Nomenclature by Nancy L. Eady

Entering a new area of the law after 34 years in personal injury is not a task for the faint of heart. Entering a specialized area of the law, public health, with zero experience in the field of endeavor is an adventure. I am learning, essentially, a new language, or, to put it in more precise terms, a new nomenclature. 

Nomenclature is an interesting word. One of the 6+ definitions listed for the word in the Oxford English Dictionary is: “The system or set of technical terms used in a science or other discipline; a specific or specialist terminology.” (If you are an English-speaking word nerd, the definitive reference source for a word’s definition and etymology is the unabridged Oxford English Dictionary, “OED”, now conveniently available on-line via subscription.) 

English borrowed the word from classical Latin, in which the word “nōmenclātūra,” meant “the assigning of names to things.” It was used in 1690 as denoting a list of the commonest words in a language to help learners, and in 1798 as a word for the entire word list in a dictionary!  Oxford English Dictionary, “nomenclature (n.),” June 2026, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/4212315392. (In case you can’t guess, I am playing with my new toy, a one-month subscription.) 

Just like my job comes with its own nomenclature, mystery writing comes with one as well. If you are new to writing, here are some common terms and/or abbreviations.

Antagonist – The Bad Guy. 

Backstory – Not the history of orthopedic medicine, but the stuff that happened to your characters before your story opens. 

Cozy – Not how I feel in front of a roaring fire in my fireplace during the depths of winter, but a mystery subgenre where violence is downplayed and the crime takes place in a small, socially intimate community. 

Flash Fiction – Not a photograph of a book taken in the dark but a short story that is less than 100 words long. 

MC – Not the master of ceremonies at an event, but the main character in your work. 

MS – Not a professional woman who wishes to remain neutral regarding her marital status, but “manuscript.” 

MSS – Not a bevy of belles, but “manuscripts.” 

Pantster – Not a tailor, but a free spirit who sits down at her desk and starts writing, surprised as she sees what flows forth from her word crafting. 

Plotster – Not a gardener, but a frustratingly organized individual (at least to those like me born lacking the gene for organization) who plans out the plot of his novel before starting to write. 

POV – Point of View. Not your opinion about politics or the chartreuse and pink dress your best friend is wearing – you might want to keep the chartreuse and pink opinion to yourself in any event - but rather the way in which you tell your story and from whose perspective. 

Protagonist – The Good Guy. 

Swag – Not a jaunty step nor a fancy curtain top but the promotional materials authors use to encourage the public to read their book.

Unreliable Narrator – The person telling your story is not just a liar but a dam* liar.

WIP – Not a program initiated by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to create jobs during the Great Depression, but “work in progress.” 

What other words and acronyms might be helpful for a new writer? If you are a new writer, what words or acronyms do you have questions about?