Result
Yes. "My" is a possessive pronoun (also called a possessive determiner), and every major style guide capitalizes it in a title. It is only two letters, but the lowercase list is limited to articles, short prepositions, and certain conjunctions. "My" is none of those.
"My" by Style Guide
| Style guide | "My" mid-title | Why |
|---|---|---|
| AP | Capitalize | Pronouns, including possessives, are major words |
| APA | Capitalize | Pronouns, including possessives, are major words |
| Chicago | Capitalize | Pronouns, including possessives, are major words |
| MLA | Capitalize | Pronouns, including possessives, are major words |
| AMA | Capitalize | Pronouns, including possessives, are major words |
| Bluebook | Capitalize | Pronouns, including possessives, are major words |
Examples in Chicago Style
- What I Learned from My First Year of Blogging
- My Favorite Writing Tools
- How I Grew My Newsletter
- Lessons from My Biggest Mistake
Possessives Look Like Articles, but Are Not
"My" sits in front of a noun the way "the" and "a" do, which is why people lowercase it. Articles are on every guide's lowercase list; possessive pronouns are not. The same rule covers "our", "your", "its", "his", "her", and "their".
"I" is capitalized everywhere in English, so it never needs a rule, and "Mine" is capitalized in titles like any pronoun.
Real Titles With "My"
- Who Moved My Cheese? (Spencer Johnson)
- My Side of the Mountain (Jean Craighead George)
"My" in Sentence Case
APA reference lists, many news sites, and most UI text use sentence case instead of title case. There, only the first word and proper nouns get capitals, so "my" is lowercase unless it starts the title: "Lessons from my biggest mistake." Pick one of the two styles for a whole set of headings rather than mixing them.
Quick Answers
Should "my" be capitalized in a title?
Yes. "My" is a possessive pronoun, and pronouns are capitalized in every style guide.
Is "my" capitalized in APA?
Yes. APA capitalizes pronouns regardless of length.
Do you capitalize pronouns in a title?
Yes. All pronouns, including possessives like "my," "our," and "its," are capitalized in title case.