What's in a Name

Hmmm, okay I'm sitting here trying to come up with another post as the one I had planned got accidently deleted. So my first reaction was to blog on setbacks because let's face it, writers will face many setbacks in their career, and you just have to roll with the punches as they say.

But - I thought that was a bit pessimistic and I need something fun to blog about. That said, I'm going to talk a bit about selecting names for characters. I've been asked often if I choose the characters first or the plot. Well, I don't plot, but I do get an inkling of an idea first before choosing characters. After I have an idea of what kind of character I want, I select a name. Not just any name. I go through a long process of finding the perfect name to fit a particular character profile.

What comes first, the chicken or the egg? "Eggsactly." The name and character profile go hand in hand. I pick a "working name" then draft a character sheet for each one. With this, I rely heavily on astrology. Picking a sun sign allows me to start with a basic list of characteristics. Next, I plug the name into a numerology site. I LOVE this site as it gives me a description of my characters inner self. If the name doesn't fit, I tweak it until it does. The site I use is Sun Angel. For historicals, I also check the ethniticity of the name and the origin. A good site for that is Behind the Name.

Last night, I performed this ritual on characters for a new project. Two of the characters had names that perfectly fit the personality I wanted them to have. Tucker Bolen and Carione Barock. But I had to change my original last name for Rayne to Rayne Novak. He's a secondary character but a very important secondary character.