ve the slightest idea of what title he will eventually
give it.

On the other hand, he may create a story _from_ the title. Having hit
upon an expression that suggests a story by starting a train of
thought, he may find that it is directly responsible for the way in
which he builds his plot; its very words suggest the nature of the
story, and supply at least a suggestion of how it can be
developed--they hint at a possible plot, suggest the setting, and
show, almost as one might guess the theme of a novel by glancing for a
moment at one of the illustrations, what the probable outcome of the
story will be. Hence the expression becomes a natural title for the
photoplay.

As an example of the foregoing, in "The Fiction Factory," by "John
Milton Edwards," the author says that "the sun, sand and solitude of
the country God forgot" did, or caused, or made something--just what
does not now matter. The point is that those ten words supplied one of
the present authors with not only titles for two of his photoplays,
but with the plot-germ for the plays themselves. Both are stories of
Arizona: "Sun, Sand and Solitude," and "In the Country God Forgot."

_6. Choosing the Title Last_

But you may decide to leave the naming of the story until after you
have made the rough draft of both synopsis and scenario. Your story is
told; you know the motives that have prompted your different
characters to do what they have done; you know the scene; and you
understand the theme, or _motif_--as the word would be used in
music--which underlies the whole action. The question arises: To what
do you wish to have your title call _particular_ attention? If a
woman, or a girl, has the leading part, and it is what she does in
your play that really makes the story, it would be best to feature the
girl and her deed of cleverness or daring in your title, as in "The
Ranch Girl's Heroism," "A Daughter's Diplomacy," or "A Wife of the
Hills." Or you may attach most importance to the locale of your story,
the background against which the rest of your picture is painted, and
call it, for instance, "A Tragedy of the Desert," "In the North
Woods," "A Tale of Old Tahiti," or one of the titles of Arizona
stories, just cited. Again, the interest in your story may be equally
divided between two, or among three, people, as in "The Triangle,"
"The Girl and the Inventor," and "The Cobbler and the Financier." Note
that every title here given is the actual title of a