TheVerseWorks
The Name's The Thing
I don't know about other writers, but I do a bunch of research before I name my characters. First I google the name I've chosen to be sure he/she isn't a famous artist, a reviled terrorist, my next door neighbor (whose name I've decided to use as the villain of the story), or my long-lost aunt/uncle. This process isn't as easy as it sounds. Since the advent of Twitter, Facebook and the myriad social media sites out there that list names, I can assure you that, if I can think of a name, someone else has already done so. I've even purposely chosen the most obscure names and first/last name combinations that I can think of, and more often than not, someone else already possesses that name. As an example, did you know that someone named "Richmond Stevens" lives in Ohio? Â Yeah, neither did I at first. But I do now. And if I wanted to use his name as a very authoritarian member of a council, that name is now OUT.
*sigh*
Once I've eliminated those pesky "I already have that name and I might potentially sue you if you use it" obstacles, then I turn to "what does the name mean"? For example, in one of the stories I'm working on now, my character is a lover, not a fighter. So after some research, I decided to go for the name Caryl. Not Carol, you understand, but Caryl. Caryl is Welsh for "love," and it's perfect for a beautiful, 17-year-old peacemaker. Plus it's pronounced "CAR-ill" as opposed to the more common "CARE-ul," and I like a little creativity in my characters' names.
Next, I use an alphabet chart so I don't use too many names that start with the same letters. In the second novel I wrote, I named one of the characters Samantha and one of the characters Sam. I assure you that I had a valid reason for choosing the names (see the first sentence of this post), but still, since this wonderful reason wasn't revealed until later in the story, I could see that readers might have a difficult time distinguishing between the characters, especially since I sometimes called Samantha, "Sam."
Thus, I took the advice from a speaker at the Oklahoma Writers' Conference that I went to a few years ago. She suggested that writers list all the letters in the alphabet and write down the character names next to the letter that their names started with. Once I started doing that, I discovered that I really, really, really like the letters "S," "J," "M," and "C." I actually felt a little embarrassed when I reviewed some of the stories I'd written and decided that if, variety is the spice of life, then my "character name soup" definitely needs a dash of salt! All I can say is ... thank heavens for the "search and replace" feature in Microsoft Word or other writing programs.*
Finally, I try out the character's name in the story. If my brain immediately starts painting a mental picture of the person I've just named, then I know I have a winner. But, if my brain snags on the name every time I type it, I have to go back to the drawing board/google search. Thus, the process starts all over again, and maybe Richmond Stevens becomes "Richmond Steveson," a tall, distinguished, grey-haired man in his 40s.
Or maybe I'll just go with Richard Simmons?
No, wait. I think I've heard that name before. I'd better go check.
Julie
*A word to the wise with the "search and replace" tool: Â make sure you check each replacement instead of using "replace all." One time I changed the name "Tina" to "That was a little startling on a read-through, let me assure you!
