What we did while very tired and still uncertain about titles.

[mrissa]

For a variety of reasons, none of them a great deal of fun, I am more tired than sleepy right now. And I thought, "Ah! I can ask lj to brainstorm titles for me!" Because I am still not convinced that this book ought to be What We Did to Save the Kingdom.

So here are your parameters: there are lots of birds and wings and flight bits in this book. It is a secondary world fantasy. There is a revolution in it. And the magic is sort of math-related, and so I came up with a list of math words that might help:

vector limits inequalities algebra equations theorems axioms coordinates transforms/transformations (note: we have a fair number of transformations in this book) functions curve splines lines limits fractions chains fields spheres prisms

Only I don't want the title to sound like it will require the doing of math for people who are not fond of the doing of math.

Any ideas? The main character's personal title is Ordinal. (It's like Cardinal but completely different. Just as she is like Richelieu but completely different.)

Non-usable suggestions that amuse me, such as Endomorphism's Game, are welcome too, of course.

Comments

[copperwise.livejournal.com]

Can't help you. I think the current title is brilliant. It would make me grab a book off the shelf to find out what it's about, which is what a title is supposed to do.

[genevra.livejournal.com]

Ordinal Transformation?

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

And it may be that I go with this title. But my uncertainty is about whether it's the right title for this book, which is harder than whether it's an interesting title, so I'm trying to feel around and see if I can come up with any options that feel more right. If not, I'll just keep What We Did through submission at least.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

See, I'm afraid that people who don't think of themselves as math people would be scared off by that. Do you think of yourself as math people? If not, would you think it sounded like you had to care about math to understand the book?

[copperwise.livejournal.com]

*g*

Not having read it, I'm still pretty useless in this case. But it is a fabulous title that needs to be on a book, even if not this one. :D

[wintersweet.livejournal.com]

I expect that people who aren't really math people won't even *realize* that's a mathy title. They'll just be all "ooh transformation nifty."

[genevra.livejournal.com]

It doesn't sound mathy to me (I'm not math people, but I'm not scared of math either). What it sounds, however, is churchy. Or maybe compass-y. You just stressed those 2 words, and they sounded cool together. Hmmm... don't know if I'd be attracted to such a title if I'm looking for something to read though. Ordinal Fields? Ordinal Flight? Dunno. Without knowing more about the book, I'm just throwing word combos out there.

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

Is just plain Transformation too vague? Can be read as either mathy or not.

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

Ditto for Lines & Limits.

[mamapduck.livejournal.com]

I would not read that book. I'm sure it would be a good book, but I'd be too scared of it. I agree with Copperwise- if this book isn't WWDTSTK you're going to have to write another one that is because I'm dying to read it. :)

[braddr.livejournal.com]

Playing with the flight theme a bit:

Spiraling Flights
Soaring Limits (or Limitations)
Inequality of Flights (or Heights?)

Thinking about prisms made me think of reflection or refraction some:

Reflecting on the Infinite
Mirror Images

Other directions:

Mapping the

Any of these spark any thoughts? I'll let it bake in the back of my head tonight and see if anything else give me an 'oh, how about this' moment.

[ckd]

Ooooo.

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

Rising Above? (Hopefully that sort of implies both limits and transformations.)

[reveritas.livejournal.com]

JD says there are probably twice as many wings as there are birds ... That's some math for ya!

What We Solved to Save the Kingdom

[alecaustin.livejournal.com]

I suspect that most of these would not really fit with the little I know about What We Did, but perhaps they'll have some other value other than tickling my backbrain:

[Chains/Limits/Fields] of the Revolution
The [Arc/Prism/Limits/Axioms] of History
A [Divided/Fractious] Parliment

The formula I'm using is probably apparent (juxtaposing one math-related word with one political/historical one). I was trying to use Parliment to reference birds, but in the absence of rooks, I don't think it really has the desired effect.

stretching, stretching...

[mechaieh.livejournal.com]

Dr Bunsen Honeydew and the Three Velociraptors

Three Beaks and a Moat

How Many Revolutions Fit Onto a Stereo Needle?

Can You Spell Derivative?

Cast Your nths Upon the Warbler

Goodbye, Mr. Chirps

The Vertex in Spite of Itself


[Disclaimer: on insufficiently effective painkillers atm. I should probably be attempting British crossword puzzles instead.]

Re: stretching, stretching...

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

i^ch R US

(meant to be "i to the ch power" but I can't do exponents here.)

[moiread]

It sounds not very approachable to me. Speaking as a non-maths person. Though it seems crap to say so and not provide a better alternative.

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's kind of what just happened to me. o.o

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

Gah, wish I could help, but I am *terrible* at titles. :S

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

I wish I had something to offer, but I'm HORRIBLE at naming things (and coming up with titles counts as naming things). I can't even come up with a good working title for things I write.

I really appreciate reading this - it gives me some ideas for how to maybe help myself come up with a title that at least isn't completely awful. Making word lists is, as silly as this sounds, not something I would have thought to try in conjunction with coming up with a title.

[talimena.livejournal.com]

I'm no good at coming up with titles, but I really want to read this!

[redbird]

My immediate thought was Equations of Flight, but that sounds very mainstream/literary fiction.

Magic of the Spheres?

[hobbitblue.livejournal.com]

Another vote for the title as is, it'd intrigue me enough to pick off the shelf (or click through on Amazon which is where i do most of my book browsing). Mind you, if the real title is more apt as Ordinal Transformation or Axiom of the Spheres or something, maybe I'd not like the book at all, sounds a bit worthy and long-winded, and I'd not assume birds or flight or any of those things.

Flight Factor?

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

No, no, that's okay, this is one of the times where "I dunno, do something else" is actually a useful opinion.