The Cozy Chicks | Cozy Up To Some Killer Books

Name That Character!

She’s stubborn, self-centered, driven, beautiful, willful, Irish by heritage, a Southern Belle by birth, and let’s nothing stop her from getting her man until she finally has him….and realizes she really loves someone else. Who is she?

He’s scruffy, witty, egotistical, fiercely independent, highly intellectual, addicted to Vicodin, and brilliant as a medical Sherlock Holmes.

I’m sure you guessed the first character from either the book or the classic movie, Gone With the Wind, Scarlett O’Hara. If you’re a fan of the TV series House, then you probably recognized its main character, Dr. Gregory House.

The reason I mention this is because I was pondering names for characters in the mystery I’m currently writing – actually I’ve been pondering names for a week now – because to me, it’s a crucial step in the writing process. I’ve always felt that the name speaks of the person, so I try to choose names based on the personalities I want to convey — which in real life, doesn’t really work. For instance, I used to think only witches were named Samantha, Tabitha, and Beulah. (If I’ve ever used your name for one of my villains, please forgive me.)

But think about Scarlett O’Hara for a moment. Scarlett is a hard, vibrant red hue, yet it’s also the color of a fragrant, tender-petalled rose. Doesn’t that sum up that determined, high-spirited, lovely, and often thorny character we love to hate?

Then there’s Dr. Gregory House, who doesn’t need anyone in his life, or so he says, yet offers a kind of shelter to his underlings, where, like little birds, they learn from him until he pushes them out of the nest. A house is a place unto itself, standing alone, yet offering shelter. Cool, isn’t it?

The main character in my Flower Shop mysteries is Abby Knight, a short, feisty, freckle-faced redhead who hates bullies and injustice. I chose her name carefully. Abby/Abigail is a young woman who hovers between being a full-fledged grown-up and a fledgling. Her last name is what she is – a knight, ready to fight battles for those she feels duty-bound to protect. Her assistant, Grace, is a gentle but firm, proper Brit who is the calm in Abby’s choppy seas – her “grace.” Marco Salvare, the tough, darkly handsome, enigmatic ex-Army Ranger turned bar owner, is always nearby in case Abby needs rescuing – her savior, or Salvare, in Italian.

Those are my examples. Can you come up with some memorable characters to test our skills? It has to be a fictional character from a book, movie or television.

Have fun!

Kate

11 Responses to “Name That Character!”

Daemon Sadi, one of the younger sons of the High Lord of Hell in Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels series. She did a great job naming the characters.

by Marissa on March 10th, 2008 at 8:55 am
In my first book, Dating Can Be Deadly, the main character was named Tabitha and she dabbled in wiccan stuff. Very few people got the connection to that old television show, Bewitched, however, most people did tell me they liked the name.

by wendy roberts on March 10th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
Kate,
I’m sorry I just can’t play. I’ve tried really hard to come up with a good example, and I’m brain dead. I’d blame it on the chemo but I don’t think it’s true. I just realized that I’m in chapter 5 of my WIP romance and my female main has no last name. I even went back to check. Her love interest has a full name. The married guy has a full name. But my poor Sandra is just Sandra.

And my character in my children’s book is named Hannah. I didn’t realize how many things are being published/produced for Hannah Montana. (Even that’s a great name )
So now my Hannah has to become someone else.

Sigh…

by Lynn on March 10th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Lyn,

Good luck finding Sandra the perfect last name. In one of my books I had named all my characters with first and last names that started with the same letter — and hadn’t realized it. Ben Brody, Sophia Salvare, etc. And have you noticed how certain names will be so prevalent one year? When I named my son Jason, I thought I was being unique — as did the 4 other moms who had sons in his class.

I have a great big book of names through the ages that I will pour over for days to find just the right one.

BTW, Lyn, have you ever read any of the Moss Reports? Dr. Moss was a cancer researcher with Johns Hopkins, I believe, and now researches and reports on every new cancer treatment, pluses and minuses, and exposes a lot of big pharma hype. This week’s report is particularly alarming, on Avastin, and how it’s been approved for breast cancer by the FDA against warnings by major oncology groups. Google The Moss Reports. You’d find them interesting.

Best, Kate

by Kate Collins on March 10th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
I know it’s obvious, but the name Sherlock Holmes sounds like an intellectual detective.
Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta and Sue Grafton’s Kinsey Millhone seem aptly named considering their tough, no-nonsense personalities. And what about literary giants like Captain Ahab or Captain Hook for that matter? I prefer Captain Jack Sparrow, but that’s another blog…

by JB on March 10th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
When I named my son Jason, I thought I was being unique — as did the 4 other moms who had sons in his class.

Alex was in the same boat. I loved the strength of Alexander and thought since we were calling him Charles Alexander Robert (Since I only had one, I used all the names for him) I thought Alex was his own since Charles was from his dad and Robert was from mine. Alex had to compete not only with the other boys named Alex but it became popular for girls in hi s age group too.

I’ll check out the Moss Report. I do have to say even with as crappy as last year was and all the stuff going through my body, I’m happy with my doctors. They kept me involved with the decision making even though all I wanted to do was run away. Now I just have to deal with all the side effects from the surgury as well as the drugs. I go back in tomorrow just when I thought I was going to be done with all of the appointments.

Captain Jack Sparrow - that’s a great name.

by Lynn on March 10th, 2008 at 10:44 pm
Ah, Captain Jack Sparrow…… Oh, Johnny! Okay, JB, I’m waiting for that blog!

I was musing on the name Sparrow — a flighty bird, and the name Jack, short for John, which are strong names. So the character is strong but flighty. That fits, doesn’t it?

by Kate Collins on March 11th, 2008 at 10:52 am
Hi Kate,

Thanks for sharing with us how Abby Knight’s name came to be. It is perfect for her. I like hearing how people pick names for their characters.

by Linda on March 11th, 2008 at 3:18 pm
While I can’t think of any great fictional character names right now, I will tell you that I do skim through the obit section occasionally for different names, first and last. It’s somewhat grim, I know, but I would never ever have come across a great-sounding name like “Dimple” which fits one of my characters perfectly. I’ve always wondered how in the world her parents came up with that for a name. She was born in the early 1900’s when names were a bit more staid.

by Beverly on March 12th, 2008 at 3:39 am
Beverly,

Dimple? I had no idea it was a real person’s name. Ha.

I spent an afternoon at a very old cemetery in Key West writing down all kinds of great names from the late 1800s. Sounds a bit grim, as well, but I knew it was historically accurate for the historical romance I was writing at the time.

We do what we have to do, right?

Kate

by Kate Collins on March 12th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Maybe reading the obits and strolling thru graveyards is the way we suffer for our art. I’m thinking that Dimple may not have been a rosy-cheeked gentle soul but in this part of the country, she may have been a beer-swilling tugboat captain . But then that’s another intriguing story, isn’t it?

I will say that after discovering the Cosy Chicks, I am motivated more than ever to finish my WIP and join in the fun!

by Beverly on March 12th, 2008 at 4:43 pm

Name That Character!

11 Responses to “Name That Character!”

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