Perfecting Your Story – Title and Image

If your story is a precious jewel, then the title and image are the beautiful wrapping paper and carefully tied ribbon containing your literary gift!  Most magazines and online publications now ask for images to accompany stories, and of course every story has a title. 

You should probably give at least as much time to selecting a title and an image as you do to writing a flash fiction or micro fiction story.  The packaging says a lot about you, and is part of your online Voice.

The Perfect Image - Inviting and Descriptive

Source

Don’t use images that are copyrighted or that have watermarks. Your own photo or art work is always good, if it meets the other criteria. Some sources for free, public domain photos or art work include Unsplash.com, Pexels.com, and Google Creative Commons Images.  

Color

Bright colors can attract attention, but garish colors can turn readers away. Images that are too dark do not attract visitors. Even if your story is a “dark and stormy night” story, the image needs to contain enough light to make out distinguishing details. Another consideration that scary, mostly black images tend to all look very much alike.  On the other hand, black and white or greyscale images can be very dramatic and elegant. Just make sure the details are clear enough to attract readers and help them find the story again later.

Visibility

Make sure your picture can easily be seen on any device. The public will read your story on desktops, laptops, tablets and phones. A picture with tiny details won’t mean much on a phone. Better to zoom in on the important parts of the picture and emphasize those. 

Uniqueness

Give some thought to what other entries might use for an image. If the prompt is “Wings”, for example, a picture of birds in flight might be one of many similar pictures. Try to have at least one unique element in your picture that sets it apart from the others.

Relevance

Your image should invite readers to explore further and should also help explain or deepen the story, without giving away any surprises.  It should also serve as a quick reminder of the contents of the story.  Take your time and select or create just the right image. Remember that the image will become a permanent part of your story’s publication.

The Perfect Title - Unique, Tantalizing and Unforgettable

Uniqueness

You can’t guarantee that your title is unique across the Internet, or in the book or magazine publishing world, but you should do your research to try and find a name that will be easy to find in the environment you’ve chosen. On Voice.club, for example, you can enter a potential title into the Search page to see if it has already been used.  Never use a single word writing prompt for a title. Stories with duplicate titles will not be shortlisted.  Once your story is published, you want people to be able to find it again!   

Length

There are no hard and fast rules for length, but a good guideline might be between 3 and 6 words.  Be careful of titles that say too much!    Your title should tease, not give away the plot.

Relevance

Like the image, the title should draw people in and help them understand the story without giving away any secrets.  In flash fiction, and especially micro fiction, you can use the title for words that are necessary to understand the story, without adding to your word count. Make sure your title is actually an integral part of the story.  

Capitalization

Finally, make sure your title follows the rules of capitalization.  Here is a free site you can use to check your final title:  https://capitalizemytitle.com/

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    Actually, this is a voting security feature. During public voting, only club members can read posts submitted for that contest. Since anyone reading the story is able to vote (click the Like button), we reserve these capabilities to members who SignIn. Before we implemented this security feature, people were voting multiple times and making the public voting process unfair and out of balance. To fix this, our staff finally decided to allow only members who SignIn to read the stories. Membership is free and easy, and ensures our club is safe, secure, and family-friendly!