JENN McKINLAY: I recently handed in my latest WIP. It was a marathon of writing to get it done. My final day was almost 5K words! But here’s the problem: I don’t love my character’s names. I changed them several times while writing and I’m still “meh” about them.
Yes, we have talked about this before but we’re living in the modern age so it should be easier, right? I mean I used to name my characters by scrolling through the white pages of the phone book - paper version!
It being 2025, I tried a name generator but that was awful, too: REEDSY CHARACTER GENERATOR Another blow for AI, I just don’t think it can craft something as cool as this:
Thankfully the lack of love for my character’s names didn’t impede my writing process — sometimes it does. I’m hoping my editor has some input about them. But if she likes the names so be it.
Of course, when thinking about this I started thinking about some of the great names of characters in fiction —Atticus Finch, Katniss Everdeen, Ebenezer Scrooge, Holly Golightly, Scarlett O’Hara, and James Bond to name a few. Like naming a child, I started to ponder if the story is what makes the character’s names iconic or if it’s the name itself.
Here me out: If Ian Fleming had named 007 Harvey Bean would the “spy who loved me” still be as memorable? If Margaret Mitchell’s Scarlett O’Hara had been named Doris Winkle, would we think of her as the vain selfish force of nature she was portrayed to be? Would Jay Gatsby really be as interesting if he’d been named Timothy Dickson?
Of course, none of this pondering has made me feel any better about the names of my characters. So, I’ll turn it over to you, Reds and Readers. How much do names matter to you as readers? How hard is it to come up character names as writers?
As a reader, I have to say that names are not particularly important to me unless they are really strange and/or difficult to pronounce . . . then they have a tendency to pull me out of the story when I stumble over them . . . .
ReplyDeletedo you ever imagine a tea kettle or a bag of sugar when you see a certain name?
DeleteCan't say that I have . . . .
DeleteJenn: Yes, I don’t like stopping to try and sound names out.
DeleteNames are soooo hard! I struggle with them. And I keep a spreadsheet of first and last names so I can try to avoid having too many begin with the same letter. Even that fails royally too often.
ReplyDeleteI do think they're important. I've had characters suddenly come to life for me when I found the right name for them. I've taken to searching my family tree in Ancestry for names. Example: Matthias Honeywell was my 5x great grandfather. And Emma Anderson was my maternal grandmother.
If only I had a spreadsheet Annette! My favorite name, Lucy Burdette, belongs to my maternal grandmother. I feel so lucky to have been able to borrow it...
DeleteLucy, you don't keep a Character "Bible?" Mine has saved my bacon so many times, especially when the series stretches to many books. I alphabetize mine by first names.
DeleteEdith, same here. And yet I still managed to end up with Emma and Eric in Erie.
DeleteExcellent!
DeleteAnnette, I love these names of your 5x great grandparents. One of my ancestors names was Lightfoot. That is a easy name if you were saying the names in sign language.
DeleteRoberta ~ I love your "borrowed" name Lucy especially because it belonged to your maternal grandmother. Such a beautiful sentiment to use as your author's name! Whenever I wrote anything I always penned it "Adler West" because Adler was my mother's maiden name and I loved the idea of living out west in the Carmel by the Sea/Monterey area of California. I love it there.
DeleteJenn: Too many alliterative names is problematic!
DeleteI agree with Joan that as a reader, names aren't terribly important to me UNLESS a) the name is looks too much like/ is easily confused with another character's name when reading quickly, or b) there are too many characters and too many unusual -- to me -- names. Elizabeth George lost me in her novel CARELESS IN RED with her huge cast of characters named Jago, Kerra, Dellen, Selevan, Santo, Caden, Benesek, etc.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Scarlett O'Hara, her name when Margaret Mitchell wrote the story was originally "Pansy O'Hara." (Selden)
Definitely not as memorable. Or maybe it would have been had the book been published that way.
DeleteAlthough I love every single one of Elizabeth George's books I know what you mean when there is a huge cast of characters in the story! I always end up writing their names inside the book or on a separate piece of paper used as a book mark to revisit who they are.
DeleteJenn: Selden! I had no idea!!! Wow!
DeleteNames are SO important! For my Quaker historicals, I loved prowling the Quaker graveyard and taking names from tombstones. Sometimes I lift a surname from the spine of a book in my office, or go searching the SS database of baby names for the appropriate year. I like Annette's method of searching back in her own family history.
ReplyDeleteRight now I have the name Undine Larch on my whiteboard. She came to me as I awoke one day. I have no idea who she'll be, but she refuses to be erased. One tricky naming area is auctioning off naming rights. The book I'm finishing has Greg Jardis in it, who in real life is our local hardware store owner and town benefactor and was the high bidder at the historical society auction last fall. As I was writing him in, I remembered that my protag's late husband's name was Greg, so I actually avoided her thinking of him by name (he's been dead eleven years, it's plausible).
I life, names repeat. At one training session for my women's organization, they seated us at dinner by first names. There were at least 6 Judy's of various spellings. Lol!
DeleteEdith, how do you decide if it is Larch or Lurch?
DeleteJenn: Auctioned characters can be so tricky!
DeleteWell, Jenn, I think you hit it out of the ballpark with Scarlet and Harrison! You have always done a great job naming characters and some of their nicknames are memorable, too, "Cupcake."
ReplyDeleteIt is true for me, that a memorable name that fits the character can really enhance a story. I am that kind of reader. Maybe if you can get into some town or city records for where the story is set, you can find names that you would be happier to use. Of course, if you are looking for the name for a great villain, you need look no further than today's Congress.
Yes! Some in Congress are Evil and some are working hard to fight the good fight!
DeleteJenn: LOL, Judy - so many villains to choose from!
DeleteReal live people also too often do not have names that suit them. I marveled when I noticed the name tag on the guy who checks out groceries at my neighborhood market did not read "Pokey McSlowman," because, if there were any justice in the world, it would have.
ReplyDeletePoor old Pokey. LOL
Deletethe name reminded me of a commercial with two turtles. The name of the turtle was Slowsky.
DeleteJenn: LOLOL, Jerry!!!
DeleteNames, realistically, tell us about where the character is coming from. They didnt' choose the names; their parents did. So I think about whether the parents were, say, hippies and would choose Cypress or Cloud, or are they from a family tradition and the boys are going to have names ending with Junior or IV. Or they might come from a specific ethnic background and the name is an immediate source of info. The other useful way is to use readily available "most popular" names by year. Names go in and out of style. Do you want a character with a common "neutral" name for generation ...or an unusual one?
ReplyDeleteHa ha, Triss. I remember being in a Whole Foods in Marin County in 1997 with my new-born baby in a Snugli. The cashier asked me the baby's name. "Lucy," I replied. She smiled. "That's great! You get so sick of Moonbeam!" (Selden)
DeleteAs I recall, in the 1990s, many people named their babies after 2x great grandparents.
DeleteJenn: Fabulous suggestions!
DeleteThe only thing I find annoying about names is when they are either too long or too similar. Otherwise, I just get used to them as I read along!
ReplyDeleteJenn: so true!
DeleteNames matter. Doris Winkle!! Character names are significant to me as a reader. Please please please, dear authors, do not give different characters the same initials. Especially when there are many characters, too many of the same-first-letter names makes it hard to keep track of who is who. I cannot handle Ellen, Eleanor, Elisa and Elspeth all in the same story!!
ReplyDeleteToo funny. I cannot imagine Scarlett O' Hara as Doris Winkle. For some reason, the name Doris Winkle reminds me of East End London, England, not Civil War South in the States.
DeleteThey do matter - thus, my angst!
DeleteIt's odd, but names seem to matter to my characters. I had a character once named Melanie. The name just came to me and seemed to fit. But then I realized a friend's daughter was named Melanie, so I changed the name to Jessica. I didn't know the daughter, but I always try to have names not associated with anyone I know. Well, I couldn't get the character to do or say anything natural as Jessica. She was quite wooden until I changed her back to Melanie, and then she came to life again.
ReplyDeleteJenn: 100% I hope my editor can help with mine.
DeleteYES, names do matter to me as a reader!
ReplyDeleteI remember HANK sending out a call on social media here on JRW and on Facebook to choose her protagonist''s name. It had to start with "A".
Like AMANDA, my pet peeve is when there are characters with similar names. I get mixed up!
GRACE: I remember when HANK asked us to chose her protagonist's name. I cannot recall which names I suggested - perhaps Abbey or Amelia?
DeleteJenn: I remember that! Hank picked the perfect A name for that character.
DeleteI don't think the names are that important (as long as we can keep the characters straight). We'll never know if Scarlett O'Hara would have been as compelling if she was called Pauline Castor. I suspect the iconic traits would just be associated with Pauline. One thing I don't much care for is being too cute--like the series (which I enjoyed) whose protagonists are "Samson" and "Delilah". Come on.
ReplyDeleteJenn: LOL!!!!
DeleteI agree with Gillian that names that are too cute are just annoying. Otherwise, I mostly agree with the many who have already said that mostly, I only care if names too similar, or hard to pronounce in my mind. I will also say that sometimes names make me stumble because they just feel out of place. For example, a woman with a surname as a first name is fine in more of an upper crust family, or even in a metropolitan city, but a woman named Kensington is going to make me stumble if the book is set in Zanesville, Ohio. Similarly, names that I think of as "trendy" for today cause me to stumble when I see them on a character who was named 30 years before that trend began.
ReplyDeleteSusan, one of my best friends grew up in Chillicothe, and her maiden name is Kensinger!
DeleteJenn: That makes sense!
DeleteYes, names absolutely matter to me. I think I mentioned once about a book I read where almost every female character's name began with the letter V. Who knew there were so many V names? And why did the author do that?
ReplyDeleteOne thing I have discovered about using my family tree is that there were not many names and people kept using the same names over and over. Talk about confusing. Another is that there are names we just don't see or hear any more. I remember hearing my grandmother talk about someone named Una, if that is how it was spelled. Her last name was Cane and I have no idea of that spelling either. My sixth great grandmother was named Damarius, which is interesting but not a name I would choose for either a character or a baby. Then there is my tenth great grandfather, Obadiah, another name I would not choose even though he was also an ancestor to one Abraham Lincoln.
Names are fascinating but I agree you must have the right name for the character to be who you want them to be.
Jenn: That’s fascinating,Judy. Kind of dig Damarius.
DeleteNames, oh names. They matter... and they don't. As a reader, I do agree that there are iconic characters who I just can't imagine with another name. And if you are writing a sexy international spy, he or she has to have a name that fits. Right? But the only time I get annoyed is when too many characters have names that sound the same. Or I read a book once where every character had double-barreled names (first and last name started with the same letter). Although sometimes, it's okay if it's done for a reason. For example, Mom and Dad insisted every one of their children have the same initials.
ReplyDeleteAs a writer, some characters have names that came to me and refuse to be changed. Others are more malleable. Like Annette, I keep a spreadsheet I can sort by both first and last name, but no matter how hard I try, I usually wind up with something I need to change before I'm done.
Liz, my sister and I have the same middle name. And my two brothers not only had the same middle name, but they shared the same initials as our dad, and the one brother was a Junior.
DeleteNot a lot of imagination in our parents!
Karen in Ohio, is the middle name a family name?
DeleteLiz, my preordered copy of your book just arrived and I will look at your characters' names :-)
DeleteNot especially. My middle name is the same as my aunt's, who was also my godmother, but it's nothing special. And my dad's middle name, the same.
DeleteJenn: I really need a spreadsheet.
DeleteAs a reader, I do think names are important. When there are a lot of characters (especially if the story is set in a foreign country with unusual names) it is so helpful to have a list to refer to.
ReplyDeleteI love the names Stephanie Plum and Kinsey Malone in the popular detective series. And of course Nancy Drew and Lucy's Haley Snow. I always thought Hercule Poirot was a strange name but it works as it rolls off your tongue and for a brief moment I think I can speak French! Another name I always loved was Beezus in the Ramona series by Beverly Cleary.
Jenn: I love Beezus!!!
DeleteNames matter to me as both a reader and writer. I've come across characters with names which didn't seem to suit their character and it annoyed me so much I either skipped to the end of the book or stopped reading altogether. On the other hand, I've come across characters with names so whimsical I laughed out loud (Jasper fforde, I'm looking at you!). As a writer, characters refuse to participate until I learn their proper name.
ReplyDeleteI love names--first names, in particular. Many years ago, I started keeping a little alphabetized (just by first letter) spiral book full of names, for when I started having children or needed a name for a new pet). Sometimes I would just go through telephone books (remember them?) or other lists, looking for new names for my collection. For my second son, I gave my husband the book and he disappeared into the bathroom, coming out with the name Zachary (who is now approaching 42 years old). When he was old enough, we let him decide whether to spell his nickname Zach or Zack (he chose the former).
ReplyDeleteI do love a good character name. If it is one I particularly enjoy, I will mention the fact in my review. The only thing that bothers me (besides having character names that are too similar in the books I am reading, as mentioned by others) is when it's not obvious how to pronounce a name. I'm not sure why that's important to me, as I don't move my lips while I'm reading, but somehow it is. It would be helpful if the author could work in the pronunciation, either in a note or as mentioned by the character or another character.
Jenn, there is no way AI could come up with Flavia de Luce, or Hercule Poirot! Only the little grey cells could manage such flights of fancy.
ReplyDeleteI read the obituaries for two Ohio counties every morning, and people do have fascinating and unusual names. Lots of men have names we consider feminine, too. I was convinced that a local business woman was partnered with a woman, until I saw a photo of her husband Edna. Our late neighbor had an employee whose name was O, and they called his son Little O, Both O's stood for Odious, of all things. Why on earth would anyone choose to have an Odious Jr.? But what a colorful name that totally speaks of his actual Appalachian roots.
On our way to drop my father-in-law at the Cincinnati airport once (which is in Kentucky), he spotted the exit sign for Mineola Pike and remarked that he had always wanted to write a book with the character of Minnie Pike. Which started my years-long hobby of collecting highway exit signs that could be used as names: Crystal Lake, for instance, although I had a lot better ones than that. Wonder what I did with that list? It has several dozen names on it. Can't you just picture Minnie? I see her so clearly.
and then there is Gravely Lake Ponders / always always wonder What?!
DeleteHmm, good question. It may sound silly, but in a novel, I really prefer characters have first names that begin with different letters. I find when I open a book and within 50 pages there is a Charles, a Chris, a Channing and a Chumbley, I'm toast. All those similar names demand more brain power than I want to give to supporting and sometimes peripheral characters. Similarly, if you have a Sonia and a Sophia I just want to scratch my eyes out.
ReplyDeleteNow, on naming itself, I can add an observation from my own life journey. I was born as Vicki Jean (insert maiden name, 1st spouse last name, second spouse last name). I was in two abusive marriages as Vicki Jean and found that after a year of counseling I was no longer Vicki Jean. She was what I refer to as a doormat. I had instead become a doorway, so I needed a new name. After much pondering and praying, I legally changed my name to Victoria Anne (no last name). As the judge was signing off on my name change, he asked what I would say to folks who demanded a last name? I said that was their problem, not mine. He chuckled and signed the order.
I find it frustrating when adult characters have names that are popular NOW but were not popular when those characters were born. It can take me out of the story.
ReplyDeleteAmen! -- Victoria
DeleteLike someone said above, names can tell you a lot about the character/person. Katness Everdeen subliminally implies feline qualities that are 'evergreen' always young. What is really fun about the Ian Fleming books is he named his characters from people he went to school with Ernst Stavro Blofeld, came from Thomas Blofeld, the father of a cricket commentator. Of course giving our villain both German and Russian first and middle names locked in his villainy.
ReplyDeleteI have had a long standing wish that Coralee will appear in a mystery. Alas Coralie has appeared but I am still waiting for my namesake.
I hear you, Coralee! Despite the immense popularity of the name Karen in the 50's and 60's (six of us in my high school class), there are very few Karens in literature of any kind, and no popular songs that I'm aware of. Kathy, Diane, Linda, Carol, Mary--all the other popular names, but not Karen. It's odd. And now with the "Karen who wants to speak to the manager" nonsense, I guess it will stay that way.
DeleteIf I was creating a character who was born in 1968, then perhaps a name like Lisa Marie or a name with Marie in the middle because there were many women born that year with these names.
DeleteJENN; You come up with wonderful names for your characters. I never thought of the names that started with the same letter. I am trying to figure out why I confuse two characters sometimes when reading a new to me author's debut novel.
ReplyDeleteWriting my characters is a challenge, especially the names. I want to create a certain name of this evil character that can be manipulated like when I saw a movie and the character's name was Milgrow and some children called that character Mildrew. I want to create characters that fit the name or the opposite of the name. Like a dimwitted character named Sharp or a blunt character named Blunt.
Every time I read a mystery or watch a mystery movie, once the killer's name is revealed, I wonder if it is possible to use that name for the murder victim in my novel.
I do love names! Love, love, love them! Especially those that are interesting...in books as well as in real life. As far as publications go I love to say out loud the names Hercule Poirot and Atticus Pund. Myl favorite fictional names. As for real life, only yesterday I remarked to our waitress how much I loved her name. She told me that her mother was expecting a boy, had already chosen the name Jay and so when she was born her name was "tweaked" a bit and she officially became Jayla. Clever and easy to remember. My story was similar in that my mother was also expecting me to be a boy. She had several boys names selected and no girls name...she was that sure. Imagine her surprise when the doctor told her to welcome her daughter. Back then the hospitals pressed for a name immediately. Mom was not prepared so she chose her own name...Evelyn. It was not her first choice she later told me but was taken by surprise. When I was young I absolutely loathed my first name. None of my chums and classmates could pronounce it properly; they would get tongue tied and many times I was called "Eleven" or something similar. And forget how many times it was misspelled! I also didn't like that it was an "old-fashioned" name that was very popular in the early 1900's. It was like "Mary" back then as far as being frequently used as a name for girls. It then suddenly disappeared after the 1950's until around 2020 or thereabouts where it then ended up in the top 10 list for a while which amazed me. Years ago when there were still lots of "brick and mortar" stores everywhere Crabtree & Evelyn was a popular retailer. It was originally established in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the mid 50's under the name The Soap Box but later renamed Crabtree & Evelyn when the American owner became partners with an English Designer from London in the early 70's. It was then I believe when buyers started to equate the store with being more English than American. Although there were indeed storefronts in England as well as globally the products were always manufactured in Connecticut and eventually Georgia. I was once told by a Crabtree & Evelyn salesperson at its Boston location in Fanueil Hall that I was pronouncing both the store AND my own name incorrectly...say what? She said the correct pronunciation for both was
ReplyDelete"Eve-lyn". While I may have pronounced the company's name wrong I was sure that I knew how to say my own name right. As it turns out there are two pronunciations for Evelyn and truthfully I did rather like the English version. I also learned that the name Evelyn may be female or male; interesting. Over time I grew to love and take pride in my name especially because I was named after my mother. It's a beautiful name because it was her name first. :-)
Our family seems to have a thing for using the name Frances and then never using it. My grandfather’s sister was named Frances – never called that in her life except at baptism and death – she was always Frank. My grandmother’s niece was also named Frances – she was always called Fi (pronounced fee), and most people thought she was properly named Fiona. In my mother’s family there was Frances Grace (Frances), Frances Pearl (Frankie) and the winner is Elva Frances can thankfully called Fran.
ReplyDeleteThank heavens my parents named us sensible names like Margo, Patsy (now Pat but as a kid we called her Pasty or Paste), and George, as in George the 5th – there were a lot of Georges. The one in the middle is called George the T’urd – suits him. As for Dons – Don the Elder, Don the Younger, Don the Avocat, and the other Don.
Feel free to use any of these delights in your book.