Generate and validate book title options. Produces candidates using proven naming strategies and checks availability against existing books.
View on GitHubhowells/fiction
fiction
skills/naming/SKILL.md
January 25, 2026
Select agents to install to:
npx add-skill https://github.com/howells/fiction/blob/main/skills/naming/SKILL.md -a claude-code --skill namingInstallation paths:
.claude/skills/naming/Generate title options for your book using the naming agent. ## What This Does 1. Reads your project materials (README, themes, characters, world) 2. Extracts potential naming seeds (objects, places, themes, contradictions) 3. Generates 8-12 title candidates using proven strategies 4. **Searches to verify titles aren't already taken** 5. Rates availability and genre fit 6. Provides ranked recommendations ## Usage ``` /fiction:naming # Generate titles for current project /fiction:naming /path/to/project # Generate for specific project ``` ## Output For each recommended title: - **Strategy used** — Object, place, character, theme, etc. - **Why it works** — What makes this title effective - **Availability** — Clear, Caution, or Taken - **Genre signal** — What readers will expect ## Availability Checking The agent searches for each candidate: - Exact title matches on Goodreads, Amazon - Similar titles from well-known books - Potential confusion with existing works **Note:** Book titles can't be copyrighted, but sharing a title with a famous book hurts discoverability. ## Title Strategies The agent generates candidates using: - **The Object** — Significant item (*The Kite Runner*) - **The Place** — Key location (*Wuthering Heights*) - **The Character** — Protagonist name (*Jane Eyre*) - **The Theme** — Abstract made concrete (*Atonement*) - **[Noun] of [Noun]** — Classic scope (*House of Leaves*) - **The [Person] + [Location]** — Thriller staple (*The Girl on the Train*) - **The Contradiction** — Tension in words (*Brave New World*) - **The Cultural Echo** — References readers know (*East of Eden*) ## When to Use - Project is ready for a final title - Current title feels weak or generic - Preparing to publish or pitch - Series planning (title patterns that extend) - Want to validate an existing title choice ## After Naming 1. Test favorites with target readers 2. Check domain/social availability if relevant 3. Coordinate with `/fiction