: How do you convey a term or idea that exists in the modern world, but not in the setting of the story? When writing Fantasy, Historical Novels, or even Science Fiction - language patterns

Reading a lot of SF, I've seen two broad approaches: introduce new terms sporadically and with enough context that the reader gets it immediately; or, use the new terms as if they were fully understood and just push on. To go with the latter, though, you have to have a hugely compelling narrative and style that grabs the reader and keeps them reading (thinking China Mieville, Ann Leckie) until they've grasped how the new terminology works in the world you've built.

For historical fiction, the only answer is research. You need to know the terms for all the artefacts in your work and get their usage right (historically right or right within the narrative where the historical record is incomplete): thinking here of Patrick O'Brien and Nicola Griffith.

With fantasy, I'd say you can make up what you want pretty much :) kidding! If it is Pratchett style, where you are representing our own world in a fantasy setting, you make up words that are obvious equivalents, like headology for psychology. If more high fantasy, go with introducing terms in context but I'd be pretty circumspect about doing this. Think like a translator: you need to write in English for a modern audience but with enough flavour of the foreign language to make it exotic and believable without it being turgid.

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This is certainly an interesting question.

What many authors get away with

I have read books with a mixture of both things you described. For example:

"My arrow shot like a bullet."

I've forgotten which book it's from, but I read it. Obviously, this is a fantasy book and bullets wouldn't exist. However, the author got away with it. As an avid, voracious fantasy reader, I had no problems with this. I kept reading without really thinking about it.

Other authors have got away with this:

Haven't you heard of the brain-teller come here as of late?

I just made that on the spot. Brain-teller here is (fairly obviously) referring to someone with telepathic capabilities or someone who is able to use strange things to do with the mind. The trick with inventing a new term is the following:

Make it fairly obvious what the term means. Create it from words that already exist in the English language.
Don't give a definition for the term in your narrative. The definition should be implied or be obvious.

What I mean by that, is don't set aside a few sentences to describe what the term means. That is a mistake, because it diverts the reader's attention from the story and to the word.

What you need to keep in mind

You need to keep in mind that there is a difference between writing a fantasy book, and pretending you speak Old English. Your target audience lives in the present day, so it's best to use terms they will understand. The point of the story is to keep the reader's focus on the story and not the word you're trying to define. That's why I think it's best to use modern language in situations where using more old-style language can't give obvious meaning.

So:

If you are deciding to coin a little term, make it obvious what it means either through the term itself or through the context. Basically, don't tell me what the definition is, show it.

The man started reading that guys mind. "A brain-teller," said Character.

Keep in mind that you need to ensure that the reader's attention stays on the story. Remember that while using old-style language can create immersion, it is best not to confuse the reader as you are writing for a modern audience.

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