How to Write Book Titles in a Paper

Heidi Thorne is a self-publishing advocate and author of nonfiction books, eBooks, and audiobooks. She is a former trade newspaper editor.

If another book has the same or similar title to yours, should you be concerned?

Heidi Thorne (author) via Canva

A self published author was concerned to discover that a new book with a very similar title was appearing before hers in search results on Amazon. She feared that this other book would take away her visibility on Amazon and Google search, even though hers was published much earlier. Were her fears valid?

Books With the Same Title May Not Be the Same

The Avengers, Twilight, The Fast and the Furious, Notorious, Bad Boys. What do these all have in common? The same title for very different books or movies. If you have any familiarity with these similarly titled works, do you think there's going to be any confusion? I don't.

In the opening example, the two similarly titled fiction books were in different genres. That made it less likely there would be confusion between the two, even if they both showed up on the same search results page on Amazon. As well, the two books had different subtitles and/or series names, making it even more unlikely that readers would be confused.

Legal Issues Concerning Books with Similar Titles

Under United States copyright law as of this writing, creative works can have the same title and not infringe upon each other's copyrights. But that doesn't mean you should intentionally title your book the same or similarly as another. Another author's similar title may also be trademarked, e.g., Harry Potter, and you'd be in even more hot water. Always do your research and due diligence on your potential book titles prior to self publishing.

But if another author publishes a book with a similar title and content to your already published book, you need to carefully weigh the risks and potential rewards of making a legal claim for infringement.

Consult an attorney who specializes in intellectual property with any questions about book title and copyright issues.

Why You Shouldn't Care Where Your Book Appears in Amazon and Google Search

In the opening example, the author was concerned that the similarly titled competitor's book would outrank her in search on Amazon and Google. Indeed it might. And when I checked it on Amazon, indeed it did. But both books had almost the same amount of customer reviews.

So why did one book appear before the other in search results on Amazon? The Amazon algorithm is extremely complex and the search methodology is not shared with the world. Plus, it is constantly being updated. I've seen that sometimes newer titles appear before older ones. That's what could have been happening here.

For Google search, the situation is similar. No one outside of Google knows the algorithm and it is constantly changing, though often priority appears to be given to more recent entries that fit the user's search query. In this example case, both authors' books appeared on the same results page when I typed the title into the search box, the newer book listed first and the other book second.

The bad news is that there's not much you can do about this because this is beyond your control.

The bigger question is why do you care? When a reader types in your book's title in a search query because they've learned about you or your book on social media or elsewhere, they are looking for you or your book. They're not going to look at all the similarly titled books and say, "Hmm, I see three books with the about same title. Eeny, meeny, miny, moe. Which one should I read? They're all the same, right?" Of course not!

Consider, too, that often readers may search for your author name and not your book's title. So even if there are books with similar titles, if they're searching for you, they'll see your books. And why will they be searching for you? Because you've built your author platform, or fan base, on the the likes of social media, blogs, podcasts, and YouTube to create demand for your books.

Amazon and Google search are not where your book and author visibility are built. Those are just "last mile" channels where your fans will go to find out more about your book or actually buy.

This article is accurate and true to the best of the author's knowledge. Content is for informational or entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for personal counsel or professional advice in business, financial, legal, or technical matters.

Heidi Thorne (author) from Chicago Area on August 30, 2020:

Adrienne, I think as long as authors aren't deliberately infringing on another book's title, it's less of an issue. However, I do understand that it can be quite emotionally unsettling for an author, even if unintentional.

Read More From Toughnickel

Thanks for reading and thoughtful comments! Have a wonderful day!

Adrienne Farricelli on August 29, 2020:

With so many books coming out, it's not surprising that a book may end up having a title that it strikingly similar or even the same, as it can happen after all with titles of movies, names of stores, websites etc. Your tips are helpful. Although I would be a little upset if I came up with a very original title and somebody used it as well shortly after me, you make good points as to why it shouldn't be considered a major problem.