character names

gettingby · Mar 27, 2012

How do you choose names for your characters? Do you find yourself using the same names for different characters in different stories? Also, what do you guys think about not giving characters names in short stories?

Sometimes names just pop in my head as I'm writing a story, but I'm not always sure they are the best fit. How important is it to give characters the right names?

MelodySRV · Mar 27, 2012

Personally, I feel like I need a more important reason to not give a character a name than to give them one.

I am very much a fan of waiting until the right name pops up. However, when that name does not show up, I look for names with meaning pertinent to the characters role in the story.

Another thing that helps give me ideas is using a random name generator. My favorite one is Behind the name
(http://www.behindthename.com/random/). This website is so great because it has different types of names, from Fae to Chinese. You can choose whatever genre of name you want and a combination of some of them.
Most of the time, I don't actually use the names that show up, but they will get my mind thinking about possibilities. I've seen one name and thought of another that was just perfect.

I hope that helps!

Ralyks · Mar 27, 2012

I tend to go with names that are common to the time period and geographic region and popular but not too popular for that time/region. When writing romance, I try to give the couple names that sound good together. Occasionally I will give a name that stands out if that character is supposed to stand out for some special reason as out of place, etc. but I typically go with the common. Sometimes a name doesn't work for me, and I end up changing it later. I also have to avoid names of people I know well and personally because then I'm just associating the character with them.

jaksen · Mar 27, 2012

My characters, with few exceptions, name themselves. They appear on scene with a name whenever the fact comes up. (Someone else says, Hey Charlie, or nice to see you, Beezlebub.)

Seriously, it's the least important part of my writing. It just happens.

Mad Rabbits · Mar 27, 2012

I have trouble with names for characters. For some reason this aspect of writing irks me. I feel like in naming a character I am pinning them down to something they may not be, or that I am making them too ordinary somehow. I'm pretty sure none of that makes sense though

So I want them to be nameless but often from a mechanical point of view that doesn't always work, particularly for longer pieces with more than one character.

GingerGunlock · Mar 27, 2012

It depends on the story.

Sometimes I pick names that I like the sound of. Sometimes my characters never actually have a last name. Sometimes I do things like look at census records for a region, to see what names, first and last, tend to come up. If culture is a feature, I pick a cultural name. If I'm going heavy on the symbology, I pick a name that would indicate that to somebody who would catch the reference.

Lillie · Mar 27, 2012

I call most of them Dave.
I'm not sure why.

DeleyanLee · Mar 27, 2012

Once I know the locale of the story, it's easier to come up with names. Presently, I'm writing in modern-day Pittsburgh, so there's lots of ethnic names as well as "standard American" ones, so pretty much any name that comes to mind can be used. I'm more of a "this feels right" kind of namer anyway, with the stipulation that is must "feel right" for the setting/world as well as the character.

bjcox · Mar 27, 2012

I use a mixture of first and last names of characters from favorite movies or books, as well as mixture of names of people I have known. If it is foreign name, I look up common first and last names of the region and pick the ones that sound the best.

Mad Rabbits · Mar 27, 2012

Lillie said:
I call most of them Dave.
I'm not sure why.

Haha, that's funny Lillie.

I've noticed I tend to jump to the same name over and over, I have to wilfully subvert that tendency.

Usually something similarly generic like "Mike" or "Tim"...

gotchan · Mar 27, 2012

My characters tend to start out with placeholders that describe their role. When I know them well enough to name them, I try to pick normal sounding names that have a significant meaning for the character. For example, my depressed cop is named Deidre Blacklaw. The internet is great for researching the meanings of names.

I occasionally won't give a character a proper name. But even they get descriptors that function as names. For example, Hook Nose.

ZaWolf · Mar 28, 2012

I google "popular baby names by decade" and then pick a suitable name from the approximate time period and location of the character's birth.
I used to just come up with names off the top of my head that I liked and that I thought fit the character, but I found that for some reason all my male characters ended up with names starting with 'J' (Jared, Jason, Joshua, etc)

Lee HH Cope · Mar 28, 2012

My main character is off with the birds.

I do tend to look at a few major factors before I name any of my characters.

(A) What species are they?

(B) Is the name going to be descriptive of who or what gender they are?

(C) What does the name mean in the characters native tongue, and how is it going to be pronounced?

Etc:

The main character in my book is born of Avian origin; Bird people.

So I named my main character: Tarllek Quill-wing. I also have many other different types of species, and I have also drawn a few pictures as I work on their races history and mannerisms.

All of the above and a few other factors help me to decide who they have been, who they are now and how they are going to change due to the development of the story and the impact it will have upon them.

Lee HH Cope · Mar 28, 2012

Oh! I just had a new character pop into my head...funny how they do that isn't it. I also have a surname too...all I need is a good forename.

scarlett9284 · Mar 28, 2012

I have reused a few names in stories but I try not to. A lot of times, I pick my character's names because of the meaning of the name. I also use historical names for my historical pieces.

Ralyks · Mar 28, 2012

Lillie said:
I call most of them Dave.
I'm not sure why.

Maybe that Dr. Seuss story made as big an impression on you in your childhood as it did on me. "Too Many Daves."

Jamesaritchie · Mar 28, 2012

Unless I need an ethnic name, I don't worry about it. A name is a name. The character makes the name, not the other way around.

John G Nelson · Mar 28, 2012

I like to use names with meaning... My main character in Against Nature is Serena Salus. Her name means calm healer. It fits her.
Some examples: Adele means noble, Alexis means helper or defender, Bridget is the exalted one.
You can have some fun with that. I don't always use name meanings to name my characters, but it's one way I come up with names.
Best of luck

John

cathyfreeze · Mar 28, 2012

gotchan said:
I occasionally won't give a character a proper name. But even they get descriptors that function as names. For example, Hook Nose.

I do that, too! Actually, if you're writing in first and your character doesn't know that person's name, and they're interacting but not in a 'hi, how are you, what can i call you' manner, you kinda *have* to do that kind of thing.

And then, of course, i capitalize it like you do, because it does, in effect, become that character's name. Characters *need* names to keep the reader from getting confused.

cat

Sue_L · Mar 28, 2012

If a name for a character doesn't pop into my head immediately, I'll give them a temporary name like Steve or Bob or Mary. If a fitting name still doesn't come to me, I play around with the baby name app on my phone until something catches my eye.

character names

gettingby

MelodySRV

Ralyks

Untold stories inside

jaksen

Caped Codder

Mad Rabbits

GingerGunlock

paralibrarian

Lillie

practical experience, FTW

DeleyanLee

Writing Anarchist

bjcox

Mad Rabbits

gotchan

ZaWolf

Lee HH Cope

Lee HH Cope

scarlett9284

Ralyks

Untold stories inside

Jamesaritchie

John G Nelson

Author of Against Nature

cathyfreeze

I lost my fever! I need it back!

Sue_L

probably needs counseling