I find choosing names for my characters an extremely
difficult task. For my initial stories, I took the easy way out by naming only
the main and secondary characters. These names were chosen at random; the first
name that popped into my head became a character’s name.
But all this changed the day I got a call from a
publisher saying that they were interested in publishing my books. After the
contract was signed, my editor sat down with me to brainstorm names for every character, even characters whose claim to fame was a
solitary appearance in my illustrated books for children. My editor was
very firm that readers, especially children, bond with characters and it’s
absolutely necessary to give them names. My editor had said that “nameless
characters will never become memorable.”
When my story was commissioned for a puffin anthology
several years back, the puffin editor called me to ask for few changes in my story, before winding up she asked me why I
hadn’t named the watchman’s cat. For me she was just the watchman’s cat : a
nameless creature. Not only was I clueless regarding how to answer her question,
but there was also silence from my side. How was I supposed to think of a
name during a phone conversation. “Can I go with the name I have chosen,”
she asked? The name hater that I was I agreed to go along with the name
she suggested. Anything to avoid that task.
But all that has changed now. Perhaps the change has
come when readers tell me that they identified with Leo, Bunny, Caspar,
Kiara (the names of the characters in my earlier books). This appreciation has worked as a major incentive to name all the characters.
For the books I have written now, I take the trouble to give
the characters nice and unique names. I even research the names.
I decided that just naming every character wouldn’t
be enough. They were given individual personalities to match the names. Each
name conjured up an image of the teacher or a student fitting that name. Nowadays
I am always on the lookout for new names.
What about you all? Do you name your characters with the
first name that jumps into your mind, or are these names the product of a
meticulous research and hard work. Do you have any name tips to
share with us?
Never given too much thought to this but I suppose it is important!
ReplyDeleteWhat did she name the watchman's cat?
ReplyDeleteWith my first three books, I'd brainstorm unique but simple science fiction sounding names and then pair them off with the characters. Whole process took about thirty minutes. With my upcoming book though, I did a little research, as I wanted the names to have a British feel.
I research names too, usually to find a nice sounding name that has a good meaning too.
ReplyDeleteI tend to just go with the names that first come to me. The names will either click or they'll end up just being stand-in names for awhile, until I find something better.
ReplyDeleteFascinating, didn't realise that I might be asked to change names,
ReplyDeletehmmmm...
Yes, I give characters the first name I think, and then change it later, if required. The find and replace function in my Libre Office Writer comes in very handy for replacing names in an entire document!
ReplyDeleteDestination Infinity
Naming is an interesting part of this writing stories. In one book I found I'd named at least 4 characters names that started with J: Jacob, John, Jason, Jillian. Good grief, even I couldn't keep them all apart after a while!
ReplyDeleteI actually have a hard time writing a story until I have character names. For me, naming the character helps me to visualize him/her and thus it helps the action unfold. A couple of times I've given a character a name that didn't seem to work and the story balked until I found a name that the character seemed to like. (Weird, I know, but that seems to be my very weird writing process.) Secondary characters, too. I don't get a real fix on them until they have a name.
ReplyDeleteRahul, yes, character names are important.
ReplyDeleteAlex, for one of my books I did a lot of research as its about an Academy where there are students from all over the world. So, I wanted to get the names and surnames right. Btw, my editor named the watchman's cat- Imarti.
Natalie, I like nice sounding names too :)
Madeline, I always stick to the names that first popped into my mind.
Carole, editors usually don't ask for name changes, its the book titles that they want changed.
Destination Infinity, I had once used the Find and Replace function of Microsoft Word to change the main character's name.
Lee, what a co-incidence, two of my characters have the names Jacob and Jason :)
Elizabeth, completely in sync with you. I cant write unless and until I have all the characters' names in place.
Sometimes the first name that pops into my head is the right one. Other times it takes me forever to find that right name.
ReplyDeleteDo characters names hold so much importance? Never realised only.
ReplyDeleteI think as soon as you choose a name it starts to have an effect on how you think about the character, so the earlier the better. I'm not sure it makes a big difference what that name is so I rarely spend more than a moment on it.
ReplyDeletemood
Sometimes I use deliberate symbolism when naming a character, and other times it works out that a character's name, originally not chosen for any special reason, has symbolism to the character's personality or life. I tend towards classical eccentric and classical unusual names (e.g., Felix, Wolfgang, Ezra, Justine, Ernestine, Livia), and tend to save the more popular, common, or trendy names for minor and secondary characters.
ReplyDeleteI used to just randomly name my "lesser" characters and a few of my main characters, but I've found that the more clear I am on the name, the better I can picture that character in my mind. Clara - my MC in The Champion Trilogy - has a "clear" purpose but has problems wrestling with it . . . so I chose her name specifically for that reason. :)
ReplyDeleteDitto, Rachna! I often get stuck choosing a character name, but I start with something reasonable and then research later if needed.
ReplyDeleteIt's important to have the right name. I use baby name sites and read through them until names click with my characters. Only sometimes do the names come to me automatically.
ReplyDeleteUsually names come pretty easy for me. A name will just jump out as the one.
ReplyDeleteThe source I use the most is a website from the Social Security department of the US Government. They list the top 1000 names of children born in the US, going years back.
It's great, especially if you want to look up names from a certain generation. You can see what was popular back in the 40s for instance.
I agree, the names of characters are very important. For me, I tend to go with the one that first comes into my head, almost like it's "meant to be." But I have changed character's names after the novel is written if it doesn't "feel" right.
ReplyDelete