Scenom

Scenom is a term found in speculative fiction and experimental design discussions to describe a framework for organizing and analyzing scenes within a narrative, film, video game, or immersive installation. The term does not have a single canonical definition in widely cited sources, and its meaning varies by author or project. Etymology is not standardized; it appears to be formed from a combination of "scene" and elements suggesting taxonomy or naming.

In typical usage, a scenom framework treats each scene as a node annotated with attributes such as setting, time, characters present, action goals, and emotional or tonal metadata. This allows authors, designers, or software tools to index, query, and compare scenes, aiding tasks such as screenplay development, level design, or content curation for interactive media. Some variants describe a relational structure where scenes are connected by transitions or causality, forming a scene graph or narrative map.

Scenom has appeared in discussions of preproduction planning, AI-assisted storytelling, and worldbuilding exercises, often as a conceptual aid rather than a formal standard. Critics note that because the term lacks formal definition or standardization, its practical utility depends on the specificity of the project and the discipline applying it.

See also: scene graph, narrative ontology, interactive fiction, preproduction planning, worldbuilding.