read, write, repeat.

It’s hard, right? Hard as hell. At least, it is for me, and I can never quite figure out why. As a child, I kept endless lists of names that I liked, names I was one day going to bestow upon my future 6 children (note: I no longer aspire to have 6 children); but, when it comes to naming characters, I spend HOURS trying to craft the perfect name. And, what’s even worse, is that I often find I can’t write about someone until they have a name. After all, what’s a person without a name? Just another warm body. The name, folks, is key. 

So, although I’m a frequent tizzy over what to name my characters, I have a few tips and tricks up my sleeve that I thought I’d share with you.

Consider the character’s background. 

Think about where the character is from, and what sort of background his/her parents have. This includes different ethnic backgrounds as well as socioeconomics. Someone who is from France is probably going to have a French name. Things get a little more complicated when dealing with “white” “non-ethnic” Americans/Canadians/Australians/whathaveyou. Someone who is American (I’m just using this as a default, here, no need to send me angry emails - I am Canadian!), but not of a specific cultural background/a strong cultural background (e.g. Hispanic, Italian, Russian etc) won’t necessarily have a specific type of name based upon their heritage. Here, especially is where you’ll want to consider the socioeconomic background of the characters. Are X’s parents well-read? Did they attend university? Those sorts of things. For instance, designating the character’s parents as “wealthy” doesn’t help you name them. What sort of wealthy are they? If you’re writing about refined wealth, then, a hint: they’re not naming their daughter Kaylee. Don’t even. Once you’ve figured out the background of the character, maybe search out names that would be appropriate. For instance, with the example we were discussing above, maybe google people who might serve as a real-life inspiration. Remember that your name is a usually a reflection of what your parents wanted for you; a fictional character is no different.

Location, Location, Location

Well, sort of. Location in time. Look up the most popular birth names in the 3-5 years surround the birth of your character. I’m not saying you should necessarily name your character Elizabeth, just because she was born in 1953. I’m just saying it’s an option. Do you want them to have a popular name, or do you want them to have a name that was more unusual at the time? Pick the sort of name their parents would have given them, but make sure it fits with the time. If he was born in 1940, there’s no way the kid is named Aiden. Similarly, Hazel is a strange choice for a girl born in 2000 - not out of the question, but if you choose to name a character a name that is obviously old-fashioned, you should explain it. There should be a reason, it should be a little bit of their character. 

Don’t play favourites

Don’t name your characters names you hope to name your children. And don’t name characters after your children. Nu-uh. Save the names for your future kids. If you don’t have girls/boys/children, then go ahead and use the names. For now, save them. And for heaven’s sake, don’t give them both the same name. 

Issues I Face

• If I know someone who I don’t like, I have a hard time disassociating the name with the person.
• If it’s an extremely popular name, I don’t want to name the character that, because they feel too much like a caricature
• If it’s the name of someone I’m very close to, I can’t name a character after them

Names are obviously a tricky issue. I don’t really have solutions, as I spend hours lamenting over what characters should be called. But maybe this will help you out? Who knows, really?