Working Titles of Famous Novels

How ‘Trimalchio in West Egg’ became ‘The Great Gatsby’ and other famous name changes

If you’ve ever wondered if great authors struggle with titles, the answer is yes and Jonkers has created an infographic that proves it. Here are the original titles of some of literature’s most famous novels, and explanations for how the books ended up with the names that they have today. The list includes more than one close call, because A Thing That Happened just doesn’t have the same ring as Of Mice and Men.

Working titles of famous novels:
Pride and Prejudice: First Impressions
The Secret Garden: Mistress Mary
Little Dorrit: Nobody's Fault
The Great Gatsby: Trimalchio in West Egg
The Good Soldier: The Saddest Story
Lord of the Flies: Strangers from Within
Mein Kampf: Four and a Half Years of Struggle Against Lies, Stupidity and Cowardice
To Kill a Mockingbird: Atticus
Gone with the Wind: Tomorrow Is Another Day
Lolita: The Kingdom by the Sea
1984: The Last Man in Europe
Atlas Shrugged: The Strike
Of Mice and Men: Something That Happened
War and Peace: All's Well That Ends Well
Brideshead Revisited: A House of the Faith

More Like This

A Frozen Bird Too Beautiful to Bury

Three prose poems by Mike Bove

Sep 2 - Mike Bove

For Marlon James, Being Incurious Is a Writer’s Biggest Sin

The Booker Prize-winning author on reading his way through writer's block, and why every sentence has to risk going too far

Sep 1 - Electric Literature

A Story of Love and Resistance Amidst Dispossession

In Nyla Matuk's LEILA AND KHALED, romantic love is underscored by a longing for Palestine

Sep 1 - Bareerah Ghani
Thank You!