It was when I came across the 50th anniversary edition of Laurence Ferlinghetti’s book of poems from 1958 called The Coney Island of the Mind that the title of this collection offered itself. In a deliciously chaotic bookstore called ‘All Books’ on Rideau Street in Ottawa, I joked with the owner about possible titles for books. As I said, it felt about the right time and he and I played instantly with new titles. From Coney to Phoney! This phrase immediately tripped off into other areas, reminding me that writing in architecture and about architecture could be constantly held back by the very errors and insights that are consistently part of architecture’s flawed but brilliant excitement.