Get FIRED Up!

A book was reviewed in the Washington Post on Sunday, May 28 that had a perfect POP! title and sub-title.

First, the back story. A woman named Annabelle Gurwitch was rather spectacularly booted off a movie set by director Woody Allen. He told her, "What you're doing is terrible, none of it good, and all of it bad."

Instead of licking her wounds and spiraling into depression, she told friends what happened, many of whom then shared their "You think that's bad, wait 'til I tell you how I got canned from my job" story.

She started collecting these tales of workplace rejection and thought,"This would make an interesting book." Voila. She solicited first-person accounts from dozens of people and turned what could have been a traumatic incident into a money-making career and cottage industry with a documentary in the works.

Now, what to call her book? Think of all the synonyms for being "let go" and let the word play begin. That resulted in FIRED! Tales of the Canned, Canceled, Downsized, and Dismissed.

What's the point? If you're trying to come up with a name for your book, project, or presentation, write down all the words you use when describing your topic. Then write down synonyms for the words you've already listed. See if there is ONE word that captures the essence of your subject. When it comes to titles, less is more. A one word title is more likely to POP! off the page.

Then, play with the words in your sub-title until they're alliterative. Alliteration (words that start with the same sound) makes your language lyrical and gives people's mind a hook on which to hang a mmemory.

Want more tips on how to create titles and taglines that help your project break out instead of blend in? Sam will be conducting workshops in 15 cities across the country from September-October as part of the media tour for her new book POP! Stand Out in Any Crowd. Check www.SamHorn.com for a complete public seminar/media schedule to see if Sam will be coming to your area.