Help Me Invent a Word

[kaasirpent]

I have a novel in progress called Perdition's Flames. It's an urban fantasy, and it takes place in modern Atlanta, but magic works. This is the first book of a potential series. Right now, it's at about 55,000 words (and on hold for a bit). I also have written most of the bare bones of the second book and have some ideas for the third, fourth, and fifth books.

In Perdition's Flames, necromancers will be involved. Traditionally, 'necromancy' meant 'divination by communication with the dead,' but I'm using it much more broadly to mean 'deriving magical power from the dead or dying.'

For the second book (Death Scene), I'll be using psychometry, or divining using an object (a.k.a. 'object reading'), although I'll be changing that a bit, as well. And I'll also be using stasis and a few other neat powers.

For the third book (working title Fatal Beauty, which blows), I'll be using something I can't find a word for. Someone is going to have power that primarily operates on/through works of art. I haven't worked out all the details, yet, but . . . "artomancer" just sounds stupid. :)

The '-mancy' part comes from the Greek word for 'divination' or 'oracle.' So, ideally, the first part would also come from Greek. However, the Greek word for 'art' is τέχνη (pronounced, roughly, tekhnee). There is already a word somewhat commonly used in the genre: 'technomancy,' which is used for the meshing of science and magic, or magic through technology, or that kind of thing. 'Techno-' may have originally meant 'art,' but these days, it just doesn't unless you twist it a bit.

And the fine distinction between 'technomancy' and 'technimancy' is too small for me to expect readers to follow.

So, my question to the hivemind is this: Can you suggest some words that I could use to mean roughly 'artomancy' but without sounding overly stupid? :)

Alternatively, is there a tradition in some mythology I'm overlooking that has something like this? If so, I could take the name from that mythos.

Comments

[dchenes.livejournal.com]

Any particular type of art (painting, sculpture, etc.), or just art in general?

[kaasirpent]

Art in general. Sculpture, painting, sketches...

[EDIT:] See my comment below in response to Territan.

[territan.livejournal.com]

It took a very brief turn on Google Translate to remind me that the Latin word for "art" is...

..."ars."

Somehow, I don't think "arsomancy" will go over the way you want it to.

So, tell you what: More information please. How does this technique work? If it's sufficiently obscure and unherad-of, it might not even have a proper "-mancy" word.

[kaasirpent]

It's something like this, although as I said, I haven't fleshed it out:

Something is killing art collectors throughout Atlanta, some of them in locked rooms, and there are no witnesses. The murder weapons seem absurd, such as a 7-ton bronze statue of Kulbai Khan or a tiny jeweled hummingbird brooch once worn by Josephine Bonaparte. (Examples do not necessarily reflect actual scenes.)

Someone—the 'artomancer'—is using his special application of magic to murder the collectors. My characters' jobs will be to find him and stop him.

[territan.livejournal.com]

Here's another term you might not have come in contact with: "Sympathetic magic" represents a magical form in which an object can be used to control another object through some sort of correspondence, either in a similarity of form or by being part of the same whole. Even though voodoo is a much older practice, the "sympathetic magic" angle was seized upon to explain why the witch doctor's fetish had to have parts and effects of the intended victim, even though the effect has since been more or less proven to be psychosomatic—literally in the victim's head...

...look, I know none of this makes sense. But we're having a talk on magic here, and "rational" is indistinguishable from any other speck of dust on the rear-view mirror. The good news is I'll be talking to people tomorrow who can provide better answers for you.

[kaasirpent]

Oh, yes. I'm quite familiar with sympathetic magic. And not just because of Harry Dresden. It's the basis for homeopathy. :)

[rarelytame.livejournal.com]

!!

Arsomancy! *dies*

I totally want to write a story about Arsomancy now. Perhaps it will be erotic romance, because that would make it even better. Hahaha.

[kaasirpent]

"No, it's not a 'sexist pig' thing at all. I need you to take off your pants because I can foretell the future by examining your arse."

...

Why does no one ever believe me?

[etherial.livejournal.com]

Mousaimancy, from the Greek root word for "muse", "music", "museum", etc.

[kaasirpent]

Hmmm. Thanks, Eth. I'll write that sucker down on the list. :)

[friend-soscho.livejournal.com]

I was thinking about muse as well

[(Anonymous)]

Art-focused thaumaturgy?

[happy-buddha.livejournal.com]

Curratomancy? Curiomancy? currated magic? It sounds like the magic is collected, bit created by the artist, the power provided by the appreciation of the object... Hmm.

[haloumi.livejournal.com]

There's a part of me that thinks that augury, while not quite accurate, is sufficiently different and it gives you plot and tension because, applied to art, you have to 'disembowel' the work, which few artists or curators are happy about. It also gives you a self-aware joke in that your protagonist can mutter "what should I call it - artery?" without going all the way down the Ars path.

There's another part that thinks that this smells a little of writing avoidance and would like to encourage you to pick up book 1 again, because I is edumacator and that is how we think. :)

[kaasirpent]

Oh, book 1 is on hold mostly because I gutted the plot. I'm still going to finish writing the last few chapters, but assuming the current plot, not the one I started with.

(It's also on hold because I've got a lot of short stories I'm putting through critique, trying to get ready for submission.)

[trilobits.livejournal.com]

Artographer

Sanskrit roots

[ext-1780329.livejournal.com (from livejournal.com)]

It is funny that I ran in to this post. I am creating a character right now that uses such magic based on art. I was scouring the internet for ideas. I found that you are in the same dilemma. Eventually I was lead to using Sanskrit. The Sanskrit word for art is Kala, with the accent on the last 'a'. How do you feel about calling your form of magic, Kalamancy (I would actually pronounce it as KAL a MAN cy or KAL a man cy? A practitioner of kalamancy would be a kalamancer.

Re: Sanskrit roots

[kaasirpent]

Thanks for the reply. That could DEFINITELY work. Kalamancy. Kalamancer. I like the way it flows off the tongue. I could even make a deal out of it coming from sanskrit.

Thanks, anonymous Internet-person-who-is-also-a-writer! :)