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  1. medioxcore

    medioxcore New Member

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    does anyone else have trouble naming characters??

    Discussion in 'Character Development' started by medioxcore, Apr 15, 2009.

    or is it just me?

    i can't name a character for the life of me.
     
  2. Aeroflot

    Aeroflot New Member

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    You don't have to name them. Use a descriptor instead. Read Tale of Genji and you'll find out that characters aren't called by their names, but often by their town's name or an article of clothing, or a flower associated with that person.
     
  3. medioxcore

    medioxcore New Member

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    but they are normal people in a normal US city in a normal universe.

    they need normal names.

    also... they aren't in any type of normal situation. lol. this description makes my book sound boring as hell. lol
     
  4. Aeroflot

    Aeroflot New Member

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    That doesn't mean you have to name your characters, though. You could call a girl any number of things, such as 'the girl next door,' 'Italian chick,' 'boobs.' Those are quite normal names.

    I'm just saying... cause if you're having trouble making names, then maybe you should try something different. I mean, you can't call someone Michael Smith and be happy with that... or can you? muahaha 0.o
     
  5. OneMoreNameless

    OneMoreNameless New Member

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    Bravely adventuring beyond the fourth wall.
    roslyn Maclin
    avis Constante
    jamie Traber
    allan Bottom
    cody Harari
    darryl Ravencraft
    hugh Roan
    Makin
    erik Sill
    amie Auclair

    Problem solved.
     
  6. medioxcore

    medioxcore New Member

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    omg i love you.

    haha! the other day i was thinking, "what if there was a random name generator online somewhere" and there is. haha. guess i could've googled that just to make sure.
     
  7. A.J.Crowley

    A.J.Crowley New Member

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    I think OneMoreNameless deserves a round of applause.

    That is a fantastic resource, for I too have trouble with names, but I think I have a problem no longer.
     
  8. Nervous1st

    Nervous1st New Member

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    OMG, never mind my characters, I went through the hardest time last year trying to pick a name for my Son!

    In my search for the perfect name (for my kid) I used this website:

    http://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager

    The best thing about this is you can search periods of time for the most popular names. In fact you can search just about anything on this website.

    Good luck.
     
  9. lynneandlynn

    lynneandlynn New Member

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    Characters seem to be highly resistant to names...
     
  10. OneMoreNameless

    OneMoreNameless New Member

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    But our characters are our children!

    *Considers the death toll by the end of my last novel.*

    ... I am not a very good parent.
     
  11. Kursal

    Kursal New Member

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    I don't seam to have a problem... I must be one of the few that doesn't. I suppose it comes from the acting background. It's no good being an actor if you can't tell your audience about yourself, what your name is etc. So, in my case it was just practice. I'm sure it will come for you in time.
     
  12. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    Why not? How about Valentine Michael Smith? A good name for a man from Mars ...
     
  13. pacmansays

    pacmansays New Member

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    Hardest thing for me, generally i get 20 random surnames and 20 random first names i like...then mix them and see if any fit
     
  14. sprirj

    sprirj Senior Member

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    I research this quite a lot and the peoples names are usually used for a reason, the origins or meaning behind the name helps me create unique characters.
     
    1 person likes this.
  15. KP Williams

    KP Williams Active Member

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    Naming characters is the easiest part of the entire process for me. I just pick a name I like (or maybe a name I don't like) and go with it. It really doesn't matter if the meaning of the name matches. My own name apparently means "narrows, channel," yet I don't see any ships sailing through me. :p
     
  16. thegearheart

    thegearheart New Member

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    I'm all about the normal names. I generally collect names every single time I hear one. Anyone with a nice name piques my interest.

    Right now, I'm really big on out-of-style southern US names. Names like Netty, Doreen, Dotty and the like.
     
  17. Miswrite

    Miswrite New Member

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    I believe it is Michael Valentine Smith.
     
  18. Lemex

    Lemex That's Lord Lemex to you. Contributor

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    I don't find a problem most of the time. Mostly I pick a name that fits at the time, and if it changes later on, so be it.
     
  19. grnidone

    grnidone New Member

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    I use names of my friends for the first draft just to have *something* to call them. Then I go to the babyname websites.

    Sometimes I use the social security name thing:
    http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/
     
  20. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    You might want to check again. :)
     
  21. Neha

    Neha Beyond Infinity. Contributor

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    Finding names for characters isn't tough for me, it's usually which of the ten I am going to use...so I go with Ena Meena Mina Mo, or when that doesn't work, I change people's names, like my current WIP's MC's name is Ehna-which is sort of made from my own name. But the one thing I do focus on is substance. If the name does not have weight or juts out obscenely from the plot, I don't use it.
     
  22. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    nope!... never had any problem naming characters... they seem to name themselves for me...
     
  23. Aeroflot

    Aeroflot New Member

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    Do a lot of people not think about the meaning behind names??
     
  24. Neha

    Neha Beyond Infinity. Contributor

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    *raises hands*

    moi! well actually it's weird...usually when I set out with a character I end up with a name that means what I'm trying to potray.
     
  25. pacmansays

    pacmansays New Member

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    A lot of the times I usually reference other characters in work that have similarities or acted as inspiration.

    Also, I tend to name them after philosophers' whose ideas are closely related
     

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