Unknown to me until recently, chapter titles are controversial–in one of my writing groups, anyway. Opinions fell into a few broad buckets: liking them, doesn’t matter, and takes the reader out of the story.
As far as taking the reader out of the story… If a title does that, what does just “Chapter 1” and “Chapter 2” do? What about books with parts? To each his own, I suppose. Seeing a title for the first chapter ought to turn them off, so they won’t buy the book. If this theoretical potential reader is that persnickety, then I’m certain there is more within that’ll bother them. Better to have them move on than have unhappy readers.
To be fair, that bucket was an outlier. Those who like titles weren’t put off by not having titles. This is where I land. I look at chapter titles as a bonus. I read Arthur C. Clarke (2001, 2010), Carl Sagan (Contact), and J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series where the authors provided chapter titles. I found them intriguing, which entices me to read more.
When writing, I find using chapter titles helps me focus on the point of the chapter. Usually, when I can’t come up with a good title, it means don’t have a firm grasp of the chapter’s goal, which means rethinking and changes are in order.
Sometimes, my titles hint at or foreshadow the meaning of upcoming events. In The Music of Mars, two chapter titles are based on a saying I heard often as a kid: Red sky at night, sailors delight; red sky in the morning, sailors take warning.
I used the warning portion first to clue readers (those who were paying attention) that the tide would turn. A few chapters later, the delight portion signaled readers that events were looking up.
In The Siege of Mars, I used a couple of uncommon words, zugzwang and sciamachy as chapter titles.
zugzwang – the necessity of moving in chess when it is to one’s disadvantage
sciamachy – a fighting with a shadow; a mock or futile combat (as with an imaginary foe)
I like using mythological references throughout my works, too. I mentioned Pandora’s Box in the text early in The Siege of Mars. It’s so common, though–everyone’s heard of it. Later, I pulled an obscure reference, Scylla and Charybdis, for a chapter title. I have to thank The Police for their ’80s hit, “Wrapped Around Your Finger” for this one.
As an aside, Frank’s security code is a nod to a classic, and the terms he and Gretchen used in the reporter’s presence are loving references to a ’70s sitcom. Leave a comment with you think I pulled these references.
For more information about The Music of Mars, click here.
For more information about The Siege of Mars, click here.
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I’m an author living in northern Virginia with a wife and a cat. In the late ’80s, I worked on the International Space Station project. I recently retired from managing a group of software engineers to focus on writing science fiction and speculative fiction. Learn more.