Names Have Power - #AuthorToolboxBlogHop

"Names have power." - Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief

You have to be careful when naming your characters. You have to consider the genre, the time period, and where the story takes place.

If you are writing a story about Mary, Queen of Scots (and your story isn't about time travel) who lived during the 1500s then I would stay away from names that have only recently became names. Even my name, Vanessa, would not be appropriate. Vanessa wasn't a thing until 1700s when Jonathan Swift invented it. 

You also have to think about where your story takes place. Some places, like the United States, gives you more leeway when picking names. But if your story takes place is small town in the Ukraine, you aren't likely to find a Nevaeh there, but maybe a Viktoria or a Sofia.

You should also be consistent with nicknames. If you have a character named Gregory who prefers to go by Greg, make sure he only goes by Gregory in formal encounters or only have one friend/family member who calls him by his full name. 

As a writer, I try to avoid using names that are too similar by both spelling and sound. Readers don't always fully read words. If you have characters names Laurie and Lauren, readers might confuse the two. Same goes with Tim and Tom. Also, have two characters with the same name, even if spelt differently can be awfully confusing. 

I would also be careful when naming based on ethnicity and looks alone. If you are going to name a character based on their heritage make sure you do some research. Do not be like E.L. James and be so lazy that you name the two characters go color in your book the same thing. In Fifty Shades of Grey, James named her characters of hispanic decent Jose Rodriguez, Jr. and Sr. It's lazy and rude. It would only work if there was a reason behind it, but as I recall, James never stated one.

When I name characters I tend to avoid names in the top 50 to 100. But if I love a name, I don't care if it's very popular though I rarely love popular names.  I also avoid names with heavy connotation. Beyonce will immediately make people think of the singer. Elvis, Madonna, Hitler, Kanye... those names can turn your characters into caricatures. 

So, where should you look for names for your characters? I keep a running list of names in my writing journals. I also look through phonebooks, baby books, yearbooks, and name generators. I write down my favorite names from my favorite television shows. 

What advice do you have for naming characters? Please share in the comments!!

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What's In A Name?

I am a weird little collector of names. The moment I hear one I like I scribble it down in my journal. I think the names of characters are one of the most important elements of any good story.

While I am sure that there are moments in which you can pull any old name out of the hat and it will work, but normally you have to put some more consideration into naming your characters. Here are my tips:

1. Write down, email yourself, text yourself any and all names that you love. I would hate to miss a great name.

2. Watch the initials. Do all of your character's names start with "B" or "N"? If so, maybe you should switch it up a bit.

3. Check on name origins. If you are writing a story about the Irish Mafia but you give all of your characters German first names and Italian last names, you're going to take the reader out of the story.

4. You should also check out name meanings. Sometimes its a good way to subtly say something about the character. Also, instead of naming your character Hunter, you choose Chase because that means hunter. Or instead being in your face by naming a pretty girl Bonita, name her Alannah, which means beautiful.

5. Think about your novels time period and try to keep the name in the same tone. If you are writing a piece about the 18th century you wouldn't want to give your characters modern names (unless it was a fantasy novel, then that may work).

6. Try not to use names that are too long.  Or at least shorten them to nicknames. Typing out names that contain every letter of the alphabet is not only labor intensive to you, but distracting to the reader.

7. Avoid names that sound all the same. Do you have a Dan, Ann, Fran, Stan, and Jan in your story? Maybe you should replace them with their full versions. Daniel, Ann, Francis, Stanley, and Janette don't rhyme and are less likely to annoy the reader of time.

8. If you love a name, fuck the haters. I love my name and I swear, I will have a Vanessa in all of my stories, even if the Vanessa is just a background character!