Connecting Readers and Writers discussion

Here's something for the writers in this group - What are some strange names you gave your characters and why did you decide on them?

In my first "series" I wrote when I was a kid, the character based on myself had the last name of Sinister, but I didn't really know the meaning.lol Once I found out, I changed it to Larkin.

I usually do names that I like, nothing too weird. I do have to say though, that I like some of the names Spike Lee comes up with.

In order to remain true to the story line and setting of my novel, "Levels": A post-apocalyptic novel in which a small population is kept fairly constant and inhabitants have no surname or title, I had to be careful not to repeat a name.

While writing the initial draft, I kept a book nearby that provided expecting parents with potential names for their yet unborn male or female child.

With very few exceptions, that book supplied the names of the characters.

Yeah, I had a baby name book too. It helps a lot.

I named a character “Oster” because I liked the sound of the word. I’m sure I picked it up from the appliance company. “Dwelve” was a random character name that popped into my head. My mind tends to combine words in weird ways, and this was a combination of dwell and twelve. “Semral” was another that came to me when I needed a strong male name. It fit the pattern of similar names in my book and to me had a distinctive “good guy” masculine quality. Then there are Borsar, Lillatta, Nanki, Barkor, Skak, Panka, Mim, Sester, Pilkin, Porsalla, Smerkas. I don’t know where these came from; they simply come to me as I write, sometimes just as I am about to name the character for the first time in the story.

I named my protagonist in Anywhere But HereJana, because I wanted something close to ordinary, but just a little bit off. I got the name from The Wonder Twins on The Justice League.

I love your origin story for Jana! If I ever do a vampire series I'm naming the main character Joss after Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the vampire slayer

I have a character named Auvia Bolito. Why? It just rolled off the tongue nicely.

Usually I watch credits of a movie and find names that way, or Google 'baby names'. I haven't a clue where Auvia stemmed from though

Auvia is a unique name! What genre?

like a... psychological fantasy (if that exist!)

And thanks!

If psychological fantasy isn't a genre - make it one!

Not to get off-topic but what do you consider "psychological fantasy"? Such as how would you define the criteria? That way if I ever decide to write a book in that vein I'll know what I'm striving for lol

Well ultimately I couldn't decide whether or not I wanted the story to be truer one way or the other (because their is a thin line). So I've decided to let readers decide if the character was going through psychological issues or if the events were actually happening to him.

Criteria??? hmmm... Well, I can only see it working if the MC is dealing with some type of psychological turmoil that makes the fantasy elements questionable. At least, that's how mine has worked itself out to be!

*questionable, yet a possibility

Gotcha! I'm all about psychology in writing. Okay, I'll stop hijacking my own thread ^^

Please continue sharing your unique character names and what inspired them.

I'm currently working on a novel where the main character is "the Distressing Damsel". Other characters are named things along the lines of "the Widowed Bachelorette" or "the Cankerous Undertaker" so nobody in the book has names, more titles.

My reason for that is because it's supposed to be along the lines of a fractured fairytale where people have parts, not names, and establish identities through those, dress in-suit and/or carry weapons that compliment their part. For instance, the Plumber might have a pipe. That sort of thing.

When I first began my paranormal romance Spiritus, I needed a name for the ghost that comes back to haunt the reincarnation of the wife that killed him. Since he lived during the American Civil War era, I needed something that fit that time.

I always loved the name Alastor and picked it without doing much research. The book was in its final edits when I found out that the name Alastor means vengeful spirit. How perfect is that?

I had a story where something similar happened. I picked the name "Bronwyn" for a character because it sounded pretty and uncommon - something that suited an epic fantasy. it turned out it yhe name meant "fair raven" which suited other themes in it.

Funny how accidental inspiration crops up!

Personally "unique" names, unless for a specific reason, turn me off. Especially with common names with weird spellings. It can be to the point where it takes me entirely out of the story.

When it comes to my stories, I don't really select the names. My characters typically tell me what their name is immediately. I only research last names. For me, I thoroughly enjoy good, old fashioned names. If my character says her name is Michelle, then it's Michelle. :)

Hm. I gave code names to some of the characters in the story I'm writing in English. Then promptly had one of them lampshade the whole thing by calling on the Cheesy Patrol, because such names are indeed cheesy.

In general, I don't think I give them really strange names. However, for me, it depends on what you deem as "strange". I named a character "Jórunn Andsvarrsdottir", which would be awful in some contemporary story set it France, but not at all in her setting of origin; therefore I don't consider it weird.

Speaking of weird spellings... Well, first I'm going to invoke the Pot Calling The Kettle Black clause on that one, considering my chosen pen name. When writing, though, I try not to use it--if my character's named Annabelle, I'm not going to spell it "Anha'bayle" or whatever just so that it looks "unique".

I’ve got a few characters who have weird names. My turn!

Deus Shadowheart. What better name for a charismatic, double axe-wielding barbarian than that? The Deus part comes from an old Ronin Warriors villain named Dais. I didn’t realize at the time that by calling my character Deus, I was basically comparing him to god since that’s what it means in Latin. His last name is Shadowheart, because it just sounds cool on a barbarian. End of story.

Ryu Bashir. Believe it or not, this used to be my penname despite not being Japanese or Arab. That’s right, folks. I was at one point a white American named Ryu Bashir. I got the Ryu part from the Street Fighter II character of the same name and I got the Bashir part from a former TNA wrestler named Sheik Abdul Bashir. Instead of being a strange penname, Ryu Bashir is the main villain in a short story I wrote called Chainblazer, about corporate slavery in a cyberpunk backdrop. Chainblazer can be found in my Dragon Machinegun e-book along with several other fantasy and sci-fi short stories.

Rabbit Tricks. Can you guess which cereal mascot this ninja bunny was named after? Come on, anybody? He ended up being part of a self-titled short story in which he took down a corrupt casino run by a wealthy scam artist. The short story doesn’t have a home except on another Good Reads group and on my Deviant Art page. I plan on including this story in one of my self-publications someday.

Lokus Leadgoth. Yet another character from a short story that doesn’t have a for-profit home. Lokus is a severed demon clown head that sings for a heavy metal band called Death Blade. He can do both death growls and clean vocals. He can also spit acid at any monsters that try to break up his concerts. What more could you want in a front man?

If I think of any others (and I’ve got plenty), I’ll be sure to post them.

My unpublished urban vampire fantasy has a strange name that just popped into my head one day.
Mertuk, pronounced Mertook.
No idea where it came from but it works for this strange and evil creature.
Another name that I thought unusual at the time was Seraphine, the main character of my published short story THE LIFE SHE DIDN'T TAKE. Of course now I seem to see that name everywhere in fantasy literature with various spellings.

Mertuk sounds like a cool name for a bad guy. Might work for an underwater creature as well as a vampire. Good one! :)

Thanks Garrison. It definitely got points in my book for originality, especially since I tend to use common, well known names for characters.

Apathy seems to have overtaken this thread. It needs a swift kick. Therefore, I have assembled another list of uncommon character names from my books. I don’t know their origin; they simply appear as I write. They include Ginda, Rasel, Senvar, Bolkan, Neela, Trason, Balek, Pelaf, Harastan, Jasser, Golank, and Annalen. Come on, people. I know you are not all naming your characters Fred and Ethel (well, most likely none of you are). Let’s go. Let’s see some interesting names.

Michael, those names you listed off sound like something you'd use in a fantasy or sci-fi novel. If I'm right about that, then I'll go to the changing room and get dressed in my Captain Obvious superhero outfit. Hehe!

Garrison wrote: "Michael, those names you listed off sound like something you'd use in a fantasy or sci-fi novel. If I'm right about that, then I'll go to the changing room and get dressed in my Captain Obvious sup..."

I label my novels adventure/fantasy, so there is indeed a fantasy element, with that being more in the vein of Edgar Rice Burroughs than say a J. R. R. Tolkien. Your Captain Obvious outfit awaits.

Red spandex and a yellow cape: the ultimate Captain Obvious outfit.

For those of you who enjoy using weird ass names for their characters, here's something you can try sometime (either just for kicks or realistically). Choose a given name from one ethnicity and a surname from another ethnicity. Mixing nationalities can either produce silly results or moments of pure genius. I don't know which side of the spectrum this name fits, but I wrote a short story a few weeks ago in which the main character was a Swedish exchange student named Mario Gustafson. The last name conforms to Swedish nomenclature, the first name does not. Then again, I once saw an art film in which there was a German character named Mario, so I could be on to something.

One of mine was Pinx, and probably my favorite minor character. I really enjoyed imagining far-future languages, names, e.t.c. so when writing a book set 11,000 years in the future, I had pretty much full rein. Pinx, Aserseq, Sewer...just a few of the very fun names I got to come up with.

I like 'Sewer'. I used 'Rancid' in my next soon to be released sci-fi novel. As you point out it totally helps create that sense of another world. In Rancid's case, it's also a 'throw-away.' If I don't use Rancid again, I haven't lost a name that could apply more broadly to other characters.

Wow! There are some really weird and wonderful names in this thread! I have a question for you all (Authors). If you are traditionally published, do you find that the publisher wants to change or modify the names you have given your characters? How do you feel about this? Is that another advantage of being an indie author that you can do what the hell you like with your names?

The protagonist in my first book is "Adem Adamend." He has a buddy named "Lance Lovecraft." Further along in the series, they meet a guy whose legal name is "Finnegan S. Wake."

Of course, the series takes place in the future where basically everything runs on trends, including baby names. The horror of the California color name trend becomes apparent in a later book.

Finnegan S Wake? Really? Although to be fair, I have a character 'Chrys (sic) Marlowe.'

Also, there's a CA color name trend? Really? I mean for people? My sister gave her doggie a color name, but that sort of works.

E.G. wrote: "Finnegan S Wake? Really? Although to be fair, I have a character 'Chrys (sic) Marlowe.'

Also, there's a CA color name trend? Really? I mean for people? My sister gave her doggie a color name..."

Yeah. The future in my series has an identity crisis going on. They do all sorts of weird things like that.

Therin wrote: "E.G. wrote: "Finnegan S Wake? Really? Although to be fair, I have a character 'Chrys (sic) Marlowe.'

Also, there's a CA color name trend? Really? I mean for people? My sister gave her doggie..."

So, if I may guess -- lots of therapy required in this Brave New World?

E.G. wrote: "So, if I may guess -- lots of therapy required in this Brave New World?"

Eh, not so much anymore. Like, 200 years before my story? Oh, yeah. Just coming out of an apocalypse. By the time the series starts, they're actually beginning to settle down.

Here’s something I’ve never understood and I hope someone can explain it to me. Why is it considered bad form to have a main character with a plural last name? I have characters named Wes Edwards, Rosie Rogers, AJ Rollins, god knows what else. Two of these characters are the main protagonists of their respective stories (Edwards and Rollins) and the other is a supporting character (Rogers). Please tell me I’m not the only one scratching my head about why plural last names are taboo.

News to me.

Although I have learned that punctuating a name that ends in 's' is a bit of thing. One of my major characters is 'Lucius'. Possessive form is Lucius' - no second 's'. Makes proof reading a real bear.

Would be the same for Rollins. What if there are multiple Rollins who all own something together? - Rollinses' - ?

That'll make for some awkward moments in the story. However, I still think that having a plural last name isn't necessarily a bad thing. There are ways to work around the awkward moments when editing. There's always a solution.

My best cross nationality name was a weaver friend of mine named Mitsako Gjertson. She is Japanese married to a Finnish man. Best real name in general; Valerie Lavender.

Courtney wrote: "Here's something for the writers in this group - What are some strange names you gave your characters and why did you decide on them?"

In my WIP, I have a character who is the Chief Medical Officer at the Bangor State Hospital. I wanted a real old New England name for this guy so I picked my late uncle's first name, Horace, and the last name Todd. Of course, Horace is called 'Hod' by his friends (like my uncle) - so I ended up with Hod Todd! When I realized what I had done, I burst out laughing and get a good chuckle every time I think about it.

In one story I named characters after quirks of their appearance because their real names are not known to the 1st person narrator. So a kid with a big knot in his neck is called Bamboo, there's a kid called Muscles, and a kid called Twitch Eye. I had fun with that.

I named a character "Og". He was a big guy and a henchman, and Og just sounded like a barbaric caveman type name that I wanted.

I have a lot of favorite male names I use for my characters quite often, among those being Marcus, Mitch, Bryan, and Evan. One of my all time favorites, however, will always be the Danish male name Leif. I like that name because it’s so easy to make punch lines out of it (only if it’s pronounced “life” instead of “leaf” or “layf”). For example…

Q: What do you call someone who rescues Vikings?
A: Leif saver.

Q: What do you call two gay Vikings?
A: Leif partners.

Q: What do you tell a Viking who complains about unfairness?
A: Leif’s not fair!

The possibilities are as endless as your imagination.

There are a lot of great names on this list. Right now I'm listening to "Snow Crash" and I love that the character's name is Hiro Protagonist! My book "Space Tripping with the Shredded Orphans", I got the band name from a movie. In a dyslexic moment I misread "Shredder Orpheus". My main character is Felix, but he goes by "Lix". Another band member is Sterchitto Brany Boning, which I made up of a mashup of real musician's names. Great discussion. Thanks!

"If names be not correct, language is not in accordance with the truth of things." ~ Confucious

Something to think about. I dislike random sounding names, ones that you can feel the author sitting there thinking what a cool different name would be. But it's a real balancing act for the author to get it right. Names should fit the cultures in which they exist, or should echo the tone of the writing.

I'm on the fence, for example, about Neal Stephenson's character Hiro Protagonist. Sorry, Sonya, it seemed too forced to me, and too tongue-in-cheek when the tone of the rest of that book was not really that flippant. It would have worked better in a book like Red Shirts by John Scalzi where the entire book's premise was self-referential. However...I loved Snow Crash enough to forgive Stephenson ;)

As for my own work, when I started my first novel (unpublished and I'm not sure it will ever be) Until The Isban Moon (1995) I was just picking names that just popped into my head. Names like Gregor and (the protagonist) Gallahd.

Later, though, as I developed that world's two main warring cultures, I chose to use sanskrit as the inspiration for a lot of names, and all of one factions' space ships. Why? Because it was largely a book about myth and things I'd been learning from Joseph Campbell.

So I had names like:
Ädi - meaning first or primal
Ambika - mother
Anasrad - a backward spelling of Dars'ana meaning 'vision of God'
Atiy-Arup - another backward spelling for 'fulfiller' from one of the names of Lord Vishnu
Bakti - devotion
Malika - flower (named our first cat Malika, too!)
Hakari - the killing machines of one of the human factions. The name is a composite of the Sanskrit Häkinï, the cutting goddess, and Kämäri, enemy of desire and one of the names of Shiva. The name literally means 'cutting enemy.' Which I felt was rather appropriate for a 2 meter tall mantis-like robot that can qarter a person in less than two seconds.

Then I did some other tricks like combining Latin and Sanskrit. For example Gelidmati, a Hakari general whose from 'gelidus', Latin root of the word 'cold' and 'mati' meaning 'thought.' So the name means 'cold of thought.'

--pt2 (and BTW, hello everyone, that was my first post in this group)

Back to my protagonist in Isban Moon...my wife upon reading my first draft told me that Gallahd was too close to Galahad, which I had totally failed to recognize. So I changed it to Galihd. I had been pronouncing that Gal-id but one of my other early readers asked me how to pronounce it and said they'd been pronouncing it Gah-leed. I liked that better, so that's the official pronounciation.

Also, I researched Sir Galahad and found that (metaphorically) there was really a connection between that character and Galihd...shouldn't bog the thread down with that, though.

OK, first book aside, I've changed tactics a lot since then. I've decided that for most of my work I should use fairly common sounding names (Is Captain Alan Willsham Ortmeyer common sounding? he's just called Alan most of the time, so I count it as such) for ease of use by the reader...and possibly to lull them into a false sense of familiarity. Let the story freak them out, not the names.

But, again, that's situational. I've recently published a novella set in a post-human setting. People can pretty much change their bodies into whatever they like, augment or merge them with machines...even transfer their minds into computers.

In that work I have several characters who are runaways from a C-Clan (clones derrived from one individual and whose members are normally bound to the will of that individual, or "bio-dad"). Their names are:

Y'Goth
Y'Gorne
Y'Gari
Y'Gin

The 'Y' is pronounced as a long 'e' (which is pointed out in the story fairly early on) and the rest of their first names all start with the same letter because they are from the same cloned generation. The next generation after them would be named Y'H@@@@ (Y'Hoth, Y'Hal, Y'Hathor, etc.). So there's a system to their naming.

The trick is to make the characters/names different enough for the reader to not get confused...not sure I managed to do that.

In the distant past, long before the advent of the dinosaur, this thread appeared, offering authors a chance to inform others why and how they chose unusual names to identify their characters. Ah, those were unparalleled days, an age when this vibrant thread thrived and enjoyed its peak. Those days did not last, however, and when the posts dwindled and finally stopped, the thread went into hibernation, perhaps sensing an oncoming eternal winter of cold indifference. Despite vehement protests against disturbing the natural order of things, I dare to revive this quiescent thread. I dare to enter its den and awaken it. Of course, I fully expect the revival to be short-lived. I expect within days to witness this thread’s breathing grow measured and its weary eyelids close once more as it returns to its chosen state, slumber. Meanwhile, I will take the opportunity to bring a brief spark to its marginalized existence by adding content to its long-neglected ledger. I will list some unusual character names from my latest book (still writing it) without any explanation how or why they came into existence. I’ll have to hurry, as this thread is already getting drowsy. My character names are Trayvan, Corvas, Hayda, Mund, Boncral, Sebrin, Craff, Occon, Kolal, Hergul, Pargus, Alaka, Kassar, Relsan, and my rare character with two names, Rishar Cantle.

Now, return to restful sleep, good thread, and may you always have pleasant dreams.

Jamie wrote: "Michael wrote: "In the distant past, long before the advent of the dinosaur, this thread appeared, offering authors a chance to inform others why and how they chose unusual names to identify their ..."

I don’t find it too difficult. My word processing tools help me keep track of individual characters so I can easily access each appearance or mention in my manuscript. This prevents any confusion over what a character did, said, or with whom they interacted and when, and allows me to maintain consistency in character details such as physical appearance, mannerisms, etc. In addition, some of these characters play miniscule roles, mentioned in passing and never seen or spoken of again.

Seena, Sinoueh, Bitaah, Anpu, Kedja, Karan, Mirr-Ha,
Hetep-skhem-wy.............

Because my fantasy is set in ancient Egypt <3 I researched some of the names of that time period there and these are the ones I like. They came alive for me :)