You’ve decided on your title, but does your book need a subtitle to help readers understand what your book is about?
It’s an option most authors consider when preparing a new book for publishing.
However, it’s not always a good idea for every book. A subtitle can clarify and strengthen a book title, or it can weaken the impact.
Before you decide, you need to understand when a subtitle works and when it doesn’t.
What is a book subtitle?
The main title is the identity of a book, so every book needs one.
But a subtitle adds extra information that may not be obvious from the title alone.
You see it more often in nonfiction and self-help books, but you might notice it’s becoming a little more frequent for fiction titles.
Historically, subtitles such as “A Tragedy” or “A Novel” helped distinguish fiction from essays, poetry, memoirs, and other forms of writing.
Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” famously carries the subtitle “The Modern Prometheus.”
Similarly, Stephen King’s book “IT” used “A Novel” on some earlier editions.
For nonfiction books, the subtitle is often in the form of a promise to readers.
One example is “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change.”
More recently, many authors and publishers have started using subtitles as a marketing tool. In some cases, that has even led to keyword-stuffed subtitles designed more for search than for readers.
Because many readers now buy books online, the extra words in a subtitle can sometimes improve a book’s discoverability on stores such as Amazon.
Does your book need a subtitle?
Every book needs a title and the author’s name (or pen name) on the cover and title page.
But a subtitle is optional. Its purpose is to explain, clarify, or strengthen a book title by giving readers more information about the book.
The most common reasons are to give readers information that the title doesn’t provide or to reassure them about what they will gain from the book.
You see this frequently on self-help, business, writing, and other nonfiction books.
It only takes a quick peek on Amazon to see that most nonfiction books use subtitles. Here’s one example:
“Are You Mad at Me?: How to Stop Focusing on What Others Think and Start Living for You”
However, many of today’s longer subtitles seem designed as much for online discoverability as for helping a potential reader understand the book.
Memoirs rarely need a subtitle because their titles are often quite descriptive. However, it’s not uncommon to see “A Memoir” used as a subtitle to immediately tell readers the type of book.
Children’s books also rarely use subtitles unless they are part of a nonfiction or educational series.
For fiction books, it’s not so clear-cut. It often depends on whether the title is descriptive or a little mysterious.
If a book title doesn’t give a reader a clear clue as to what the story is about, a subtitle can help.
Good examples are book titles with only one or two words or only a name. In this case, a short subtitle might help.
But we are living and writing in a world where technology is playing a more defining role in book discovery and book buying.
That means every word counts as metadata when trying to sell your book online.
A subtitle can include words readers might use when searching, and that’s the reason so many books today have a subtitle.
When a subtitle might not be a good idea
Before you start thinking about a subtitle, keep in mind that many self-publishing platforms, including Amazon KDP, require every word in your subtitle to appear on your book cover.
Here is the guidance for subtitles from Amazon KDP:
Cover image: The title, subtitle, author name, and series information on your cover should match the corresponding metadata fields.
That can easily lead to an overcrowded cover, especially if your main title already contains four or five words.
If your aim is to improve search visibility, you need to balance that against the appearance of your book cover.
The danger for fiction books is that a title often creates mystery, emotion, intrigue, or curiosity on its own.
Adding a subtitle can sometimes make a novel seem more like a textbook.
If you’re only adding a subtitle to squeeze in every keyword you can think of, such as “A Suspense Mystery Thriller Detective Crime Novel with Twists, Secrets, Murder, Small Town Mystery, and Strong Female Lead,” I’d think again.
It’s one thing to improve search visibility, but it’s another to overwhelm readers with a keyword list on the front cover.
Tip! You can balance the need for a subtitle by using it in your book description instead of on the front cover and title page.
A book description is part of a book’s metadata, so it can do a similar job for search discoverability.
How long should a subtitle be?
A novel with an excellent book title rarely needs a subtitle. But if you want to use one, keep it very short.
For nonfiction, though, a short subtitle is often enough to make a promise or give a little extra information to a potential reader.
Many effective nonfiction and self-help subtitles are only a few words long.
Too wordy:
“Gardening: A Guide To Gardening, Growing Plants, Flowers, Vegetables, And Creating A Beautiful Garden”
Better:
“Gardening: Simple Techniques For Growing Vegetables At Home”
For any book, if you’re trying to improve search discoverability with keywords in a subtitle, take it easy.
You need to find a balance between what you’re trying to achieve and how readers will react.
Most important of all is how your subtitle will look on your book cover.
The most common mistakes
When you draft ideas for a subtitle, remember that it’s a title, not an essay.
The biggest mistake is making it way too long.
Another is trying to squeeze keywords into it when it isn’t a natural fit. This can create friction with potential readers for little worthwhile gain.
Adding a subtitle just because you think you need one is often a mistake, because you are not using it for a specific purpose.
Can you add or change a subtitle later?
If you’re self-publishing with Amazon KDP or another platform, changing a subtitle later is usually possible by updating your book details.
However, be aware that changing a subtitle also means updating your book cover file because the subtitle must match the metadata.
That may incur an extra expense if you used a graphic designer to produce your book cover.
Also, keep in mind that if your book already has reviews or recognition, changing a subtitle may confuse new potential readers.
Summary
Subtitles for books are not a necessity, only an optional extra.
Many books don’t need them, and even those that do should have a subtitle that is clear and focused.
If you are planning to publish a new book soon, take your time deciding if a subtitle will help or hinder your book.
If you are self-publishing, and particularly with Amazon KDP, you need to balance the discovery potential of keywords in a subtitle with the reality of what readers expect and how your book cover will look.
Related Reading: How To Design And Format Your Book Title Page
English teacher, writer, and author. Passionate about grammar, creative writing, and self-publishing. Always exploring new tools and tech to help writers succeed.
