Hi, I am currently writing a romance novel, my first attempt, and I am stuck on a name. I want to call the 'main guy' Romeo, however is this too cliché for a romance story? I've always loved the name but im not sure if its too cheesy. Please give me your opinion! Thank you
It is a bit cliche. The name is even a word in itself, calling someone a "Romeo" usually means that person is in love or perhaps a romantic. BUT, if you write a good enough story, most people will likely not care about the name at all. They may frown at first, but as you capture them with excellent writing, that won't matter. Perhaps it will even be a cherry on the top? So, if you like it enough, go with it. Otherwise change it to Romero, Rameo, or Rambo?
Case in point—Cesar Romero: Spoiler: Spoilered for size Though you may recognize him better like this:
It would probably help if there was kind of explanation for the name, like his mom loved the play, or it's a family name. Of course, I'm one to talk, I wrote a Romance short story about a genie and named him Jin with no detailed explanation so...do as I say, not as I do?
I mean my characters for my current original story are all just single words translated into different languages. I name a good number of characters that way actually. I don't think any name can be 'cheezy' though it depends on their role in the story. Names can certainly be silly/cringey/random but it's all dependent on how you write it, and how likable the character is. I could write a character called Mr PoopinFarts and you bet people would roll their eyes and expect lots of childish poop jokes. Hell, I could include the humor they expect but if I make the character himself endearing (like say, mister bean for example or inspector Crusoe from pink panther) then that silly character name might wind up being somebody's favorite character. So what I'm saying is, don't worry too much about the name, worry about the character, heck you might be halfway through the story and decide to change the name later on.
Name your characters whatever makes you happy and write the book without overthinking the details. I hope your first attempt is not your last and that you have an absolute blast telling yourself the story of Romeo.
I'm on the side of naming your characters whatever you want, but also, I think a romance lead named Romeo could actually work surprisingly well if done in a clever/tongue-in-cheek way.
Could Romeo be the nickname he has been given by friends etc? I guess that only works if he is known for being either a hopeless romantic or a womaniser. But like the others said, as long as it is done in a self-aware way it should be fine.
