Need naming help

[MstrTal]

So in my WIP I am working on an addictive substance. A drug if you will that utilizes the blood of supernaturals, not vampires though they are involved, and is highly addictive. The problem is I do not want to fall into the usual trap of using "Blood" or the like as a name. I have been wracking my brain and I can not think of anything that hooks a reader.

A little background. My WIP is an urban fantasy in a contemporary setting. Were's and Fae are known but Vampires are not. Certain other supernatural creatures are known or rumored to exist but they are thought to be related to either the Fae or Were's. Humans are still "Top of the Food chain" so to speak and the supernaturals are living a sort of in a Jim Crow existence at the moment and fighting a Civil Rights battle in the US and a more Race War kind of living globally. The Drug is a new thing and it is hitting the humans hard giving them supernatural like strength and abilities for a short time with a 100% addiction ratio and a rocketing death rate.

I just can't think of decent name.

 

[Kylara]

Depends where you fancy coming from with it...could try variations on sanguinem (Latin for blood (also sanguin = French)), or maybe krev (czech for blood), or pick something that the drug tends to do to most people and name it with some variation of that...and also whether you want it to sound innocuous or slightly evil...so odola is the basque for blood, sounds quite nice, but dugo (Filipino) sounds a bit more sinister, all depends what angle you want really

EDIT: was just flicking through some dictionaries: wordplay; blood translated into Turkish in kan, and this blood based drug lets people do stuff they couldn't before right? hehehe

 

[thaddeus6th]

Kylara covered one angle I was going to mention, but you could also try looking at the names (especially slang terms) for real drugs (speed, whizz, crack, smack, white etc etc).

 

[Toby Frost]

I like Red.

 

[Kylara]

How are you storing it/using it? Is it liquid? dehydrated to powder? or something else, if liquid you may have to worry about coagualation...just thinking aloud here :wink:

And Toby, you must love Tess then, the only colour in that is red... :wink:

Oh another angle of what it looks like...if is glows, or is bright in any way you could go with lambent, or taste: maybe bittersweet? covering metaphorical sense as well a little

 

[MstrTal]

I knew I was forgetting something!

The drug itself is thick, viscous, coagulated, a deep red that is almost black, smells bitter of mixed herbs and iron with ionized silver and is very tar like. It is taken by vaporizing it in a specialized inhaler for those who can afford it, smoked with a water bong after cutting it with strong spirits for those who can't and for the really desperate small amounts of it are smoked pure in a bowl. It is 50% lethal if injected even diluted though street level junkies will try.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Hmm. Maybe 'scab'-something could be the coagulated, lumpy form of the substance. Has a nasty quality as well as capturing the coagulation.

Maybe red-mist, bloodmist, ironlung (haematite[sp] is red, I think) or suchlike could work for the vaporised form.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

I'm thinking maybe a hemo-something, or hema-something, from the Greek for blood. You want something that people will generally associate with blood, so you don't want to go too obscure on the language origin.

 

[Kylara]

Hmmm in that case maybe grumose/grumous or spissitude, both link to coagulation stuff with blood IIRC

 

[C. A. Mitchell]

What sort of vibe are you aiming for? What are your characters feeling when they ask for and use it? Is it trendy or dark?

When I'm trying to name things I usually get a feel for the sort of letters involved and then go from there.

For example, if you want the drug to have a fantastical, other-worldy feel, I'd go with e l a r etc. Soft sounds, longer word. If you want a darker feel, then I'd say one syllable, with punchy letters like j k f v. Are you characters going to spit the word out in their desperation to buy it?
If you want a slang/recreational feel, then it should be somewhere in between... nothing too sharp or harsh, but then nothing too floaty or flowery.

This is how I work - not sure if it's going to be of use to anyone else! But have a good think about what sort of association you want the drug to have. Even get a feel for the length and sound, and say aloud a few nonsense words. When I do this, I get an idea about which letters I want, and then go from there (usually bashing out endless combinations until I find one that sticks).

Good luck. Naming can be the most fun yet most frustrating aspect of fantasy writing. Worth the grey hairs when you get it right though

 

[Aminar]

What does the drug do? Because frankly 'Sanguine' would be an awesome drug name for a blood based drug that caused Euphoria and relaxation.

 

[MstrTal]

What does the drug do? Because frankly 'Sanguine' would be an awesome drug name for a blood based drug that caused Euphoria and relaxation.

Just the opposite. The user feels extremely energetic, powerful and the ability to do anything. They also find that their physical strength, stamina, speed, hearing, sense of smell, eye sight and durability are all greatly increased. It all takes a horrible toll on the body however because when the user comes down from their high they are ravenously hungry and dehydrated because the drug is literally using their body as fuel. Prolonged use leaves the victim gaunt with a malnourished appearance and insatiable appetite. The mind is degraded as the user becomes enslaved by addiction needing more and more of the substance and slowly becomes more and more animal like.

 

[Aminar]

insanguine? Blood and insanity implications. You could call it Sang for short.

 

[MstrTal]

I like Sang. I may keep it on a list of slang terms for the drug.

Ever since I posted this and my other responses to everyone's insightful posts I have been leaning toward a street name/slang appellation of "Tar". Other names that have recently, after reading through the thread, been on my mind are "The Vaper's" or "Mist" for slang terms. On a dealer/distributor, higher class level I was thinking of going with "Gwaed y blaidd" or just "Gwaed" though I am still not sure of that yet. Mostly because I am not sure if the online translation is correct.

Thank you all for the help and if anyone has a better idea I am always open to suggestions and constructive criticism.

 

[Kylara]

Hehe sango is Esperanto for blood, so your slang would also be close...

 

[David Evil Overlord]

The user feels extremely energetic, powerful and the ability to do anything. They also find that their physical strength, stamina, speed, hearing, sense of smell, eye sight and durability are all greatly increased. It all takes a horrible toll on the body however because when the user comes down from their high they are ravenously hungry and dehydrated because the drug is literally using their body as fuel.

Hunger. It's eating you alive, but you hunger for more.

Thirst. It's like you're a vampire, but then you need more blood.