Aside from actually finishing a story, naming your characters is the next bane of any writer’s existence.
Not only are you expected to encapsulate their entire personality into one word, you also have to pick a name that’s unique enough it’ll make readers remember, but isn’t too far out there, lest it becomes a meme (like the ever popular Twilight baby, or Bubblewrap Cumberbun) and, it needs to be a name you actually like. (Yes, even if they’re your villain)
Picking the perfect name for a character can be as hard as naming your child, because… well, characters are essentially the same as your kids. They’re extensions of yourself that eventually become their own people with their own thoughts, feelings and opinions. And so when you’re there, looking down at them when they’re nothing more than a squishy little personality-less blob, it can be a daunting task to slap a label on them. Especially because it’s something they’ll have for life.
No pressure.
Now, I know there’s a ton of different articles out there all telling you they’ve unlocked the only secret ‘right way’ to go about naming characters. There’s everything from mundanefully helpful like looking up common names for the region/country you want your story to take place in, to the way out there, like feeling the name’s aura, or you should pick a certain name because Mars is in retrograde.
Would you like to learn the real secret?
There is no one ‘right’ way to name them!
What works for someone else might not work for you, and that’s okay. It’s called a process because there’s no one way to do it. Every tip others give you can help, but don’t think any one person knows the be-all, end-all of how to write ‘properly’. I don’t care if they’re professors who’ve spent their entire 30+ year careers unravelling the structures of the craft, or the most famous writers in history. No one person knows everything about writing.
No one.
You can take the tips they’ve collected over the years and use it to help your writing, but don’t you dare let any internet trolls – or your imposter syndrome – tell you that you aren’t a ‘real’ writer if you don’t follow what they tell you.
Yes, this even goes for the advice I give you here.
I hope to God you aren’t only following my advice. There are tons of things I don’t know! I just learned this year that ‘spaghetti westerns’ weren’t named because cowboys ate spaghetti, and that you can’t drink salt water even if you boil it first. I am an idiot!
And so is everyone else.
That’s what makes humans the crazy, weird, fascinating beings we are.
You know your characters best, and only you can pick a worthy name.
Doing things like using a baby name website or a random name generator can help your brain get unstuck when you begin to panic-spiral into ‘I need a name to keep writing but can’t think of one, oh my God just pick something already, it’s been 4 months!’ but you shouldn’t just pick the first name you see or one you generate.
Feel it out.
Does this name actually fit your character? Think about it! Let it roll around in your head for a few days, or weeks. Make your other characters say it. Does it fit in their mouth? Does it feel like an anvil that just completely kills the conversation, or does it flow? Does it fit with the other circle of friend names?
It’ll look weird if your story revolves around Molly, Michael, Millie and Gilbert, if that stand-out name doesn’t stand out for a reason.
It’s true, fiction can be whatever you want it to be, and rules are more like guidelines. However, if you are going to break certain ‘rules’, you need to know how it’ll be perceived by your audience. Most people will spend your story waiting for the ‘weird’ name reveal, and will become disappointed if you don’t point it out, or explain why it’s there.
It needs to serve a purpose.
Also, when naming a character, you can test out a few names. Just because you pick one doesn’t mean you have to stick to it! If you’re using a placeholder name, or a name you’re on the fence about, continue writing and re-assess. Now you’ve continued fleshing out the character, are you feeling like a different name would fit them better? Then change it! Hell, give them more than one name. Give them two, or ten!
Does the name you picked lend itself well to nicknames? Are you planning on making it a joke that the character’s legal name is one thing, but their much-preferred nickname is nothing even remotely close to it? Was their name a family relic, so they keep it as a tie to the family they’ve never known? Do they like their name? Do they hate it?
Did you even ask them?
That last part sounds a little crazy, yes, but it’s also effective. You sit there and hallucinate about people who aren’t real talking all day anyway, what’s one more imaginary conversation? Picture yourself asking them if they like the name you chose. What do they say?
How do they react?
Like this article? Check out more writing tips here!