How to Pick the Perfect
Character Names
By Mary Kole
Mary Kole is a former literary agent, freelance editor, writing teacher, author of Writing Irresistible Kidlit, and IP developer for major publishers, with over a decade in the publishing industry.
Character names for novels and other fictional works can add a lot to your story. If you put a lot of stock in character names, this selection process can also be quite daunting. Some writers feel that they can’t write a novel outline or a full manuscript without choosing the perfect names. After all, you want to pick something that fits with the character and their backstory, but also has a certain essence that makes it stand out from other names. Here, I’ll explore some tips and tricks to help you pick the perfect character names for your particular story.
Considerations Of Character Names
As you start picking out character names, ask yourself if the style of name you’re considering fits with the style of your story. Is your novel or script contemporary or historical? Is it fantasy or science fiction? The answers to these questions will help determine what kind of name is appropriate for your character. For example, if you’re writing a historical novel set in 19th century England, then naming your main character “Jaxon” might not be the best choice, unless it has significance within the story itself. (Or your character’s parents are WAY ahead of their time. Or he’s a time traveler.)
Another thing to consider is how easy or difficult it is to pronounce the name. If people have difficulty pronouncing your character's name, then they may not be able to remember it as easily. Or they might not pronounce it as intended in their heads as they read. We’ve all had those character names that are, as it turns out, pronounced very differently from how we imagined. Sometimes, this is a strange adjustment for a reader to make after they’ve formed a relationship with the character.
Fantasy and science fiction writers beware: the more complicated you make your character names, the easier it might be for readers to become lost. Does every other name have an apostrophe? Do they all start with an “M”? If readers can’t keep track of your characters, they could potentially become less invested in your story.
It's also important to think about whether or not you're intentionally or unintentionally leaning into any stereotypes when naming your cast. Choosing character names that are very typical of a certain ethnicity can be a fine line to walk between wanting to be inclusive (though this could also look like you’re diversifying your cast in an obvious way for the optics) and relying on potentially offensive caricatures.
Finally, make sure that you double-check any meanings associated with the character names you’re considering. You might be all in on a beautiful name like “Mara,” only to learn down the road that it has a Hebrew meaning of “bitter,” and this is not what you want associated with your character. Some names may have unexpected connotations or negative associations, depending on their language of origin.
Finding Inspiration for Character Names
Luckily, the Internet is full of name websites (most of these are aimed at expecting parents). These sites compile name meanings, show popularity rankings. Furthermore, you can find character names that filter by gender, ethnicity, culture or language of origin, and more.
The U.S.’s Social Security Administration database can also provide insight into popular baby names over time that could spark an idea of what type of name would fit well in your story (and its time period). If you’re writing historical fiction, you can do more targeted research, dating back to the 1880s (the most popular boy and girl names were John and Mary, if you’re wondering, and this was pretty much the case until the 1950s).
If you want to go deeper into character names, you’ll want to research the significance of traditional family surnames as well. It’s up to you whether or not you want to develop a famous relative for your character, or if that even fits your story, but last names have meaning, too, not just first names.
You can even look through old phone books and newspapers as inspiration as well, o. Names are everywhere, so you might want to jot down words or sounds or combinations that resonate with you in a dedicated journal or note on your phone. Eventually, you will find the perfect character names for everyone in your story. In the meantime, don’t let yourself be overcome with writers block. It’s also totally okay to slap a placeholder name in your manuscript and change it later.
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