Does a Title Actually Matter?

[ToxicRamen]

I have this idea for a comic strip which is basically about various characters and their stories in space. However I'm stuck on trying to figure out what kind of title should work for it. But I was wondering does a title actually matter?

I see some comics with titles that have little or nothing to do with the actual comic. A good example is the manga Fruit Basket, which is about a girl befriending a family who is cursed to take forms of the Chinese Zodiac animals. But I know that titles help give us readers an idea what kind of comic we are going to read.

I have some good ideas for a title though I'm not sure if any of them would fit in a comic which has different characters and different stories. It would sorta be like an anthology comic strip where each story arc is different but they would all be in the same universe.
(Edit - I took down my title ideas because I'm paranoid of someone else taking them and using them....)

[hushicho]

I have actually considered this many times myself, and most of the titles I know of, or find memorable, are very simple and straightforward titles. Of course, as you've noted, you do want titles that haven't been taken.

A little note though: if you mean red stars, RougeStars works fine. If, however, you're talking about maverick stars or renegade stars, you may mean RogueStars! Just pointing this out so you don't end up with a title that wasn't what you meant. Either way though, all your potential titles seem interesting and evocative!

[dojo]

I personally don't feel the title matters a whole lot, but having one that stands out CAN help. It doesn't mean your comic will get panned by a larger audience if it's not, though. There's plenty of stuff out there that still manages to get a large audience despite having what some may call a generic title (It's your plot summary that'll be the real draw, anyway)

As for the titles you've chosen, I think any of those could work, especially if you went the route some anthologies go where there's a common theme/message being told in each story that sorta links them both to each other and the title, besides them just being in the same universe. (that's honestly just a suggestion, though)

OH you took the titles down as I was writing this, but I'll leave my suggestion here anyway. Hope this helps!

[dojo]

Oh wait, actually I take some of what I said back, cuz I just looked at another topic similar to this and @shazzbaa's reply is V GOOD and possibly a good thing to consider for what you ultimately decide on:

How's my comic title?

Mostly on the google note, cuz your readers being able to find your comic easily through searches is pretty important.

[Pandastrophic]

The example of Fruits basket you gave is actually relevate in a metaphorical way to the story.
Fruits Basket is a game Tohru and her classmates played when they were small children. Everyone is assigned a fruit (apple, banana, etc) and when your fruit is called, you run to the middle of the circle. As a mean joke, the other children made Tohru be an onigiri (rice ball). It is also a metaphor on how Tohru can't belong to the Souma family as an onigiri won't belong to a Fruits Basket.
So if you want you could take the more metaphorical route? the title doesn't literally have to say what the story is about and you end up figuring out the meaning of the title after you've read parts of the comic/manga.

[mintycanoodles]

i think a good title adds a lot to a series, but an ehhh one doesn't necessarily detract. when in doubt, names usually work. harry potter, matilda, hamlet, etc.

[LoboSong_Hitaka5Ever]

It kinda sorta matters, but I don't think its THAT crucial to have one that's well thought out. For our comic, we took some morals of the story and made it the title of our comic (Of Plights** and Honor***) Then our future one we're trying to set up was inspired by a song title and fits the Apocalypse theme we're going for. Simpler titles I feel draw people in better too though (our future comic is kind of a long title)

**Plights: bad situations the characters have/are going through
***Honor: those characters coming together and fighting against the wrongdoer that hurt them in the first place

[Rueleer]

A title's primary purpose is to help identify the comic. It's the first draw of anything, aside from the cover, and used the most.

It's not really detrimental to have a bad title, but it is shooting yourself in the foot a little.

when in doubt, names usually work. harry potter, matilda, hamlet, etc.

Ehh, tbh I'm sketpical of name-based titles. :'DD The examples you used are iconic, and the names are honestly pretty uncommon. It's a good tip but runs the risk of encouraging increasingly oddly named protagonists in order to get a name that's catchy enough. :"DD

[shazzbaa]

OH HI thanks dojo! xD Yeah, I feel like the two biggest things are "can you communicate this to someone easily" ("my comic's name is Legend of Aloa'qathon -- hang on, uh, lemme, spell that") and "is it likely to be drowned out on Google by other results."
After that, what best fits your comic and what's gonna attract the right audience and what's memorable is a little more subjective to the specific comic you're making.

I feel like a title does matter, but it's not the biggest deciding factor.

[Kura]

I actually think a title matters a lot to a story. Some titles are pretty straight forward, some are not, though I would like to add that for titles that are not exactly straight forward, I enjoy reaching the point in a story I'm reading and realizing the THAT'S WHY THE SERIES IS TITLED THAT realization.

[haleymewsome]

I would say the primary thing a title is good for is helping people find and remember your comic! Make sure it isn't so common as to get buried under random stuff if someone searches for it, and not so complex that people won't remember it. Outside of those parameters you can't go too wrong. c:

[Tieback]

I would vote YES. I do think the title matters. However, I wouldn't get too stressed about it. I don't think there is only one right title for a comic. Think about it and trust your gut. When I pick a title, I try to think of one that:

1. is unique
2. fits the comic
3. sounds good when you say it
4. is easy to recall
5. has an "X" factor

good luck

[Herofeeder]

yeah sometimes titles have nothing to do with the comic..my comic title doesnt either.i would change the title if i had a better one but as of yet...nope

[AnnaLandin]

Titles matter - but they're not the be-all and end-all of a comic. You don't have to be stunningly original with your title - but it's good to at least try to make the effort. I personally find titles an important part of deciding whether to check out a comic or not.

Having a title that is easy for readers to remember and spell (so they can find you in case they lose track of you) is good, having a title that at least signals SOMETHING about what kind of comic readers are getting into is a good idea, and speaking for myself, a really good title will make me pick up a comic/book/story based on that alone - and just getting someone to read past the first page is a good first step!

Finding a title that's memorable is a challenge, but it's definitely worth trying. Just glancing over on my bookshelf and picking out a few novel-titles, to give examples of what grabs my attention: The Book of Dead Days, The Stars My Destination, Not Forgetting the Whale, The 13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear, The Years of Rice and Salt, Embassytown, Pocket Atlas of Remote Islands, Before They Are Hanged, etc., etc.

Are all those books good books? No, certainly not. But it was their titles that first made me pick them off the shelf in the bookstore and start flipping through them. It's the same with comics-titles. Your title is often the first impression someone gets of your comic - try make sure it's one that goes over well.

[pliviswmilt]

I personally feel like there are a few things that work together initially draws me into a comic and keeps me coming back for more. If we're talking about tapastic specifically, when I'm browsing through the what's available to see what new comic I want to try, the first thing a potential reader sees is the thumbnail and title. There's the saying, "don't judge a book by it's cover" but honestly, with so much out there, I can't help but to judge it by what I first see. Usually, it's the thumbnail that draws me in more than the title would, but there have been times where the title would sound very interesting and I would check something out based on the title. Likewise, I've been put off by titles, usually because of weird word combinations but that's like personal taste I guess? lol

It helps having a simple but memorable title so if a reader forgets to subscribe or something and wants to find your comic again, it'll be easier for them. I'm looking at the stuff I read, and most titles are 1-3 word phrases. Of course there are exceptions, but anything too long, the more effort it is to remember the entire thing.

I do like it when the title does have some sort of significance to the story, either literally or metaphorically over something that looks like it was randomly chosen. It's not a deal breaker but it feels like the creator put thought into it. I also really it when there's like a title drop LOL I always makes me smile but that's just me.

[TrialAndError]

I believe a title shouldn't outright just tell you what the story is about, but at the same time make sense to the story. Perhaps when the story reaches its climax does the title finally give you that "AHHH" moment. Other than that it should lightly allude to the story and make people try to link the title to the story, which will always keep them coming back for more.

If it's a gag comic, titles are usually a main character, a main idea, or something that's referenced enough that it's now associated with the comic in everyday dialogue.

[lunaartemisasama]

I don't think so. I care more about the art style, sometimes I don't even read the title lol.
Maybe it matters for SEO, if it's easy to remember...

But I don't think it is so important.

[sarrowsmith10]

I feel like titles do matter. But I think you also need to look at a bigger picture too. So you are crafting this webcomic right? And there are a lot of aspects that all go into this great piece of work. There is the art, the story, the backgrounds, the characters, the climax, the cover, the chapter names, the plot twists, the lettering, the dialogue. All of these things work together to create a complete work of art. Right? The title is just one more part of a grander picture. So, if you are trying to masterfully craft this work, I think some thought should go into it, and make sure it works to promote and support your comic.

My comic, Goblins of Razard, has a title that should already give you a pretty good idea of what to expect. There are goblins and they have some role to play in a fantasy realm called Razard. As you start to read the comic, the Goblins are more apart of the world at large, rather than the main characters. They sort of mirror a theme that everyone has secrets and all the main characters are greedy and are plotting their own moves behind each other's backs. The big focus of the comic is how all these strangers can learn to trust each other in order to reach their goals. So where I could have named the comic Legend of Reign, or The Order of the Owl, both names that fit the work, we decided on a deeper title I think.

I also think its okay to not have a title for your work (or just a working title) while you are doing the script and character design work and let the story and characters mull around in your mind for a good length of time, before deciding on a definitive name for the work.

[KSlinger]

I'm on the 'titles don't matter' bandwagon.

When you don't know the anything about a story the title means nothing to you. When you do know a lot about a story the title is the last thing you think about. Titles are a thing you give out to spread information, it's something for people to Google or use in a 'this not that' context. Sure, pick a title with the right feel if you can- don't go calling x-rated horror story something like 'Ice Cream Dream' if possible (or do, whatever floats your boat)- but I do believe anyone with clever intentions who agonises over the nuances of the perfect name is, essentially, wasting their time, especially considering the famous titles we all know that have had their meaning all used up.

When I say Lord Of The Rings, you're not thinking about a king, are you? (...are you??)

To Kill A Mocking Bird. Split Second. Catcher In The Rye. Tumble And Fall. The Colour Purple. Sustain. Jade Coast. Ravenglass. Avatar. In The Garden. Falling Foss.

Literally just mixed a bunch of famous titles and random words. Can you even tell which are which?

[agentfink]

We didn't have a title for a long time, it was something we were could not reach an agreement on for several reasons.
Knowing the scope of the comic/story helps and I feel that a title should reflect the tone you're trying to tell.

I wanted to call our comic Rocket Ridge for the longest time. The story takes place there, we will know the town and the people, and it was also supposed to be a nod to Twin Peaks. Copperhead (an Image, Space Western comic that I really liked) had the same feel/ring to the title, but my partner disagreed and said it tells him nothing.

My partner wanted to call it F.Ink -- literally F (dot) Ink-- after our title character and I HATED it! He was basing it off our main characters nickname and saw CHEW as an inspiration. From a visual standpoint, I think it looks ugly. But he was pushing it... titling the scripts that way to see if I'll come around... I didn't, obviously!

When he came back with The Pale and told me the reasoning behind it-- I smiled. It was clever, meaningful and felt just right.
Yes, absolutely, I think a title matters.