OK, so my biggest struggle this last week or so has been coming up with new names for my main two male characters in Oracles Promise.
Why am I renaming them? Well, let's just say I don't want a love triangle involving those particular two first initials. Someday I'll introduce you to my characters, but I can't until their names are nailed down.
So far these two boys are not happy about the name change. They won't agree to any of the names I pick for them and stubbornly refuse to let me change their names at all. Which gets me thinking?
What's in a name? (Sorry, Shakespeare, I know I'm totally pilfering from you.)
Why are names so important to nail down and why are they so hard to get right? I've changed names a dozen times on some of my characters without a worry, but other characters if I have to change their name it becomes a big stinking deal.
Why? Why are they so important?
Because a name is almost everything. It can shape a character's past and future. And that is why it's both so important and impossible to get a name just right.
This is a popular subject today. It's one of my favorite things to do! I love naming characters. Good luck with yours. I'm sure you'll come up with something brilliant soon!
ReplyDeleteYou could go to a baby name website and look there. Sometimes I think about what the character is like and name them after that. For instance, there's a rude character in one of my books, so her last name is: Rood.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your characters.
ReplyDeleteNames are interesting things. I can rarely write a character unless I have their name. I generally try to have them mean something significant to the story, but it all comes down to whether it fits or not. >.<
Seems to be the topic of the week, I must say I have problems as well, but for now I just stick names that I feel when writing and figure it out later! One of my characters I have named Hunter but I hate it, however like you they won't allow me to call them anything else. One of these days I'll get my way!
ReplyDeleteGood Luck!
I've tried to change names after the fact and it's never worked for me. Once a character is named that in my head and I write a few chapters of the story, it's like burned into my brain and I can't get my head around anything else.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with figuring out what works for your characters!
Names are so important, I agree. But I've never been able to change them AFTER I started writing.
ReplyDeleteGood luck finding the right ones.
Argh! You've nailed it! I think names are so important 'cos they kinds define a character's personality. Sort of. I spend hours on baby naming sites to find the perfect name! So, there..
ReplyDeleteI love naming characters too. I love to flip through the baby name book and find one that's just right. I've had characters that names themselves, though, and refused to be called anything else.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of names, my verification word is Monson. Cool.
Thanks for the tips everyone. I love baby naming websites for character names. We're gonna try some different tactics in the coming days to name these characters.
ReplyDelete