Twins, Siblings, & Families

**My theme for this year’s A to Z Challenge is THE NAME GAME. Everything you’d want to know about naming characters.**

There are plenty of characters who could pop up in your stories. More than likely at least one of them will interact with their family members. These characters could be minor or extremely important, depending on your story. So how do you name these family members? If your main character has a twin, sibling, or other family member, you could find a way to link those names together and make it more interesting for the reader.

Twins can be particularly fun to name. Their names don’t have to necessarily be related at all, but there are ways to connect them. You could have both names start with the same letter or be the same number of syllables. There are other tricks you could use, as well. You could find names that are anagrams of each other (like Amy and May), or even names that are the reverse of each other (Aidan and Nadia). Or you could look up name meanings and find two names that mean the same.

Also think about how connected your set of twins is. Are they extremely close or do they try to separate from one another and form their own identities? Is one good and one evil, or some other version of opposites? You could find a way to reflect that in their names.

WHAT I’VE DONE: In the untitled NaNoWriMo novel that never was, one of my MC’s, Gabriel, has a twin sister named Grace. I knew I wanted their names to start with the same letter. Of course, in my search for the sister’s name, I came across Gabrielle (or Gabriella), but thought that would be super creepy.

Like twin names, sibling names can but don’t necessarily have to be connected to one another. Some parents may plan their children’s names long before they even have them. But unlike twins, when the first child is born they aren’t going to know when or if they will have more children, or what gender those children will be. So most likely they will choose names for each individual child.

There are other ways to connect sibling names, though. You can have an entire family of names starting with the same letter. My maternal grandparents’ names both started with a D so they named all of their children with D names. You could also come up with themes for your fictional families. I once had a novel idea where three sisters were named April, May, and June. You could name a group of sisters after gemstones—Ruby, Jade, Pearl. You could name your characters after flowers, or give them all historical figures’ names. There are so many different possibilities for name themes. If you want to connect your sibling characters’ names, this is one way to do so.

Names can sometimes be a tradition within families. Children can be named for their parents, grandparents, or other distant relatives. Your main character could be the second (Jr.), third, or fourth in line of family members of the same name. How does having an inherited name affect his personality? Does he hate the name or is he proud of it? Does he have a different nickname to distinguish him from the other family members? Does he plan on passing this name on to his own child?

How do you name family members in your stories? Ever written about a set of twins?

Some People You Know (and Their Names!)

**My theme for this year’s A to Z Challenge is THE NAME GAME. Everything you’d want to know about naming characters.**

There are plenty of places where you can find names for your characters. If you just look at things in your house—books, DVD cases, magazines—you’ll find an endless supply of possible names. But you may not even have to get up to come up with a name. If you had to make a list of the first names of every person you’ve ever met, how long would it be? You’d probably be sitting there for hours, right? So why not use one of those names?

This can actually be a bit tricky. If you think of a name and it just happens to be the same as someone you used to work with or was in your kindergarten class, you probably won’t have a problem. If it’s someone closer to you, it may be a bit harder. It depends on why you want to use this particular name. Does it have anything to do with the actual person, or do you just like the name?

If you’re actually trying to model your character after someone you know or have known (and it’s not a memoir), then it’s probably not a good idea to use their name. Unless, say, it’s your best friend and they’re totally on board. And of course, naming your villain after an ex can be extremely tempting. But it may be better to mold the character around the way the person behaves or things they have done, rather than using their name. 

On the other hand, first names should be pretty free to use. If it’s a name that everyone is familiar with, then it’s unlikely that you’ll get in trouble for using it. Especially if it’s somebody you don’t know anymore, or barely knew at all, and the character doesn’t actually resemble the person.

The problem for your character is that you have to separate who he/she is from the actual person whose name you’re using. If you don’t want this person’s personality traits influencing your character, it may be difficult if it’s a name that you automatically associate with someone you actually know. Try to think about why you want this particular name for this character. What does the name mean to you and how does it fit the character? Using a name that belongs to someone you know may not be the easiest thing to do, but if you really like a name, and it fits with how you see your character, go with it. 

WHAT I'VE DONE: Ok, this one's a stretch, but I do have a slight revenge based name. A minor character in UL, Brian, is very loosely based on a girl I used to be friends with (because teenage girls and boys go about things differently, so he really bears little resemblance to her). But I've kinda always had it in the back of my mind that he has the same last name as her. I don't actually use it in the story so I figure I can get away with it. But if anyone ever asks...

Have you ever named a character after someone you know? Did you just use the name or was the character like that person? 

Research & Resources

**My theme for this year's A to Z Challenge is THE NAME GAME. Everything you'd want to know about naming characters.**

Sometimes when you're naming a character, the name will simply pop into your head. Even when you find yourself this lucky, however, you may still need to do some research to make sure your name is accurate. And if you can't figure out a name, there are plenty of resources out there that can help you. Here are some tips and places you can go to help you figure out those pesky character names. 

Research Tips

• Once you've figured out your character's full name, Google it. You want to make sure it doesn't belong to a well known character or a famous person. 
• Make sure your character's name fits their ethnicity, especially their last name. If you haven't figured out your character's ethnicity, do some research on their physical traits to figure out where they could have come from. 
• Also make sure the name you've chosen would actually be used in the time period your book is set. 
• Check out name meanings to find something that reflects your character's personality, or just for that added bit of symbolism (there may be an entire post on this subject in the future...)

My Favorite Resources

• Behind the Name: My absolute favorite name site. Each name entry includes the meaning as well as where the name came from and what cultures use it. You can also look up names from Ancient and Medieval times, as well as mythology. And check out their separate site for surnames! 
• Nametrends.net: This site allows you to look up a name and see how popular it has been in different years. It also includes US maps to show which states the names have been popular in. 
• Fake Name Generator:  This site generates a random name with an added bonus of an entire identity, including address, email, and mother's maiden name. It also lets you choose what culture/ethnicity you'd like the name to come from. 
• Fantasy Name Generators: This site will create a fantasy name for every fantasy series, and can also come up with names for pretty much everything else you could imagine--places, pets, band names (wait a second! I'll be over here for a while...) 

What sort of research do you do when naming a character? Have any favorite naming sites?

Quirky Names

**My theme for this year’s A to Z Challenge is THE NAME GAME. Everything you’d want to know about naming characters.**

You have a lot of choices when it comes to figuring out a character’s name. You can go with a first name that’s popular or common—one that everyone has heard before. Or you can go with something that’s a little more unique.

What exactly makes a name quirky or unique? It could mean different things depending on the name. There are plenty of names out there that aren’t as common as others. A unique name could just be one that you’ve heard of maybe a few times, but isn’t quite as popular as those names you tend to hear every day. Some names may be more common in different places, but unheard of in others. And there’s always the option of creating a brand new name, which could work depending on your genre or your character’s backstory.

So why would you want your character to have a quirky name? The good thing about a unique name is that it will stand out. People will remember it. It’s a great way to have your main character stand out right from the very beginning, and it may just give your character a little something extra to their personality.

The bad thing about a unique name is pretty much the same as the good thing. It’s going to stand out, meaning that people could question it if it’s really out there. This probably won’t be a problem if it’s just a name that’s fairly uncommon. If you choose a name that no one’s ever heard of, though, you’ll probably need to address it. The reader will want to know where this name came from and how it affects your character’s life. How does he/she deal with having this name? Is it something she embraces or does she hate it? A unique name could impact how a character sees herself.

FUN TIP: If you do want a unique name for your main character, it may be a good idea to give your supporting characters more average names. Your main character’s name will be more memorable than the others’, and it will make the characters more believable. If you think of the names of all the people you know—how many of those names are unique vs. average? There could be a mix, but there are probably more common names in that group. You’ll want your group of characters to be the same.   

Do you prefer quirky or common names? Have you ever made up a name? 

Popular Names

**My theme for this year’s A to Z Challenge is THE NAME GAME. Everything you’d want to know about naming characters.**

There are so many different things that can influence how you choose a character's name. You may want to choose a name that is unique and interesting, or you may want to choose one that is more common and believable. It will all depend on who you want your character to be and the kind of story you’re writing. One thing you can take into consideration is how popular a name is.

Think about the first names that were popular when you were growing up. When I was in school, there were a lot of Ashleys, Brittanys, and Michaels, for instance. A popular name will probably come to mind first if you just try and think of a random name, because it’s probably something that you’ve heard over and over again. The more people who have a particular name, the more popular it is.

When it comes to naming your fictional characters, knowing which names are popular may help you figure it out. If your book takes place in a particular year, knowing which names were popular is important. Even if you want a unique name for your main character, you still have plenty of other characters who need names. Giving them popular or common names may make your cast of characters seem more realistic. If every single character has a unique or strange name, the reader could be thrown off. Popular names occur in real life, so they should probably occur in your story.

FUN TIP: The Social Security Administration keeps track of name trends in the US. If you want to see which names have been popular from year to year, check out their website!

So what causes trends in name popularity? Pop culture can be a HUGE influence on what people name their babies. If a TV show or movie is particularly popular, new parents often jump on the bandwagon and name their children after its characters. For instance, the name Arya was at #942 in the US in 2010. In 2013 it had risen to #277. Game of Thrones premiered in 2011. Coincidence? Not even a little bit. 

Movies, television, and books are constantly influencing name trends. The name Luke started to rise in popularity after the first Star Wars movie was released, and has been popular ever since. Willow gained popularity after Buffy the Vampire Slayer first premiered. Official 2014 numbers aren’t out yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Elsa is in the top 100 after the popularity of Frozen.

You can, of course, name your characters after other characters, although this can be tricky. But just knowing what names are popular can help you figure it out, whether you want a popular name, or even if you want one that isn't...

Do you choose popular names for your characters? Come back on Monday for pretty much the exact opposite of this post...

Other Things that Need Names

**My theme for this year's A to Z Challenge is THE NAME GAME. Everything you'd want to know about naming characters.**

Today we're going to play a little bonus level of The Name Game. This post isn't about naming characters, but about other things that may be in your stories that also need names. We've talked about people and animals, but what about all of the various objects that go by specific names? Coming up with names for these things could be as hard or even harder than deciding on a character name. Here are just some possible examples of things that you may want to name in a story. 

Places. If you create a fictional setting, you may need to name a town, country, or even a planet. Plenty of buildings and businesses will also need names: schools, stores, restaurants.

Groups and Organizations. Clubs and teams will most likely need names. If you’re creating a fantasy or even a cult story, you may need to name a religion. BAND NAMES (I still haven’t come up with a name for Jordan’s band. I’m avoiding it because I don’t need it right now and it’s the hardest thing ever.). And evil organizations, of course. 

Body Parts.  I know your mind just went straight to the gutter, but let’s not forget things like fists or muscles. Obnoxious? Yes. But do people do it sometimes? Yup!

Vehicles. Boats usually have names. So do spaceships if you’re writing Sci-Fi. Some people even name their cars (I named my car after a character in my favorite musical! Because that's normal, right??). 

Weapons. Lots of people name their guns, knives, and other weapons.

Other Inanimate Objects. Your computer, laptop, or phone might have a name (most likely so you can yell it when there are technical difficulties). Children will usually name their stuffed animals and other toys (I had over 300 stuffed animals and they all had names…and I knew every last one of them).

Really, anything could have a name if you wanted it to. You could have a character who names every dish, utensil, and piece of furniture, although that may get a bit confusing keeping track of all those names. Some of these things like places or organizations really should have a name if you want it to seem realistic, whereas something like a car or gun could just be an interesting character quirk. 

How do you come up with names for places or groups? Do you have names for any random objects?

Nicknames

**My theme for this year's A to Z Challenge is THE NAME GAME. Everything you'd want to know about naming characters.**

Pretty much everyone has had a nickname at some point in their lives, whether it was something your friends called you in high school, or just your significant other calling you “honey.” There are so many different ways to get a nickname, whether you love it, hate it, or just put up with it. Choosing nicknames for your fictional characters can make a huge impact on your readers. You can pick something that is significant to the character and shows who he is and how he lives his life.

A nickname can hold a lot more meaning than a first name. It’s most likely chosen or created by someone close to the person or even the person himself. It can be reflective of his personality, or something that he has done or has happened to him. A character’s actual name would be chosen by his parents before he’s even born. A nickname, however, is usually something that holds meaning to who he actually is as a person. It can come from his physical characteristics (like hair color or body type), his occupation, or where he comes from. Really, the possibilities for nicknames are endless.

There are plenty of ways to use nicknames within your story. Your character could already have it before the story begins, or something could happen during the story that causes its creation. Maybe something embarrassing happens that creates a nickname that continues to haunt him. Nicknames could be good or bad. A person’s friends might give him a nicer nickname, whereas people who aren’t that close to him could call him something derogatory. A nickname can be a great source of emotion for your character. If he hates it and has to deal with it on a daily basis, then that could just be another thing he has to work through during the course of the story. 

When you choose a nickname for your character, think about why he needs it, who gave it to him, and how he responds to it. All of these things will factor in to how significant the nickname turns out to be in your story.

Terms of endearment are another form of nicknames you can use. If you have a couple in your story, they most likely won’t refer to each other by their first names all of the time. They’d be more likely to use something like “baby,” “honey,” or “sweetie.” These terms are just something that will make the characters feel more realistic, because using them is something that we all tend to do. It’s also just something that hopefully the reader will find adorable when they picture these characters interacting.

WHAT I’VE DONE: Surprisingly, I haven’t thrown in too many nicknames into my fiction, but a few terms of endearment do pop up now and then. Tom repeatedly calls Jordan “gorgeous” in UL. In real life, my fiancé and I call each other “sweetie” and he calls me “princess,” as well.

Have you ever given one of your characters a nickname? What do you call your significant other?