Character names can mean a lot to both readers and writers. As a reader, a name might influence how I feel about a particular story. If it’s the name of my first love, I’ll probably have a more positive impression than if it’s my high school nemesis. As a writer, I sometimes use the names of people I actually know in order to make a personal connection to the story and the characters.
Take the three characters from my erotic short story FULFILLED which will be released this Tuesday. Piper, Mark and Dom were all inspired by folks at my gym.
There are two sisters, Marcie and Nancy, who call each other “Pip.” (It took me a long time to even know Nancy’s real name; I just called her “Pip.”) From “Pip” came “Piper,” a name which fits my female character to a tee. It sounds petite, sassy and independent. And, of course, her nickname has to be Pip.
Then there’s Mark and Dom. Or I should say Mark and Dominica, an ubber nice married couple who are as generous as they are good-natured. While the “Dom” in my story is actually Domingo, I liked the sound of “Mark and Dom.” Those names not only defined their physical appearance – blond-haired, blue-eyed, Nordic god, Mark, and black-haired, brown-eyed, Spanish god, Dom – the names helped solidify their male friendship for me as well
But I’ve also picked names that hold no personal connection. I may just like it. Take for example, Ben, the hero in one of my current WIPs. Ben is a great name, IMO. It sounds strong and confident and safe. ‘Course if “Ben” is just strong, confident and safe, he might be a little bit boring too. So I put a twist on the name and character to have strong, confident, safe “Ben” be an escaped convict. Wrongly accused, naturally, but still an escapee.
As writers, how do you come up with the names for your characters? And, as readers, what draws you to a particular character name? I’d love to hear from you!
Enjoy!
L.
