Best title: "Sentinels of Miith" vs. "Bane of Miith" vs. "Miith's Bane"?

[Spectrum]

I still don't get the euphemism part...

 

[HareBrain]

It will haunt you till you die.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I still don't get the euphemism part...

Think what activity is generally associated with one individual lying prone and another supine.

If you do that, the pun in one of your titles should be rather obvious.

Ursa's interpretation of the other title, on the other hand, is purely metaphorical.

 

[HareBrain]

Ursa's interpretation of the other title, on the other hand, is purely metaphorical.

Oh ... I didn't think it was, though I've always had a rather literal mind. And now I'm worried that it's even more depraved than Ursa's. Probably too much reading Baudelaire as a youth ...

Talking of which, and getting back on point, I like titles that contain an apparent contradiction, like Baudelaire's The Flowers of Evil, or The Serpents of Paradise, etc. Any scope for one of those?

 

[Ursa major]

Ursa's interpretation of the other title, on the other hand, is purely metaphorical.

As it happens, I was thinking of a real shroud - though still in an unpleasant way - when I made my comment, but your interpretation is just as valid as any other.

Off hand, I can't think of a pleasant meaning of "Tearing the Shroud"; all the ones I can think of involve some kind of violation (some of them with severe religious overtones), which would have to be justified by the actions or motivations within the series. Has the porotagonist to cross some moral barrier to defeat the antagonist? Is the protagonist driven by moral fervour when he or she discovers the antagonist's violation?

The more I think about it, this title might be suitable, but only if it was somehow relevant to the overall story.

 

[Aes]

As it happens, I was thinking of a real shroud - though still in an unpleasant way

Likewise. In fact, my interpretation was pretty much a mix of what Teresa said combined with, well, something involving the deceased. Either I'm depraved, I've been listening to too much Voltaire, or both of the above.

I'd say the general consensus is this: Using "Tearing the Shroud" is a bad idea.

 

[Ursa major]

Even for a ripping yarn?



(Or is this comment off-thread?)

 

[Sev]

I would go for "Sentinel" as "Bane" sets your story up to be a LOTR derivative fest in my mind... and perhaps "Myth" or "Mythe"? (but not "Miff" )

Remember you have so much freedom in choosing a title; just look at Robert Jordan's - they often barely relate to the content, but sound "cool".

 

[Spectrum]

"Bane" sets your story up to be a LOTR derivative fest in my mind...

Several have said or suggested this. Can you explain why?

and perhaps "Myth" or "Mythe"? (but not "Miff" )

Good point. Maybe I need a spelling that gets the pronunciation across better. As I said, "Miith" is supposed to be pronounced so it rhymes with "heath" or "beneath". To my mind, neither "Myth" nor "Mythe" conveys this. Does anyone have a better idea for a spelling?

 

[The Judge]

Perhaps because 'bane' is not a word that is used much nowadays except in phrases like 'bane of my life' when it means something like nuisance or annoyance. If you are using it in a more deadly sense as in poison (eg the herb henbane), then it's distinctly old fashioned - in fact I just checked and my dictionary actually says 'archaic'. Because of that it does sound self-conscious - and the type of thing latched onto by Tolkien imitators.

Meath sounds like, well, meath. Though since there is a county of that name in Ireland I can understand your not wanting to use the spelling. How about 'Meeth', to rhyme with 'teeth'. Though frankly, it looks comical, so I don't think I'd use it. Is the pronunciation important to the book? If not, why not go for something else? Mieth (My-eth), Maeth (May-eth) etc.

Apropros of pronunciation I had a teacher called Mrs De'ath - pronounced not as Death but as Day-ath. (She failed her driving test once too often so the Sixth Form put out a huge banner with the-then safety slogan 'Keep Death off the Road' and put the apostrophe in the appropriate place...)

J

 

[Sev]

Several have said or suggested this. Can you explain why?

Some authors tend to repeat certain words in their prose, "bane" was one of Tolkiens favourites - consequently authors attempting to mimic his style often included it in their writing. Theres absolutely nothing wrong with using the word though - its part of the English language and its all fair game, but using it in the title just gives me a Tolkien flashback...

 

[HareBrain]

I have a few more ideas for in-story concepts that might make titles. What do you guys think of these?

- The Unspoken Covenant
- The Lie Sublime
- Tearing the Shroud

I was just glancing over this and it struck me that "The Sublime Shroud" sounded interesting, and though it probably wouldn't work for your book, it made me think that one of the best things a title can do is intrigue, and this often happens when you get words that you wouldn't expect to find together; you can't figure out what they might mean except by reading the book.

So to take your examples:

The Unspoken Covenant - OK, you have an agreement that's unspoken, I've understood that, no need to read the book, next!

The Lie Sublime - A perfect or beautiful lie, that's easily comprehensible, next!

Tearing the Shroud - some kind of shroud gets torn, as they do, next!

But ...

Eating the Shroud - WTH????? Now I need to know what on earth that title can possibly mean, so I examine the back cover a bit harder, flick through a few pages, and hopefully doing so will get me caught up in the story.

OK, so it might not be the best example, and obviously the title would need to make sense in the context of the story, but maybe you should look at titles that might provoke a reaction rather than summarise the novel?

 

[MistingWolf]

Unspoken Covenant is so far preferred, but mayhap keep searching for that right title. I know I changed mine many times.

 

[Jimmy Magnusson]

I always tend to look at East Asian movies for title inspiration. I mean can it get any better than The House of Flying Daggers? I do have to say I'm endlessly tired of reading the word "Bane"...

 

[Kissmequick]

Ooops

I had no idea Bane was such a hated word.....

 

[Spectrum]

Is the pronunciation important to the book? If not, why not go for something else? Mieth (My-eth), Maeth (May-eth) etc.

Yes, I could do that. I am also considering getting rid of "Miith" entirely and finding a better name that means someting. Trouble is, it has to be short, easily pronounceable and non-cheesy. I can manage one or two of those qualities, but all three at once is a challenge.

 

[HareBrain]

You mean find an alternative to "Miith"? I'd agree with that - I think I pointed out before, it sounds like you're trying to get the feel of "Myth" but spelling it differently, which as the name for a planet/world, does seem a bit cheesy. Even worse, it sounds like "Myth" as pronounced by a cartoon Spaniard.

 

[Spectrum]

Thanks for the replies.

I also have some more ideas for titles of series or books. The thread has shown that I am a bad judge of other people's reactions to titles, so I'd like some opinions on them too:

- Dominators of Miith
- Archons of Miith
- Entropy's Avatar
- Black Stars' Enigma
- Twilight Angel, Remember
- Sons of Darkess Rise
- Chaos Empower
- The Kenosis

 

[HareBrain]

For me, Entropy's Avatar, and Kenosis (if possible without the "the"). I also do like (maybe even prefer) Twilight Angel, Remember, but not sure if this is because I recognise it.

 

[Ursa major]

I have to say that I really like the title, Entropy's Avatar.

And what's not to like?

• It rolls off the tongue really well.
• It's intriguing: Avatars tend to represent "personalities" or, at the very least, something with programming; Entropy is concept, linked to an inevitable process.
• It has the flavour of an ancient god, such as a sun god, or a god of death (in the sense that this too is a process).
• It's got an anthropomorphic flavour and yet the two words invoke science and technology.

If I saw this title on a shelf in a bookshop, I'd look at the back of the book to see what it was about.



(I have one doubt, though: a very tiny one. It may be more attractive as a book title than a series tile (e.g. "Miith Match (book one of Entropy's Avatar)". There are ways round this: call the first book "Entropy's Avatar" and the second one, "<Whatever>, Volume Two of Entropy's Avatar" and so on.