Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Candice Detillier on January 1, 2010 at 1:36pm

I'm currently working on my first novel. I write creative non-fiction, because it combines the two things I like most: writing and research. Since I'm from New Orleans, my first venture is a fictional story surrounding the very real events of Hurricane Katrina. I'm still in the character development stage, and I have each character's storyline somewhat plotted out. I've been reading a lot of books on Katrina and doing quite a lot of research. Since I have a character that is a meteorologist, I guess I need to learn something about the weather :-)

I would be happy for any suggestions on how you guys come up with names for characters...I seem to be struggling a bit with coming up with good names for some of my people. The main characters were easy - I knew what I wanted those to be, but some of the supporting characters are a bit more difficult. How do you determine names?

Permalink Reply by Phoebe Wilcox on March 4, 2010 at 7:30pm

This sounds like it could be really interesting, dramatic, and moving. Can't help you with the names, they're tough for me too!

Permalink Reply by Laura Molina on August 3, 2010 at 1:14pm

I gave all the main characters in my novel names that were symbolic to me. I used the last names of lot of people who are friends or people I knew when I was a child. I gave my female protagonist, Angel, a man's name for a good reason. The antagonist's name is an anagram for a real person.

Permalink Reply by Jae Misra on November 26, 2010 at 9:01am

I agree. Names are very powerful and can psychologically influence your readers' perceptions of the character. Cynthia, you may be thinking of psychological studies on the Halo Effect (though there are many others) that find teachers unconsciously grade students' essays lower when labeled with certain names (e.g., Ethel). Students with "cute" names got the higher grades. As disturbing as this finding may be, authors can use this to their advantage. A name chosen to project a certain image can help develop the character in the reader's mind. Before naming a character, try out the name on a couple of friends. Just say the name - nothing else about the character - and have your friends tell you what type of person comes to mind. You may be surprised at the character hidden in the name.

Permalink Reply by Janet Ferolito on February 8, 2013 at 3:12pm

That's a neat idea.

Permalink Reply by Jennifer Williamson Swartz on September 8, 2011 at 7:53am

I found, when naming characters for my first novel, that I had to be very careful. While I based some of them on real people, the characters often diverge and become their own. One character began based off a family member. As I continued to write and then finished the first and began the second novel, which is a sequel, that character evolved into the murderer. I often just throw a name out and then become more intentional as the character develops her/his own personality. I'm not sure if it helps, but there it is!

Permalink Reply by Autumn on September 28, 2011 at 4:28pm

I'm also in the "names are tricky" category.  I find that when I draw a blank for a particular character I toss in a ? and keep going which usually causes a name to show up the next time the need for a ? comes up, or helps me sort where I need to return (just look for the ?s and see if anything moves/comes forward for me then).  Other characters walk right in name in hand. lol!  

 

I also liked the tip about weighing a name before you use it ~ we do have opinions about certain names even if we don't realize it and there are "universal" (type) names that evoke feelings in a group - how often have you heard "Oh...*fill in name here*, they're all ditzy", or can't be trusted or are beautiful.  Play around till one feels right ~ kinda like naming a baby, (often) you need to "see" the character to know them. 

 

Good luck! :) 

Permalink Reply by sandra chelton on May 1, 2010 at 6:12pm

My novel (my first) is set in a small town in northern New Hampshire. For some of the character names I did a search for popular names in New England by decade. Another good source turned out to be cemeteries, particularly for older characters.
The story follows a year in the life of a family in the aforementioned small NH town. It is broken up into each of the 4 seasons and in each of those seasons focuses on each member of the family, including the wife's older (and developmentally delayed) brother. By the time the year has come full-circle, it becomes clear that while each family member has been dealing with his or her own separate and often secret issues, it is the brother who has been dealing with the larger issues of degrees of truth, sacrifice, and what constitutes the greater good.
Interestingly, at least for me, I was actually working on something else when a phrase popped into my head. Since the phrase had nothing to do with my then current project, I just filed it away in some portion of my brain and continued working on fratricide, patricide, death, drama and despair (the then current project). But very quickly, a whole plot and cast of characters developed and that phrase became the title for the new current project.
I have no idea what, if anything, will ever happen with the finished product but I am certainly enjoying the creating of it. And it gets my mind off my thesis which, 2 to 3 years into it, I find unbelievably boring!

Permalink Reply by Meg Waite Clayton on May 1, 2010 at 8:14pm

Love the idea of New Hampshire setting (maybe because my best friend lives there). And I love this structure, building around a year.

Permalink Reply by sandra chelton on June 2, 2010 at 7:08am

Now, one month later, I realize that this story belongs to the brother and no one else. This would explain why none of the other characters really spoke to me. So now, I am rethinking the whole structure of the thing but am really glad this epiphany occurred a month, and not a year, later!
In the meantime, I have gone back to my original project, a fantasy, and am not thinking about the NH story. For me, not thinking about something often clarifies it.

Permalink Reply by MK McClintock on February 6, 2012 at 4:25am

I too like the idea of the story built around a year and I spent some time in New Hampshire - lovely setting for a book.

Permalink Reply by Carole Avila on July 28, 2012 at 8:39pm

Hi MK!

I heard your online interview at A Novel Idea. (I'm going to be on tomorrow!) I'm glad you shared about knowing when a book is finished. You said something like, "You have to let it go or it will never be finished." So true! Thank you for sharing about your writing process.

~Carole

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