When a lair is not a lair.

The Lady · Apr 8, 2008

So in my story I've got a banished demon character living in an underground home carved out of the rock beneath a mountain. Although I'm visualizing this very well, I'm having a giant problem naming it. In this story, his daughter leaves this place, which is her home, and must return to it after one month. She is somewhat ambiguous in her feelings towards home. (it's home but bad things have happened to her there, but, it's home) Anyway, as she refers back to it, I'm just not sure what to call it.

I've been calling it lair, but it seems a bit over kill, a bit too much, You Must Regard This Place As An Evil Place Where Bad People Live, and it's not as straight forward as this.

Any ideas anybody. I'm a bit stumped.

mscelina · Apr 8, 2008

Home. Nice and ironic and to the point.

TheIT · Apr 8, 2008

If she's the POV character, then how would she refer to it? "Home" makes sense. If she needs to describe it to someone, then perhaps "cave" or "cavern". She might use different terms depending on who she's addressing. For distancing, perhaps "her father's home".

MattW · Apr 8, 2008

Domain?

Retreat?

Den?

Stronghold?

Cavern?

mscelina · Apr 8, 2008

But think of the different perspective if she calls it "THE Home." I meant to mention that in my previous post, but I'm editing-braindead. "The Home" had negative connotations in our society anyway. Make that the name of a cavernous demon's lair and you have a whole different ball of wax.

The Lady · Apr 8, 2008

I would like to participate in this discussion but unfortunately my brain is dead with regards to this question.

Ruv Draba · Apr 8, 2008

Pad, digs, sanctuary, burrow, crib, sett, warren, domestic concavity (does that sound as rude to you as it does to me?), pit, tunnel, mine, shaft... uh, hole.

Matera the Mad · Apr 8, 2008

Nest, lodgings, den... our thesaurus runneth over

Komnena · Apr 8, 2008

Cavehome?

nevada · Apr 8, 2008

I vote for Home. even a demon needs a home. makes him more sympathetic.

dirtsider · Apr 9, 2008

The Old Man's place? It is her father's home more than hers.

Soccer Mom · Apr 9, 2008

I like "nest". It sounds warm and homey.

Higgins · Apr 9, 2008

Soccer Mom said:
I like "nest". It sounds warm and homey.

DDL : Dad's Demon Lair?

The Lady · Apr 9, 2008

Dad's pad?

No stay out of this conversation Lady. I told you, you don't have a single intelligent thing to add.

ReneC · Apr 9, 2008

Some homes have a name, particularly those with long family histories. People who live in "Wuthering Heights" don't say they're returning home or call the house "home", they call it by name.

Give your demon's cavern a name, one with as much history or dread as you want to lend to the place. Maybe "Withering Depths"?

Or how about "Domus Inferne" ("Home Below") which is more ominous than "Domus Specus" ("Cave Home").

The Lady · Apr 9, 2008

ReneC said:
Some homes have a name, particularly those with long family histories. People who live in "Wuthering Heights" don't say they're returning home or call the house "home", they call it by name.

Give your demon's cavern a name, one with as much history or dread as you want to lend to the place. Maybe "Withering Depths"? Or how about "Domus Inferne" ("Home Below") which is more ominous than "Domus Specus" ("Cave Home").

What language are you using, can I ask? Is it Latin?

Plot Device · Apr 9, 2008

I have absolutely no clue what the intended tone of your story is. Nor your intended cosmology.

However ... FWIW ... I have an older screenplay I wrote three years ago about demons, and I also have a ghost/horror script being reviewed by a Hollywood prodco right now. And in both scripts I latched onto the verb "dwell" and the noun "dwelling" to refer to where ghosts/demons/the undead hang their hats. In my cosmology, the undead do not "live" in such places (they're not actually "alive" you see) they merely "dwell" there.

kct webber · Apr 9, 2008

mscelina said:
Home. Nice and ironic and to the point.

Agreed. Describe what you are seeing in your head; that is, describe a lair, then have her simply refer to it as home. Granted, I don't know the tone of the story, but it seems like such a normal name would allow the reader to make up their own mind about the place and her relationship to it, rather than forcing it on them with a "dark" name.

Just my humble opinion.

poetinahat · Apr 10, 2008

So - you've got a demon-like creature - say, an ogre... inside a dwelling - say, a yurt.

I've got it!

Yogurt.

:thankyou:

Bartholomew · Apr 10, 2008

poetinahat said:
So - you've got a demon-like creature - say, an ogre... inside a dwelling - say, a yurt.

I've got it!

Yogurt.

You should get banned over that one.

ReneC · Apr 10, 2008

The Lady said:
What language are you using, can I ask? Is it Latin?

Yes, it's Latin.

brokenfingers · Apr 10, 2008

Hmmm... Howzabout Sanctuary or Haven?

TheIT · Apr 10, 2008

poetinahat said:
So - you've got a demon-like creature - say, an ogre... inside a dwelling - say, a yurt.

I've got it!

Yogurt.

I could say something about biologically active cultures, but I won't.

The Lady · Apr 11, 2008

Thank you all for the suggestions. Somewhere in there is the name I'm going to use. Perhaps home is the way to go. The tone of this story is sombre by the way. Sombre until it ends in death. For everybody. :hooray:

I wish I could have participated in this thread with my typical wit and liveliness, encouraging you all with jolly banter and questions of probing hilarity to search deeper and deeper in your souls for that exact word, the lightning storm to crush the current bug.

However, life in the exhausting, time consuming manner it likes to adopt whenever a giant piece of writing has to be done, got in the way. But I am very grateful for all your efforts. Again. Thank you all.

I worry. Perhaps I haven't thanked you all enough yet. Thanks again!

Thanks!

BrynnaC · May 15, 2008

I'd certainly call it a den.

When a lair is not a lair.

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