Book Titles

Authors often spend a lot of time trying to come up with a title for their writing. F. Scott Fitzgerald is a good example. Although he finally settled on The Great Gatsby, his notes and letters show that he had considered: Gatsby; Among Ash-Heaps and Millionaires; The World's Fair; Trimalchio; Trimalchio in West Egg; On the Road to West Egg; Under the Red, White, and Blue; Gold-Hatted Gatsby; and The High-Bouncing Lover.  Just before its publication, he said  “The title is only fair, rather bad than good."

I figure there are other stories of titles and came across a few to start that topic on this blog.

Baudelaire used the title Fleurs du Mal (Flowers of Evil) but its origin is not some clever allusion. Stuck without a title, he opened the naming to some friends while out a a cafe and Fleurs du Mal. An early example of crowdsourcing?

Now, to find some interesting title origin stories. Got one? Please leave a comment or email me.