recommending anything suitably tailored to your particular work. Here's an article on title-choosing you might find helpful.
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