Table Host, Table Guest: A Proposal
I won't waste words explaining why I don't like the terms GM and Player in reference to the two sides of the screen in a traditionally structured RPG; I doubt the reasons for my distaste differ greatly from yours. I'll just get right into my proposal for an alternative, and let you be the judge.
Table Host and Table Guest
Honestly, my ideal term for the role of person-who-narrates-and-describes-the-scenario is either "Guide," stolen shamelessly from Jay Dragon's seminal Wanderhome, or "Conductor," in reference to the person at the head of an orchestra. The problem with these is that neither has an easy corollary term. Well, Conductor does, but it's pair would be Player, and just brings us right back to square one.
So why Host and Guest, then? The short answer is that they appeal to my aesthetic sensibilities.
The long answer has to do with my love of the phrase "my table" in reference to the attitude, style, and environment a person cultivates when they play behind the screen. Reifying My Table as a concept gives me the impression that it's a space that exists around me even when I'm not playing. It's a set of expectations held by those who have played with me before; something I can cultivate and care for.
In this way, being a Host makes perfect sense. When I invite people, whether they be long-time friends or strangers – to play at my Table, I am playing the part of a host! It is my responsibility to show them a good time; to give them expectations about what the night will hold, and to earn and keep their trust while they're relying on my hospitality.
And in turn, they are my Guests! My primary role is one of service, but in return, I have expectations of them regarding their behavior towards me, towards their fellow Guests, and towards the game itself; the shared fiction and the rules we use to adjudicate it. Just as it's my responsibility to use the power I've been granted to serve, it is also my prerogative to use it to maintain my chosen ludic environment, as well as to enforce the rules to which we all agreed when we entered this space. In gesturing at this dynamic, this new terminology does what others I've encountered can't: it properly articulates the actual exchange of power that occurs when a group entrusts their evening to the person behind the screen. A Host has power, yes. But that power is limited by way of its being granted via their Guests' consent, and it extends only into the imagined space of the Table.
Footnote: After posting this to the Dice Exploder Discord server, I've decided that 1) this post needs a second version to better put forth this language as something potentially useful, and 2) I want to make an edit to the language itself, iterating from "Table-" to "Play-." I have some lofty reasons why, but I'm saving them for that sequel post. Watch this space, if you're interested.