“One can be tooling over the mechanics of a great poem then throw it away with a generic or safe title... the title is another way to add a certain depth and complexity to the piece. It can be the bearings for your readers or it can lead them astray.” – dimitrireyespoet.com
Titles are the first impression of poems because this is usually what jumps out at your readers. For one, the title usually looks different in size or line weight. It is also most likely on it’s own line, creating its own distance from the rest of the poem. Even so, with beginner poets, titles can be one of the most overlooked things in the poem. One can be tooling over the mechanics of a great poem then throw it away with a generic or safe title. It isn’t good to operate from the mindset of, “I’ll put a title on my poem because everyone is doing it” because the title is another way to add a certain depth and complexity to the piece. It can be the bearings for your readers or it can lead them astray. It can clear things up or muddy any obvious interpretations. Simply put, not thinking about your title is a missed opportunity. I’ll tell you 5 Reasons you should title your poem.
Titles are actually essential to a good poem and could implicitly captivate its reader. A title could do that as well as other things. Continue to read and out!
1) Keeps Files Manageable
This first tip is specifically for housekeeping purposes. Whether you write poems often or sparingly (see How to Make Time for Poetry) it’s a good idea to title your poems in order to keep track of them. From an editing perspective, if you have 15 poems you’ve written in the last 30 days, and you want to go back to the second poem you wrote, it’s easier to give it a title you’d remember rather than it being saved as an untitled document.
2) A Friendly Reminder
Titling your poem gives the poem purpose and it reminds you of that purpose when creating the work for the first time and/or editing. Remember that the title doesn’t have to be permanent, it can be something that evolves. That means that even if you have to create a placeholder title when working on a draft, that’s okay.
For example, let’s say if it’s a poem about a particular experience you had purchasing a specialty item in a grocery store, so you title the poem receipt. If you choose to, you can be more specific later, but for the sake of you maintaining focus on the poem’s purpose, the title is a helpful reminder that will make sure you’re still on track.
3) Helps Your Audience
A title can be great company to those who read it. I like to picture the title as an easter egg that inserts itself inside different parts of the poem. For the audience, titles help them better understand the various themes, tropes, and metaphors that add complexity to the poem. For example, if the title of your poem is “DisneyWorld” and the poem discusses the themes of family, every situation will be interpreted under the scope of the title, so there’d be an organic association between DisneyWorld and family.
4) Frames Your Work
As an extension to what the title does for your audience, it actually influences the way they think about the poem. A good title will keep your readers in the parameters of the story you are creating. Not only is this box helping your reader know what you’re talking about but it’s making sure that your readers stay on track and they are sharing your experience rather than fully creating their own.
5) A Tool That Could Draw in Your Reader
This can be extra important when one is considering the slush pile in the submissions process. One way a poet can differentiate themselves from several hundred poets is by having a very unique (but relevant to the topic title.) This piques the interest of the poetry readers and/or press editors and will be enough to give your work a second or third look.
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