Character Names?

LKSebastian said:

Where do you get inspiration for character names?

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...saying certain sounds until they match with what character I'm making.

Do you build a character around the name, or look for a name for an already (at least semi) developed character?

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If I would build around the name, I would never create a character. I use Bob, Mandy, and Rufus (and number them as it goes on) until I find names that match, and later I typically alter them.

Do you prefer commonplace names or rare, sometimes made-up names?

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As I write fantasy, I'm obligated to make up highly creative names. But I make them as close to commonplace names or sound similar.

i have no time to search for names or name-meanings to match my character so to say. i have to get the story going so if in order to hurry up and write the scene I have to name my character Mary, then Mary she stays.

I can't remember where I read this, but someone once suggested to get a hold of a name-your-baby book. Now there's a book that's got thousands of names in it, and it's all so handy. You can just flip through the book until you find something that sounds interesting, or suits the particular character you need a name for.

The name that the writer ultimately picks I think should be a reflection of the character's personality and nature. But it seems like a good idea to have a handy reference book with gazillions of options. It's kind of like a handy toy.

I'm writing Paranormal fantasy so the angels and demons already have names and descriptions.

For the mortals I use the baby name method like Night Writer suggested. There are a lot of websites for naming babies and most have a "Most Popular Names for (year)" list if you need something fast. If you want to have traits of the characters reflected by the name they also have all that info.

Never been a problem. Names just come along, about eye-level, and I go with those. If something better comes along, I have no problem in changing a name.

Don't get hung up on names. Get hung up on what the characters bearing those names do.

caw

Some characters come to me pre-packaged with names included. Others need a little help. They get nicknames until I come up with a name that sticks. Sometimes I have to change a name, because it sounds too much like an important name later, or after a re-read I realize it doesn't fit. Or I post to SYW and everybody and their mother says change it. And sometimes boys who get nicknamed "Zee" stay Zee forever and ever.

Names are definitely hard for me! I'm writing a science-fiction novel set in the far future, so I have to worry both about names for characters and names for places. Some of my names are real-life present-day names; others are altered versions of present-day names, reflecting some sort of hypothetical future linguistic development; and others are just randomly generated. Plus, I like to keep everything based on present-day names pretty multicultural, so I use names from all over the world.

I chose names for my two main characters before writing, but a lot of other characters needed to have their names changed for consistency after I finished my rough draft. For example, I didn't want to give a character a real-life present-day name when no one else on his planet had such a name.

I actually used a random name-generating program that I could set to randomly generate names that were half Polish and half Polynesian, or whatever. That wasn't easy, though--I usually had to get through a hundred randomly generated names before I came up with one I liked.

There's an app for that. Seriously, though, using a baby names app that allows me to search by things like origin, length, and popularity is the easiest way to do it.

I usually already know what origin and general sound I want, and it's pretty easy to come up with a name I like with those criteria. I also save lists of names I like so that I can grab one for a minor character I wasn't anticipating needing to name or use them in future projects.

Names do matter. They need to not sound dumb and have enough variety to not confuse the reader. Name search engines (apps or websites) with origin and popularity features also let fantasy writers choose names that go together for characters from the same place.

Once when I needed to change my MC's name, I let one of my beta readers choose a name she felt fit him based on what she'd already read. That worked great too.

I LOVE researching names. For my current work, all names I used are from different mythologies (some from reading and some from google). Most characters I had a clear image of before choosing the name but some were certainly inspired by the name (including my MC, the name completes him).
It's difficult for me to just go with a name without actually checking its meaning before anyway, regardless of what I write. IMO, you're giving birth to something here, least you can do is name it accordingly.

I build the character and then pick the names. I am always very aware of the meaning of the name. Also, I look at popular names for each decade if my character is of a certain age. In addition, I like to use biblical names for some of my characters - especially if I'm writing something more fantasy vice contemporary.

My only exception to that is a name in my current WIP. I was watching Castaway when I named him. So his last name is Wilson.

It depends on my setting. I usually write fantasy, so I usually make up the names as regularly as I make up anything else.

Occasionally I'll choose an ethnicity and take names from there, if they are interesting enough. I try to stay consistent though, with my names, and when I'm making them up, I try not to make them too complicated so that my reader doesn't just skim over them without ever learning my character's name.

Usually the names just come to me. The character and their name are one and the same. Sometimes I get to a point where I realize the names don't work and have to be changed. I still think of them as their old names, but they get new ones in the story. For minor characters, I make good use of baby name sites and lists of common names from the relevant time/place. Once in a while, I'll put a lot of thought into a name. One of my characters has a name that's perfect except for the letter it starts with; I haven't found anything else that's as good for him, and I'm just hoping no one else figures out why I don't like the first letter.

A lot of my names have jokes in them, but for some reason the betas never seem to really appreciate that.

Easiest thing for me is to just take the first name of someone important to me and combine it with the second name of someone else. Can be people I know or people I know of. I've even taken names off maps before. I like to connect my characters to people who've inspired me. I often use 'Dominic' and 'Keating' in names as a nod to the Star Trek actor. I used Arthur Bostrom's surname for the name of a city. It's quite easy when you realise the volume of names that are already in your head.

WillSauger said:

...saying certain sounds until they match with what character I'm making.

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I did this when I wrote my epic fantasy. A few people probably thought I was crazy because I like to say it out loud to know it sounds good.

When I'm in a fantasy rooted or closely rooted in the real world. I use names that just sound good. They come to me and I go with it. I never stress over it.

My settings and names are pretty plain. If my character has a name that's not so vanilla, he or she usually has a diminutive that is. I'll bounce around names until something feels right. I like writing my books so they feel like they could be happening right next door and my preference for common names reflects that.

Sometimes a name just comes to me. If not, I go to the Social Security baby name site, look up the year the character was born, and skim through the top 500 or 1000 names for that year. I write down the ones I like and choose from there. For major characters I like to come up with a name fairly early on in the planning. For minor characters, not necessarily. I don't feel like I build my character around the name, it just makes it easier for me to think of them with a name rather than "the female MC." Sometimes, depending on the ethnicity of the character, I have to use other websites to help me.

Last names I usually figure out after I've got the first name.

In my mindset there are certain letters that suit a certain type of person. For example, a rough or strong-willed character would have consonants like R or T in their name. An aspiring leader would most likely have the letters G (for moral, nice characters) or T (for evil characters) somewhere in their name.

This way I just try out certain sounds until I get something that sounds right. If I just can't think straight at the moment, I look through name lists like the one mentioned by LJD.

I've heard of people who develop a character and then look for adjectives that describe him or her in name meanings. I find that to be ineffective. Not only would no casual reader ever look for the meaning of the name of a character in a book but also a) the name with the "correct" meaning often sounds wrong, b) it's hard to find a website that actually has searchable name meanings and c) if it does, the list is often incomplete. That's why I don't like that method.

Cheers,
Cookie

My characters have names that are direct reflections of their personalities, it's the easiest way to say something about a character without having to spell it out.
Sometimes I'll come up with a name I like and build a character around that. Once they get a name, I can't change it, because I can't see them as anything else.

In writing YA, I'm also finding that it says something about the parents who do the naming.

My first novel was a twist on an old literary classic, so the characters already had names. My second novel takes place in a few different locations, so to name the characters from London, for example, I searched for "British Surnames." For the characters that live in a secluded religious village, I used Bible names, since that fit with their way of life.

My third novel is set on another world, but I wanted the names to be cohesive and "real," so most of the characters, and even the cities, have Welsh names. I figured they would be obscure enough that most Americans wouldn't have heard of them, and they have an exotic flavor to them that suits the story.

My fourth novel is a medieval fantasy, so I chose names that sound vaguely medieval, but that aren't too crazy. Some are simply different spellings of modern names, such as "Lora" instead of "Laura."

How I come up with names depends on what I'm writing.

When it's historical fiction, then history provides all the names. Records of the events have names of the important people, and census rolls provide a handy grab-list for anyone else I might need to add.

When it's Fantasy, I've created the world and have a "world feel" that guides my choice. Normally, I go to a name generator and hit refresh a whole lotta times, picking out whatever comes up that fits that "world feel" for the book. I like names that look either easy for Americans to pronounce or that just look cool on the page. That allows me to compile a list fairly quickly, so I can pull names for characters, places, whatever as I need them.

I don't really think about what the name means, or even where it came from. How many other names starting with that letter/sound combination tends to be more of a consideration. I've changed names on characters many times, for many reasons. I doesn't bother me. But, then, if I'm writing and don't have the name list handy, I'm also quite happy to call a character [Buddy] or [Shopkeep] or whatever their job in the scene is, and give them a real name later. That drives a friend of mine nuts, but it works for me.

I am writing fantasy and i think that names are extremely important in that genre.

I just created a big list of all the names i could create. Some i just kept sticking syllables together and when one sounded good i added it to the list. Some of them are derived from more common names but with minor differences so they sound both realistic and exotic at the same time. Sometimes i go through lists of names from specific areas or languages, and take names from there, sometimes altering them slightly, or if they already sound cool and exotic enough to my western ears, then i sometimes just use them as they are.

Then when i think of a character, it's always in terms of their personality and their function in the story. Only later when it's time to actually write it, will i go "Oh i need a name for that character" then i go to my list of names.

I'm very careful to keep every character's place of origin in mind if i've already decided they must be from a certain area to work in the story, then i will give them a name that suits that. Otherwise i will just find a name i think suits his character and then give him a small backstory and place of origin to fit the name.

I try to keep name in groups like that. If they sound vaguely latin, they are probably from X area of the world, if they sound middle eastern they are probably from Y area. I am a little bit flexible on this, and as long as the names sound like they could belong together i might put them together. You wouldn't want to make a pair of twin brothers, one called 'Al nazir' and the other called 'Bob.'

I also try to make sure that the pronunciation is relatively obvious by the spelling. Because it irritates me as a reader when i have to stop at a certain name all the time and wonder if i'm 'hearing' it right.

I look up random names and mix/combine them together. I keep doing it until I find the perfect name

Honest Bill said:

I also try to make sure that the pronunciation is relatively obvious by the spelling. Because it irritates me as a reader when i have to stop at a certain name all the time and wonder if i'm 'hearing' it right.

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Me too! That is the number one thing that drives me crazy. When I can't say the name in a book I'm reading, I just end up skipping it. I wouldn't want people to do to the same to me so I am very careful in not picking too odd sounding names for that reason.