It depends on the genre. In any contemporary or realistic setting, I don't think you should need to, or even should, worry about the names of characters meaning anything or fitting them ... because IRL, they don't, and it doesn't matter. It's not like the next guy reading your story is going to have the same "feelings" for names as you anyway. The last character I named in this kind of a setting I just picked the first two names that came to mind and used them. Harold Richard. DONE. Do you actually care that much when you're reading someone else's writing? Of course, a character's name and what the character titles themselves don't have to the be the same, which is the only case where you'd want to put thought into it. A performance artist might give themselves a more dramatic stage name, and that would be fine. In the case of fantasy or science fiction, hit random keys and hope something phonetic comes out. The exception are probably stylised (super)heroic writing, where meaningful names are part and parcel of the genre, or lighthearted writing, where you can get away with silly names like Malbadevil Killdiedeath.
For me? I write in first person so I don't worry about names until it comes up and somehow then it just naturally flows onto the paper and I'm like, when did I come up with that name?
Heh, starting to write a story without even knowing the main character's name sounds like an ... interesting experiment.
It's quite common in first person stories, for the sake of avoiding annoying moments like "My name is John." In third person stories, though, it's far better to reveal the guy/gal's name as early as possible.
I know that, but for the AUTHOR not to know the name of the their characters makes you wonder just how much else they're making up as they go along.
Hey, what's so wrong with making things up as you go along? I do it all the time As to naming character's specifically, I think you're putting too much work into it. Giving a character a "working name" can serve the same benefit as giving any piece a "working title," it's just a way to identify it until you find it's true label. Also, it's not rocket science, you don't have to read into every little detail.
I mix instinct with meaning checks. I almost giggle with delight when I come up with a name that I like that also means something relevant to the character. I don't do that with all characters though. If a name just feels right for a character, I use it regardless of what it means. I've named characters as tributes before too, or at least in my current novel I have (the male and female main characters are named Vincentius and Lucretia, which is a tribute to Vincent Valentine and Lucrecia from Final Fantasy 7). Their names also happen to be relevant to some aspect of them.
I really like the name Vincent, but I don't like running the risk of borrowing names from people I know or paying tributes to things I've read, watched, or played. I used the name Wolf as a last name once, and someone made a connection to a Star Trek character that wasn't intended. I was embarrassed. I suppose it can't be helped. I also have the problem of being picky about names. I recently used Kevin for an MC (I like the name and there are no obvious connections to anything I'm aware of). Some names just sound very boring and ordinary to me.
Called him Sam. I was thinking about it, and I decided that Sam is a good name. Why? Personal preference, I guess. That's my amazing story!
Names come to me too, mostly. Though I wuold give a woman in her eighties a name that was popular for girls eighty years ago. Yes, there must be web site around dealing with that sort of thing. There, eighty year old females will be Mabel, Agatha, Maureen, Mary, etc. And old gentleman most likely Charles, James, George, John. Also, when working on short stories where you have two characters, don't give them the same sounding names, like Kathy and Kayla, for instance. Readers want their MC's name to stick in their minds and not comppete with another character, I suppose. I like first and last names to have rhythmic cadence. In my latest story the girl is Alexandra [Emily] Hughes, the male in the story Ben Gimple. I think the names grow on the characters and begin to suit their personalities. vanhunks
All of it, I think. If it's fiction. I mean, isn't writing the epitome, of making it up? I hope so anyways, else I'm all out of excuses. And for the name thing, I always wanted to write a story about a guy named Hagen. it's derived from Haakon actually. And I love it, Always have. Eversince they made us brood over the Nibelungen saga in class. German public school for the win on this one. So I'm getting my wish because I named my MC that.
I usually just sit there and think of a name most of the time and the first one that I like, I keep and that's all there is to it.
No method. The name just comes along with the character, an unconscious thing, really. Right now, I have two characters opposite of one another with unusual names (old southern names). I'm a little concerned about that - how believable will it be for the reader? I've tried renaming, but nothing else fits for me. So I guess I'll just hope the reader won't be turned off by the names. P.S. for surnames, I google. I look for sites based on ethnicity, geographic locations, etc.
I go to the parents connect forums and look at people's reactions to names and sometimes see ones that I never would have thought of. I keep a list of the ones I like on Notepad so when I create a new character I just look at the list and see which one I think suits him / her best. Hope that helps
This has always been my weak point in my ideas. I usually end up with a common name like john. But i am finding it easier the more i do it. I usually just sit and think then pick one. That maybe part of the problem, i never spend too much time on a name.
I look around the room and pick letters from anything with text on it. Right now i have a coca cola can and a bottle of tylenol next to my Texas Tech mousepad. coCA cola tYLENol texAS tech= Caylenas I also like to take 'normal' names and mix them up a bit by either combining two, or adding/subtracting letters. Robert + Jason = Osbern, William = Wilas Of course, i write mainly fantasy, so these odd names aren't too out of place.
I pretty much do what mammamaia does. Normally, it comes to me, but if it doesn't, I normally going on a 'baby names' site, and browse, choosing one that I like -- also, sites like these normally give out meanings and background information that's always useful.
I try to fit the name with the character. Like if I have a girl who's a real tomboy, but is growing up I might pick Samantha which is a girlier name, but we can call her Sam- more of a boy name. Just think about your friends, classmates, family. Maybe that Lily is your sweet friend. And Chase is a jerk. Maybe Kayla is a small baby just born....if you think about how the names around you seem to fit the people around you, you might come up with how your name should fit the personality of your MC. Also, I always seem to pick short names. I don't know if it's because long names are sucha hassle to type all the time or what....but, thats what I do.
I have a big hat in it i have pieces of folded papers with letters written in them. I just roll a dice and pick up the number of letters the dice tells me to and presto! I have a name. If that doesnt work i open up my tiny collection of books mostly on mythology and try to pick a name that isn't that well known but describes my character accurately. If i still cant find anything i wiki some heroic people, or i go to www.behindthename.com and just browse.
I prefer using names that reference the character's personality, history, and/or destiny, especially through foreign languages. For example, I named a water mage in a fantasy story Marik (from Latin mare, meaning sea), a female assassin Diana (the Roman goddess of the hunt, also associated with the moon and, by extension, night), and a dark wizard from a Harry Potter RPG Morrison (Latin mors, meaning death). Of course, if a name just seems to resonate with the character, I choose that instead, without regard to etymology.
I typically try to go for names that are uncommon, but not so much that they sound...Mystical. I write a lot of sci-fi, but my MC and other important characters have names that are slightly modern, with a futuristic twist. Example, instead of Jason, I used Jase. Shorter, and familiar, but still unique. It really depends on where your story takes place and during what time period. Sometimes I won't be able to think of a name until I discover the character I'm creating. Once I feel like the character is a living, breathing person, with a mind of their own, they sort of just...Name themselves.
I tend to do a lot of research, the name meanings, see if it fits the character, the time period it was most popular in, where it originated from.. the names, to me are really important. But then again I could just be lame XD
If I am having a hard time thinking of a name I will sometimes do a Google search on baby names. You would be surprised how many sites pop up. If I still can't find anything, I take a look around my home or work. I came up with one of my favorite character names this way Archon. While looking at a can of compressed air I thought to myself, hum, Air Can. Since I liked how it rolled off my tongue I played with it until I had Archon.
