How to Name Your Characters 

I know what I want my characters to do, but I don't know what I want them to be called while they're doing it.

Sometimes we know our characters' names before we start our novels and sometimes we put placeholders on the spot instead. Nothing a little 'Find and Replace' command can't fix.

If you're struggling to come up with a name for your character here are a few ways to help you brainstorm for the perfect name that your readers will remember for years to come.

Be Simple 

Elizabeth Benneth: Pride and Prejudice 

Isabella Swan: Twilight 

Hazel Grace Lancaster: The Fault in Our Stars 

Harry Potter: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Jay Gatsby: The Great Gatsby

These are all popular books with main characters with simple yet rememberable names. Their names are pretty plain, but it's their actions and the stories that made them stand out to the readers. 

The most important thing to remember is that your character's name doesn't have to have some deep hidden meaning that your reader will only learn if they speak multiple languages or enjoy randomly searching up your character name.

For example, there's Draco Malfoy in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. I wouldn't have known his last name translated in Old French meant "bad faith." How could I? It wasn't until seeing it in a Tumblr post that I had any idea.

You learn of his 'bad faith' through the series and although it's a bit of interesting bar trivia I still think it's completely unnecessary to scour the internet high and low to find the perfect combination of dead language words to fit into an okay sounding name for your character. 

Be Unique 

Ponyboy Curtis: The Outsiders (Can't forget Sodapop either) 

America Singer: The Selection 

"Belly" Conklin: The Summer I Turned Pretty

'Scout' Finch: To Kill a Mockingbird 

Although this might be a bit contradictive to the previous point, having a character's name that is simple AND unique can help it stick in your reader's mind. 

There is such thing as too unique such as Daenerys. Hermione, Rhysand, and Nomeolvides. I'll be honest until someone told me how to pronounce these names I struggled with them and not once did I actually pronounce right as I was reading them in my head. 

If your reader has to trip and stumble their way through the names of your characters, try making them a little less unique unless the uniqueness is integral to your story's setting. 

Stick With the Times 

Karen, Maude, Mildred, Barbara (wow!) Winifred. Hank, Bill, Gary, and Dale. If your novel is set in a high school in 2022… well maybe you should change it back to the 1940s with names like that. (Avoid Karen altogether.) 

Mind the Location 

If you're novel is set in the middle of Ireland in the early 1900s the characters most likely shouldn't all be named Hans, Heinrich, Hermann, and Klaus unless they are all of German descent. Your characters' names should be more along the line of John, Patrick, James, and Michael. 

Consider Qualities, but Avoid Cliches 

Raven Dark happens to be the school's goth girl.

Brock Jerk happens to be the school bully. 

Angel Night happens to be the hero of the world.

It's okay to have the qualities of your character show in their name but be careful with just how obvious you make it. 

Baby Names and Generators 

Search for baby names that were popular during the time and place of your story and a list will be before your eyes in seconds. Give a few of them a scroll and see if one sticks with you. 

If you can't think of a name on your own there is no shame in using a list of other names or a generator that puts one together with the last name. Even the best of writers run out of names and you can't prove that no one on the best sellers list didn't use this method for naming their characters.  

There are thousands of names generators available online where you can pick the type of story you're writing and when it took place, most of these generators as well as the baby names list will give you the special meaning of the names and you can pick the one that has the attributes closest to your ideal character. 

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Names surround you all the time, whether it's from those you know, the shows you watch, or the books you read. You can't escape seeing a name or two in any passing day so keep your eyes and ears attentive for one that might be the one you've been looking for all along.

Best of luck and keep writing.

With love, 

B.K. xo

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