Need a Term

[terendel.livejournal.com]

Need help.

We are beginning to plot out an action thriller that features a multiple character. The book is not about being multiple, and the character, while important, is not the main character.

I need a general term to refer to inner selves. Something that will be comfortable for a multiple audience but will also make sense to a singlet audience. "Persons" or "people" while comfortable in this community might not work so well in a story or for a wider audience. The two (or three, haven't decided yet) people will refer to themselves as headmates, but I want something else for referring to the individuals collectively in the system.

Hope that makes sense.

Richard of Del System

Comments

[tej-agni.livejournal.com]

I would've gone with "people". If you're looking for a term the majority of the world would understand, the word you're seeking is "alter". If a person sees that word they will know exactly what it refers to. Not all Plurals like that word though. Something basic like "inners" might work. Though that may give the impression that the other people are all within one person, but it's close enough, and for many it is that way. Use what you think will work best for your character's situation. :)

Kasia

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

How about "others?"

[morgil-lomion.livejournal.com]

We use "Others", capitalized. When we say it in that sense we try to make the capital letter stand out from our tone.

It works well because it is a fairly un-biased word as far as language goes, with few if any negative associations that can be drawn from it. Yet it is still distinct when used in the manner.

[20splinters.livejournal.com]

You've already got our favorite term "headmates," But we also use "multiples" and "others."

JOey

[gryphons.livejournal.com]

hmm.. souls, headmates, system, household, um..

when we're out talking to friends.. in public we call each other roommates.. or housemates.. but most people probably wouldn't understand that they meant the other souls in their shell.

but we're a bit brain fried.. right now.. or we might could come up with others.

[cross-clan.livejournal.com]

We've used "others" or "headkin".

[pyoska.livejournal.com]

I call mine my sisters.

[terendel.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the comments. I guess "people" it is. We refuse to use "alters" so the singlet readers will just have to deal with us as people. ;-)

And yes, the explanation of "multipleness" (is that even a word?) is definitely going to be there. The multiple character will come out to the main character so plenty of time to explain.

Richard

[ksol1460.livejournal.com]

Definitely people.

[schadendox.livejournal.com]

Yes, people makes sense. But if you wanted to go out on a limb, maybe one or more of the people likes to refer to everyone else as "my homies" or something. Maybe it could be to show the difficulty of have the *exact* right word for this kind of thing, or to show that there is no accepted mainstream term yet. As in, "Dangit, I'm not an English major, let's just call each other homies."

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

The thing is, lots of people are people, but not all people are members of multiple systems. There should be a word to specify the latter that's shorter than "members of multiple systems." It might be something specific to the system in your story, like "homies," "sisters," "brothers," "the pack," etc. Or it might be something more generic like "headmate" or "other."

Rob

[ksol1460.livejournal.com]

Andy refers to us all as his "colleagues..." :)

[morgil-lomion.livejournal.com]

That is an excellent word. In writing it may or may not fit depending upon the nature of the characters however.

[schadendox.livejournal.com]

But don't forget that there is no single typical setup (at least that's the impression I get). Pictures might be good, depending on how much visual thinking you do. A graphic novel would be spiffy, if only because I'm partial to manga.

And of course, it's an action thriller. Explanations are nice, but don't let it bog down the story, of course.

[terendel.livejournal.com]

No worries. We've written books before, so we know the fine line between bogging a story down and giving enough explanation so people can follow along. The main character will accept the presence of multiples, and we'll give him just enough explanation to go with. The audience and character will have to be satisfied. The book isn't about multiplicity. It's about keeping the main character alive!

I'm sure we'll be able to manufacture enough down time to squeeze in a question and answer session or two.