Wednesday, September 18, 2013

What’s in a Name?



I write fantasy, which means that I like to use unique and different names to help create that setting. 
I began writing in junior high, and I created what I called the ‘Random Namer,’ something that I still have and that has served me well over many, many years.  (And amazingly I still have the original.  I’ve kept it well preserved.)  It’s just a simple notecard, I’ve cut to create two sliding numbered bars.  I choose a random number, say 12 and write down the letter associated with that number (in the picture below, it would be 'b'.  Then I set number one to the letter I just used (b) and write down the next number twelve.  

Random Namer

 I separated the consonants and vowels so that I can be sure that there are vowels in the names. 
With this small device, I’ve created hundreds of names.  Not all of them are good, but there are some that are absolutely perfect.  In fact, this created a name that my husband wants to use for one of our children.  (We’re still debating about that.  Denego’s pretty evil.  I don’t really want to name a son after him.)

I’ve also used the first letters (or two letters) in words during class lectures when I got bored.  I’ve taken several names and mixed them together into a final one.  I’ve taken names of drugs (because I think they sound funny anyway) and turn them backwards.  You’d be surprised how many ways there are to find unique sounding names.

And I feel that I’ve gotten to the point where I know when a name sounds ‘right’ and when it just sounds foreign.  Some of my favorites are Kanya, Denego, Larzo, Hanen, Pazdina, Sitna, Aydra, Karvid and Edric.

When I’m first plotting out a story, letting it spin around in my brain, I don’t choose their names automatically.  I’ll use generic names while trying to figure out plot points so that I don’t have to worry about that until the story is being written.  Then I’ll change them.  I’ve only had one instance where I had a character who refused to let me change his name.  I tried several times until I realized that he is and always will be Benji, even if it’s a fairly typical name.

I have no qualms about changing a character’s name over and over until it feels right.  I had one character change names three times until it felt right.   He started as Onispa, then became Vikezany, and now he's finally known as Onis.  I’ve even changed a character’s name, not because his name didn’t fit, but because in the sequel there were too many characters with names that started with the same letter.
For me, the name has to fit.  Otherwise, it just doesn’t feel right, and I can’t stop obsessing over it.

How do you find names for characters?  Have you ever read a name that rubs you the wrong way or do they even matter?

11 comments:

  1. What a great post! Names to characters has always been really important to me as well. I'm really big on name meanings, so I have subscriptions to several naming sites like babynames.com so I can search up what a name means. In the fantasy/scifi novel I'm writing with my friend, all of our names are very symbolic. Taryn is of the Earth, and knows everything about the Earth and it's history. It is, after all, her true home. Stella is all about going to the stars. Leo has been in the stars forever, but is a lion at heart. And so on. In my Zombie novel I'm working on, I wanted some unique names, and some normal ones. You wouldn't make it through an apocalypse without a few Johns and Janes surviving. Things that people would want to name their kids. But again, they are very personality based.

    Sorry for the long comment, I was just so excited that you posted about this! It's such a central thing in my characterization!

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    1. I'm so glad that you enjoyed the post! I agree, names can almost get symbolic, though I don't usually use the meanings of their names, but I know others who do, like J.K. Rowling. She had some amazing names for her characters.

      It's fun to see other people's processes for naming! Thanks for commenting!

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  2. Character naming is a huge deal to me. I can only get so far in the story's planning process before I can call the characters by names I feel suit them. I've consulted my poor book of baby names so often, it's falling apart. X)

    While I will sometimes factor the name's meaning into my choice, meaning is usually less important to me than how it sounds and looks. But when making names up, I'll often use the meaning of words as my inspiration and go from there.

    Once a character's got a name that feels right, changing it is no easy matter -- which is a big bother in one of my projects, because I had too many people whose names start with J, so I decided that one of them needed renaming. The character in question didn't mind, but I'm having trouble thinking of him as anything but John! X(

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    1. I have had the same problem. I wrote a WIP where all the characters had unique names, everything was fine. Then the idea for a sequel came, featuring quite a few of the minor characters. Almost every single one of them had a name that started with a C or a K. So I had to go back through my first WIP to fix their names for the sequel!

      I have less difficulty adjusting to their new names. I have had some characters who are stubborn, but many of them, if I can change their name without difficulty, it means that I probably didn't have the right name in the first place. Thanks for commenting!

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  3. Krista-I also enjoyed your post. How creative to invent a Random Namer. Thanks for sharing. Along with websites and books about names, another way to view a lot of names is to watch movie credits. I like this method because there is usually a nice variety -- from very popular names, to names I've never heard of before. Plus, last names too!

    I also like considering the meaning of names, like Carley. And, like everonword, there is just something about how a name sounds and looks.

    Everonword--one suggestion for your J characters. Is it possible to refer to one of them by their last name all the time? You could then keep the J name, but not use it very often and avoid having to "re-imprint" that character.

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    1. I really like the idea of movie credits! That's something I've never thought of, but I will definitely have to try. Thanks for commenting!

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  4. I have to do the same and often change names until I am completely comfortable with it x Great post! Thank you x

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  5. This is an interesting method to develop names. I like it! Thanks for sharing.

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  6. In my current high fantasy world, I try to give characters names that make sense with their culture/where they're from. At first I didn't care much for this, but as the overall series progress, I started taking this technique seriously. It adds a sense of realism to the world.

    For example, there's one character who comes from an elven Native-American mix culture, and there's a lot of Rs and Ts in her language, so her name has pronounced Ts in it: Amarette.

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  7. There are number of naming sources out there for tabletop and story games, a lot of them handy if you are trying to find fodder for names, try googling Story Games Names Project.

    I also like the list method for naming some things too. Make a list of noun words that are flavorful to your setting, and combine them to get proper sounding place/surnames. For example:
    Gold, Sun, Knife, Black, Jaguar, Feather, Rainbow, Silent.
    Mix and match to get stuff like the Black Knife river or Valley of the Silent Sun. Insert some words that sound truly fantastical here and there, and bam, feels like added meaning to it.

    And then later, you can come back to it and try to explain those names and their origins, giving the stories even more flow. Just a thought. :D

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