Tips on Naming the Characters in Your Novels and Contest Reminder

[ladyseishou]

After reading through lists of baby names and checking out the name generators at the Seventh Sanctum, Nano Writers might consider the following advice offered by literary agent Even Marshall, author of The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing when putting together a list of names for their novel's characters:

• Try (at least with your major characters) to have all first and last names start with a different letter. You can keep a simple alphabetical list.
  
• Vary the sound and length of characters' first and last names.
  
• Avoid using all Anglo names.
  
• Avoid using names that end alike or similarly.
  
• Try to avoid using names that end in s, which make for awkward possessives.
  
• Avoid overly long names, especially for major characters. The stars of my two mystery series are Jane and Anna.
  

Also a reminder: What a Character! Contest closes at midnight tonight! Come and vote for your favorite characterization!

Comments

[cheyinka]

The first step was something I discovered after reading a rant on fantasy novels - characters with names in invented languages blurred together for the rant-er, so when I wrote a fanfiction novel for NaNoWriMo, I kept a list, like this advice, uh, advises.
It really did help both on rereading and on writing (so that I didn't accidentally say one and mean another), even though the only letters I managed to have only one use for were O, Q, and U and none of those were a main character! The four main characters at least didn't share a letter (there was an A, a D, an R, and a T). I excuse this behavior by saying there were almost eighty named characters, and though most of them said one line and vanished, or were only mentioned in passing, they still needed names. :[

[Edit: and I forgot my primary reason for this comment, which is to say "thank you for reminding me of the character-contest!"]