It's All in the Title

Deciding on a title for my debut novel was painful.  The kind of pain you experience of having your wisdom tooth pulled without the benefit of Novocain.  I wanted the title to give readers a clue about the story and plot.  I researched the title of both fiction and non-fiction books about The Troubles in Ireland.  Most of the books had “troubles” in the title or “IRA”.  I thought it would be disingenuous to use a title like that.

Next, I decided to try brainstorming.  I have participated in many brainstorming meetings in my previous life in management.  I enjoyed those sessions and was always surprised with the outcome.  I took a blank piece of paper and wrote down every title that came to mind.  Brainstorming was designed to be a group activity and brainstorming by yourself lacks creative exchange and interaction.  However, I filled several pages with titles but wasn’t satisfied.

Frustrated and anxious I stuffed the pages of titles in my briefcase and forgot about them.  Putting my brainstorming titles away meant I relegated my problem to my subconscious.  One thing I’ve learned about myself as I’ve pursued writing full time is that my subconscious is a hotbed of creativity.  I don’t know how it works – but it works and I’ve learned to trust it and listen to it.

One evening as I went to bed I was reviewing potential titles in my mind.  It’s like counting sheep to get to sleep.  In a dream I had a conversation and he told me the title was Murphy’s Troubles.  He explained that the book was about his troubles in life and the period of Irish history referred to as The Troubles.  It was simple.