I am fascinated by names.
As a teacher I see some bizarre names fly across my rosters. Some of those poor kids will be spelling out their "unique" names for people the rest of their lives, and never find a personalized bike license plate.
As a writer I agonize over choosing the perfect name for each character, so I am in awe when I come across character names that snap off the page.
Here are some of my recent favorites.
Major Ernest Pettigrew - His name sketches a serious and proper demeanor.
Mrs. Ali - Melodious and lovely which perfectly matches her graciousness.
Hazel and Augustus are the names Green selects for his teen main characters. I love the way he eschews current contemporary choices. These names told me to expect characters that were going to transcend the ordinary.
Say this aloud - Katsa
Do you hear the bite in the sound of the name? This character is a fighter.
Saph - Named after his gorgeous sapphire eyes
From Divergent/Insurgent by Veronica Roth
Beatrice turned Tris - Another name with crispness that supports strength of character
What are some character names that have caught your fancy?
Book Cover Photo Credits
Name Button Photo Credit
What a fun post. I also labour over choosing the right name, and the pain of changing a name mid manuscript, and the joy of finding just the right one. I loved this list.
ReplyDeleteI have just read WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON... a hilarious and touching read if you haven't yet, and this very normal name so fit the main character(s)!!
WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON is whimpering for attention on my Kindle. Name changing makes me thankful for the REPLACE function.
DeleteI use baby name websites to find the right fit for characters.
ReplyDeleteThose are great character names from those book picks.
I also come across unique student names.
Those are all great! I do love those unique names. Elana Johnson does a great job - Jag, Gunner (Gunn), Raine... And of course Katniss, Gale, Peeta from HG. I also like Julilly from Underground to Canada :)
ReplyDeleteAnnie Proulx has some imaginative character names.
ReplyDeleteWhenever people mention fake/funny names I can't help but think of the old movie "The Trouble with Angels" (my grandma's favorite) when Hayley Mills and co. claim that their names are "Sandy Beach," "Pearl Ring," "Fleur de Lis" etc. :)
Ooh those are some good picks. Finding a perfect name for a character can be one of the hardest things about writing.
ReplyDeleteI have such a hard time settling on names for my characters. A few months ago, I started keeping a file of interesting names and nicknames I came across in life and in reading. It's amazing how many great names are floating around out there, yet if they don't fit the character in some way, they remain just interesting. In fiction, Atticus, Scout, Jem, and (of course) Boo Radley remain as a few of my favorite names.
ReplyDeleteIf there were a Name Hall of Fame, the To Kill a Mockingbird names would HAVE to be in it.
DeleteGood examples! I like old biblical names. Call me a traditionalist...
ReplyDeleteFinding names should be an author's pastime. It shows when it isn't.
ReplyDeleteCharacter names are so much fun to come up with. A great namer of characters (until it came to the next generation of kids) is JK Rowling.
ReplyDeleteGood choices. I loved to go through baby name books and now enjoy googling names.
ReplyDeleteRiya
I absolutely LOVED Major Pettigrew's name. It totally suited him. And I agree about the names in Fault in our Stars. Old-fashioned and unusual.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite character names came from Wideacre, by Phillipa Gregory. The MC's name was Beatrice. It sounded innocent, but she was so NOT!
I loved reading through your choices. It is always fun when an author finds and uses really great names. I have always been a fan of the names in Harry Potter. I read that J.K. Rowling collects interesting names and puts them in a file. Once I heard that I started to do the same thing. :)
ReplyDeleteThat's a super idea. I should consolidate all my post-its and paper fragments into a honest to goodness file.
DeleteI like character names that either say something about the character themselves, Patch from Becca Fitzpatrick's series. He's sketchy, then he's full on bad boy, then halfway, then good and now, I don't know. He's been broken and put back together and pretty much anyone around him has been the same way.
ReplyDeleteOr I like names that are the complete opposite of what the character is like. Emily from The Girl in the Steel Corset and the Girl in the Clockwork Collar. A nice simple name, common for the times. But Emily is anything but ordinary or simple. She's basically a scientist that could give any other scientist a run for their money. She can save lives, repair machines, communicate with them and all while looking innocent and tiny. With a giant of a man beside her that she can cut down in little pieces with her words in seconds!
Great topic!
Heather
All good examples! Especially Ali. ;D Names are so important. Doug Potter just doesn't have the right ring to it.
ReplyDeleteI always pay attention to names. Some of the names in my books are taken from people I've met somewhere.
ReplyDeleteI have the darndest time remembering names, so I can't say. But we were talking about a weird name this morning... Prekash, like precautionary, without the ionary. It's the name of a kid at my daughters school. I don't think I spelled it right, but rumor has it it's an Indian name. Interesting, huh?
ReplyDeleteI like non-vanilla names - I think it makes the character stand out more! However Katniss and Peeta were very unfortunately choices because put them together and you get Kat Pee.
ReplyDeleteSorry!!!! Seriously, I value names tremendously. My favorite name recently was Harry Crewe from the Blue Sword (a recent read for me, not a recent book). It fit HER so perfectly!
Interesting post! Collecting names and filing them sounds like a good idea - good reference when you're stuck for a name!
ReplyDeleteThanks everyone for poppin' by and sharing your namey thoughts.
ReplyDeleteI love getting into the names of the characters, like you do. IT's so fun to make them up too!
ReplyDeleteI really love a couple of my own character names--so much I won't tell anyone what they are until they get published. I just don't want to share them! HA!
ReplyDeleteActually, I loved Hermione. But I hated Peeta. Ugh. WHY PEETA??? As in pita? Son of a baker? Hehe.
I don't always remember names so don't really think much about it!
ReplyDeleteYou won an ebook on my blog! Come and get it!
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting that when I start to write a story, sometimes the characters come named. Others I have to work at and those are usually the ones I have to take much more time with to capture them in words.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
Well, you've certainly made me think. My characters sometimes come named, and sometimes I have to research (for my historical fic and my Rwanda book). I'm also often inspired by my family.
ReplyDeleteResearching names usually yields some golden nuggets.
DeleteI loved it when Beatrice switched her name to Tris. And Four is definitely filled with questions, just like the boy. :)
ReplyDeleteI usually spend hours coming up with character names.
I love checking out names in books. Funny thing is I was just in the bookstore the other day and a book looked promising. I checked the reviews on my phone, and most of them beat up the book because of the protagonist.
ReplyDeleteChoose wisely...
I would put the protagonist's name, but just in case the author reads it, I won't.
ReplyDeleteNames really do seem to make a book better in my opinion:) I love Katsa from Graceling!
ReplyDeletethank you for sharing
ReplyDeletenice work
ReplyDeleteIn my short stories, I often have trouble naming my characters. Now that I'm writing longer works, I don't seem to have the same problem. Perhaps because I am getting to know my characters in more depth, they are easier to name.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I loved John Green's choice of Hazel and Augustus =)
Just one word: Four!!!
ReplyDelete*swoon*
No kidding. *reaches for fan*
DeleteI think names are amazing, too! I don’t think I’ve ever tired of talking about names. A nice thing about books is you can use weird names and not be thought an unthinking parent. =)
ReplyDelete~Aidyl