We Designed a Romance Novel Name Generator
Romance novel titles, especially old-school romances and bodice rippers, seem to come out of a generator. We’re having a little fun now that it’s the Holiday Season. So we made a chart to help you formulate a unique romance novel title based on your name.
Sweet Savage Flame’s Zebra Romance Title Chart
Our romance novel name generator is styled a la Zebra’s naming conventions. No one did formulaic titles better than the folks at Kensington/ Zebra. For over 20 years they released romances that adhered to a certain formula. Let’s see:
Happy/Angry Adjective + State/Location/Native American Tribe + Semi-Romantic Noun = Wild Texas Bride; Sweet Stolen Surrender; Sweet Silken Bondage
or
Happy/Angry Adjective or State/ Location/Native American Trive + Noun with Romantic Connotations = Rebel Vixen; Apache Captive
Use the initials of your name to create a unique title. If you don’t have a middle name, that’s ok, it still works.
For example, my name, Jacqueline Diaz, would be Jubilant Destiny, and sounds pretty romantic. Then I took my husband’s initials and got Enchanting Pittsburgh Marriage, which I’m sure applies to many people, but it lacks a certain je ne sai quoi.
Try and see what title you come up with using the chart! Does it sound like a great bodice ripper?
The Chart
| LETTER | FIRST NAME | MIDDLE NAME | LAST NAME |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Adoring | Algonquin | Amethyst |
| B | Beautiful | Boston | Bliss |
| C | Captivating | Connecticut | Coitus |
| D | Darling | Dakota | Destiny |
| E | Enchanting | El Paso | Ecstasy |
| F | Furious | Fresno | Flame |
| G | Golden | Georgia | Glow |
| H | Hot | Hialeah | Heart |
| I | Impulsive | Indiana | Intercourse |
| J | Jubilant | Jacksonville | Jewel |
| K | Kinky | Kentucky | Kiss |
| L | Lusty | Louisiana | Love |
| M | Magical | Minnesota | Marriage |
| N | Naughty | Nantucket | Nectar |
| O | Obsessive | Oregon | Opal |
| P | Purple | Pittsburgh | Passion |
| Q | Quivering | Quebec | Queen |
| R | Ravishing | Rhode Island | Rapture |
| S | Seductive | Seminole | Slave |
| T | Tempestuous | Tucson | Torment |
| U | Ultimate | Utah | Union |
| V | Virile | Vermont | Virgin |
| W | Wanton | Wyoming | Wench |
| X | Xenial | Xalapa | Xanthium |
| Y | Yellow | Yosemite | Yearning |
| Z | Zealous | Zamora | Zinnia |
Your Opinion on Romance Novel Titles
Today the popular trend now for historicals is to add “Duke,” another title, or “Rogue,” “Rake,” “Devil,” or “Scoundrel” to a previously known idiom or name. Take, for example, The Viscount Who Loved Me or I Kissed an Earl.
Some modern titles have me groaning. On the other hand, I can look back at the names of older romances and laugh at their silliness. But if you like this title chart we designed, maybe we’ll come up with another one! Let us know in the comments.
What book title do the initials of your name create? Play around, have some fun, and see what combinations you can come up with!
Love the titles!
Yes, there are many new book titles that are just old song titles repurposed for romance. Sometimes I think they’re cute, but I could do without all those nobles in Romanclandia. There’s too much focus on Dukes!
Hi, Jacqueline.
I like this idea. From my screen name, my romance title would be “Beyond Fantasy”. If I used my real initials, it would be “Ecstasy’s Torrid Welcome”. You’ve given me some food for thought, so I’ll see if I can come up with others.
BTW, you are SO right about Zebra/Kensington’s titles and the current tendency toward “cutesy” titles. Some that I have seen:
“Sex and the Single Earl”.
“Live and Let Spy”.
“One Thing Leads to a Lover”.
“Waiting for an Earl Like You”.
Clearly, a lot of today’s historical romance authors came of age in the 70’s and/or are 1980’s music fans.