Post by Ronnie on Mar 6, 2011 15:00:25 GMT -5
Naming Characters
by Amayasama (Mod-inator) & Ronnie (Admin & Tutor)
^^ Time to discuss character names! A lot of people skip over this important detail and it actually is a back-breaking work if you put it off long enough in your story. Time to list a few things you shouldn't be doing when naming your character:
1. Do not choose names you enjoy from popular books, shows, or anime. This is unacceptable because for example, you choose a character that's a vampire and name him Edward...obviously everyone has put a face to that name. You don't want to build off that type of competition, you're walking into dangerous waters there.
2. Don't make all your characters have similar names. Even if there are only a few names it will cause confusion to your readers. You have to remember that people don't know your characters as much as you do, so you want to make the names different enough that they remember which character is which. For example, don't choose names like Will and Bill for brothers...people will never remember which is which.
3. Keep your character to his/her culture - a mixture of ethnicity and environment and personal tastes of the parents.
A)Ethnicity - what is your character? Russian? Japanese? Alien? Fantasy Creature?
B)What environment does he/she live in? What country/world/universe/whatever.
C)Parent's taste - Put yourself in the parent's shoes. Were the parents eccentric? Conservative? How they stuck in the olden days?Or are they always trying to keep up with modern times? Do they keep to their own ethnicity/culture or do they like to be different..etc..etc..
4. Baby name sites are your friend. This can help you with rule 3. Baby name sites list where the name originates from. What cultures use it. The meaning of the name (maybe the "parents" want a specific meaning)..etc..etc...Wonderful Wonderful sites. If the sites are needed, simply ask Ronnie or me and we will be happy to post some up here.
5. Have a fantasy/Alien character? Be creative. Maybe take a normal name and change the spelling and pronunciation. Take random syllables and pair them together..does it sound fantastic or alien enough? You decide. There ARE also sites to help you with fantasy names (maybe Alien names as well?). Maybe change the spelling and pronunciation of those as well in order to get a nice original name. Don't be afriad of making something up entirely. But try not to come up with English "Fantasy" name such as Shadow Fate of the Dark clan or something cliche like that.
6. This goes with #5, when making up a name, don't make it too complicated. If you want people to remember your characters don't make up the longest, most difficult name you can find. You want it unique, but not impossible to remember. If even you can't say it in your mind, it's too difficult for others.
7. Don't pick names that are cliche. Say your character is half cat or a shifter, don't name him/her Neko...it isn't needed and I'm sure there are other names that are more appealing then a foreign word for your character.
8.???
Any Tutor can immediately post to add anything the feel is necessary to this guide. A non-Tutor can PM me (Ronnie) and I'll decide whether to add it or not
by Amayasama (Mod-inator) & Ronnie (Admin & Tutor)
^^ Time to discuss character names! A lot of people skip over this important detail and it actually is a back-breaking work if you put it off long enough in your story. Time to list a few things you shouldn't be doing when naming your character:
1. Do not choose names you enjoy from popular books, shows, or anime. This is unacceptable because for example, you choose a character that's a vampire and name him Edward...obviously everyone has put a face to that name. You don't want to build off that type of competition, you're walking into dangerous waters there.
2. Don't make all your characters have similar names. Even if there are only a few names it will cause confusion to your readers. You have to remember that people don't know your characters as much as you do, so you want to make the names different enough that they remember which character is which. For example, don't choose names like Will and Bill for brothers...people will never remember which is which.
3. Keep your character to his/her culture - a mixture of ethnicity and environment and personal tastes of the parents.
A)Ethnicity - what is your character? Russian? Japanese? Alien? Fantasy Creature?
B)What environment does he/she live in? What country/world/universe/whatever.
C)Parent's taste - Put yourself in the parent's shoes. Were the parents eccentric? Conservative? How they stuck in the olden days?Or are they always trying to keep up with modern times? Do they keep to their own ethnicity/culture or do they like to be different..etc..etc..
4. Baby name sites are your friend. This can help you with rule 3. Baby name sites list where the name originates from. What cultures use it. The meaning of the name (maybe the "parents" want a specific meaning)..etc..etc...Wonderful Wonderful sites. If the sites are needed, simply ask Ronnie or me and we will be happy to post some up here.
5. Have a fantasy/Alien character? Be creative. Maybe take a normal name and change the spelling and pronunciation. Take random syllables and pair them together..does it sound fantastic or alien enough? You decide. There ARE also sites to help you with fantasy names (maybe Alien names as well?). Maybe change the spelling and pronunciation of those as well in order to get a nice original name. Don't be afriad of making something up entirely. But try not to come up with English "Fantasy" name such as Shadow Fate of the Dark clan or something cliche like that.
6. This goes with #5, when making up a name, don't make it too complicated. If you want people to remember your characters don't make up the longest, most difficult name you can find. You want it unique, but not impossible to remember. If even you can't say it in your mind, it's too difficult for others.
7. Don't pick names that are cliche. Say your character is half cat or a shifter, don't name him/her Neko...it isn't needed and I'm sure there are other names that are more appealing then a foreign word for your character.
8.???
Any Tutor can immediately post to add anything the feel is necessary to this guide. A non-Tutor can PM me (Ronnie) and I'll decide whether to add it or not