By Erin
Woodsmall
What
makes a name a good one? Luckily for us the answer to this question varies or
else life would get confusing as we called one another by the same small set of
names! Tastes in names change each decade, something we can see on the Social Security website.
New
parents pour over lists of names before settling on one for their child. So
what makes a good name for your literary “children”—also known as your
characters?
One of
the obvious answers is: names need to match the era, culture, or setting. In
Amish fiction, giving a man the name “Maverick” wouldn’t work unless it’s a
nickname with a believable history behind it. For The Christmas Remedy we consulted a blue book of names and
addresses that Cindy received from an Amish friend in Pennsylvania who runs a
country store. Cindy has other Amish resources and has put the names in a Word
document to pull from as needed. She also compiled a list of all names she’s
ever used in a book—something very useful to refer back to after
twenty-something books written!
Another
thing to consider is the name’s meaning and connotation. A character named Hope
probably wouldn’t make a good villain. In The Christmas Remedy, we wanted our main character to have a Christmas-themed
name—after all, she was born on the Amish holiday of Second Christmas. So her
parents decided to go against Amish tradition, and they named her Holly Noelle.
Her siblings, also born around Christmastime, are Iva “Ivy” Zook and Ezra “Red”
Zook. Since the Amish often stick to a short list of traditional names, they
tend to use nicknames like Ivy and Red.
Have you
ever met a family who names all their kids in a theme of the same first letter?
This can be cute in real life, but it’s best avoided when writing fiction. On
television or the big screen, they avoid having characters with the same hair color
or hairstyle or skin color or body build. The visual differences are necessary
to keep from confusing viewers. In a book, the name is instantly defining on
page, and if two or more characters have the same letter sounds at the
beginning, it’s problematic for readers.
When
naming all of my children, it was important to me that I found names that had
nickname potential. Some parents feel the opposite and want to find names that
can’t be shortened or changed. Not every character has to have a nickname, like
Matthew to Matt or Abigail to Abi, but it can be a cute thing in romance. I
have a friend named Jeffrey who is often called “Jeff,” but in his mind he’s
Jeffrey. My two year old, Silas, refers to himself exclusively as “Si Guy.”
Who are
your characters to each other? To themselves? Names help connect a reader to
the characters, so if after writing on the story for a while you realize something
about the name of your character isn’t working for the story, don’t be afraid
to embrace a name change.
One of
my favorite names from a series I’ve read is Claire. It works for the
characters and readers on many levels. It makes me think of someone having
clarity, and she does, even when overwhelmed with total confusion.
What is
the name of a favorite character from a book you’ve read?
____________________________________________________________________
Erin
Woodsmall is a writer, musician, wife, and mom of the three.
She has edited, brainstormed, and researched books with Cindy for almost a
decade. She and Cindy have recently become co-authors and have written three
books. Cindy Woodsmall is the New
York Times and CBA best-selling author of twenty-two works of fiction. She’s best known for her Amish
fiction. Her connection with the Amish community has been widely featured in
national media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal and ABC Nightline. Cindy has won numerous awards and has been a
finalist for the prestigious Christy, Rita, and Carol Awards. Cindy and her
husband reside near the foothills of the North Georgia Mountains.
