Hugo & Nebula Awards: Best Novels discussion

I've had to keep this a secret as I had to wait till my wife gave me the OKAY to post this. I finally got the OKAY! My wife and I are pregnant with our first child! We've been trying for about 6 years and when we finally gave up hope...boom...it happened.

I need some help from our amazing group! I really want to have a Sci-Fi/Fantasy name for my kid (we won't know if it is a boy or girl until 9/1). I've already pitched a few to my wife and, just like a disk at the gun range, they were shot down. Google has disappointed me and I'm running out of ideas.

I've pitched Kvothe from The Name of the Wind, Dresden from the Dresden files, even Laytham from Nightwise. No go on any of them. I'm looking for a name that isn't overly common (so no Luke or Leia) but not like crazy out there either (Like Zef'no or Y'sek). It has to pass the wife test.

So if you have a name that you think could work, please let me know! Boy, girl, or unisex...I'm taking all suggestions. And of course, if my wife lets me use one then I will for sure let the group know! Thank you ahead of time, because I already know you guys are going to be amazing!

My daughter is named after Jessica, the mother of Paul Atredies (sp?) in Dune. Of course, it is way overused, but maybe not so much anymore

And congrats!

The feeling computer on Harry Martinsons "Aniara" is called "Mima". I've always loved that name (didn't give it to my kids, though...)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aniara

And yes, congratulations!

Bryan wrote: "I've had to keep this a secret as I had to wait till my wife gave me the OKAY to post this. I finally got the OKAY! My wife and I are pregnant with our first child! We've been trying for about 6 ye..."
Congratulations! My niece and her husband were in the same situation, and I think it makes that baby even more special. May I suggest, instead of character names, how about author's names? Each of you pick one or two of your favorite authors, male and female, and then you two can wheel and deal from there. A side benefit of that is, as the child grows older, you can instill your passion and knowledge of that author into her/him, and she/he will become another reader in the family, and you will have that to share forever.
As far as character names, my favorite female character is Signy Mallory from C.J. Cherryh's Company Wars series, and my favorite male character is Heinlein's Lazarus Long.
Good luck!

Bryan, accept my most sincere congratulations and only the best wishes.

As for the names, "wife test" is gonna be a tough one to beat, we'll just have to trick the system! Just Kate's did, first thing my mind did was go to Dune, but I guess Paul is just too regular and Muad'dib is an overkill. How about these names for boys:

Leto - no explanation needed.

Sam (Mahasamatman) - now before you and your wife have a fit, let me explain by providing a quote.
"His followers called him Mahasamatman and said he was a god. He preferred to drop the Maha- and the -atman, however, and called himself Sam. He never claimed to be a god. But then, he never claimed not to be a god. Circumstances being what they were, neither admission could be of any benefit. Silence, though, could."
One of my most beloved characters from one of my favorite books.

Part 2 of the post, featuring girl names coming soon.

Thank you, everyone, for your congratulations and well wishes! It is very exciting for us and, as Jeff said, it is very special to us.

So many names already! I'll have to see what my wife is good with.

I'm looking forward to hearing more ideas and I'll keep you guys in the loop.

Also, Jeff, I really like the idea of picking an author name. I'll have to keep that one in mind.

This is a topic I have thought a lot about. Be aware that it's not just the wife test, you have to make sure it sounds good and that there's nothing about it that could be embarrassing to a kid later on, such as initials spelling something out.

An alliterative name rolls off the tongue and carries much force. My name, Allan Phillips, has two double l's, a rolling, easy sound. Phillips, being a common name, begs a more unique first name. My wife named our first daughter Kelly, choosing it over Sage (see below). I named our second daughter Gillian, ostensibly after the X-Files actress, but mainly because it met my criteria.

Tradition may be another consideration. I had done a lot of genealogy work prior to my children being born. My own name, Allan, goes back several generations, so clearly had to be part of my only son's name. Of course, it means "minstrel" and has roots in medieval times, such as Allan a'Dale of Sherwood Forest. But you can find interesting first names or last names you can use as first names, and some might turn out to be sci-if or book characters as well. I liked Obadiah because he could have been Obi, but Wifey didn't go for it. Sage was a last name that we had as an option. Also, look up the meaning of the name, it may have some significance for you, and may provide with the link you desire.

Decide on a few choices, then meet your baby and he/she will tell you what their name should be. You may find that the one chosen name doesn't suit the child, and you'll be at a loss. Think it through carefully and be prepared.

First of all, congrats!
Secondly, I think the name should be too unique and hard to pronounce, so
Rumata from Hard to Be a God

From Earthsea: Ged (m), Tenar (f)

We found out yesterday that we are having a boy! We are super excited.

Yay!!!

Bryan wrote: "We found out yesterday that we are having a boy! We are super excited."

Congrats!

Bryan wrote: "We found out yesterday that we are having a boy! We are super excited."

Congratulations, though I do pity Mrs.Bryan.. As if taking care of one lad wasn't enough!

Congrats! How's the naming coming?

I guess my suggestion of Jessica for the name is out, then :-) You could use Jesse and pretend it was named after her

Hi Bryan - how about Kelsier? (Mistborn trilogy)

Thank you everyone!

lol, Art, that's funny and truer than you could possibly imagine! However, she actually wanted a boy!

Victor - Kelsier? I like it...I'll see if it passes the Wife Test. Mistborn Trilogy was amazing though!

Kate - :( sadly Jesse was already turned down!

So far, we have agreed on Grayson, Keegan, Emmett, and Graham. I personally really like Emmett, as I am a huge Back to the Future fan! I've already told my wife our son's nickname would be Doc.

Funny thing about names...you need to look at the combos and try them out in different settings. My wife, being the smarter one, had us use the name combos in a scolding tone and we quickly found that "Emmett Grayson" sounded a lot like "Immigration." So we flipped it to "Grayson Emmett", but that sounds like "Grey Cement."

Right now, we haven't set anything in stone, but I'm liking Emmett Gray or Keegan Gray.

Interesting. You can buy him a DeLorean for his 16th birthday . . .