Choosing names for your characters

[Pauline Rowson]

Getting the right name for characters in a novel can be a tricky business. Sometimes they come to me completely out of the blue as I am creating a character, other times I will struggle to find the name that best suits the character.

I have always had this thing that people should look like their names. When someone is introduced to me I will think yes, you are a Jacqueline or a Malcolm. Other times I will think, oh no, you're definitely a Karen or a Wayne. And so it is with the characters I am creating. The name has to fit. If it's not right then the character isn't right. The name also needs to fit with the age and nationality although you can have exceptions.

So where do I get names from?

When seeking inspiration for first names I turn to my little book of baby's names or I will look up a web site of baby's names. I also keep an ear out for any unusual or interesting names when meeting people and will jot these down. Working on the current Inspector Horton marine mystery I was stuck for one particular character. He had several incarnations before trawling through the A-Z of names I hit on it. Ashley. Yes, he is definitely an Ashley.

As to surnames, I let my finger do the choosing and tend to pick these out of an atlas or street map. Then I see if it fits with the first name and the character. And the more novels I write the more I am in danger of repeating names, (it's easy to forget what you have already used) so I am building a database in order to double check this.

And where did Andy Horton come from? I've no idea. He just sprang to mind both the name and the character and long might he thrive.

[Janet Ortegon]

I named my main character Cliff for reasons that are still a mystery to me. Nearly every other person in the story is named after -- in one way or another -- people I know. Cliff's name bothers me a little; it doesn't feel quite right. But I'm just going to plug away and wait for the right name to hit me. Though I never thought about perusing baby name books; that's a great idea.