I love spending time with my characters - whether it be exploring their background, feeling through their hearts, or just playing with different situations. That being the case, I was looking at my bookshelf before LTUE and realized there was a book there I'd never finished. That treasure was (and still is!) Characters and Viewpoint, by Orson Scott Card. If you're a writer and you haven't read this book, you should, because trust me: its amazing.
I haven't had much time to get to the end yet, so who knows - there might be some hidden secret I haven't a clue about. But, I'm pretty sure it's safe. ;)
Yesterday, when I was volunteering at the school, Jessi's class had a readathon. Grateful for the opportunity, I pulled out that book and began thumbing through the pages (I couldn't remember my spot right off). I eventually stopped at a section titled: You Can't Tell the Players Without a Program, under an even bigger section dedicated to names. Couldn't tell you if I'd read it before or not, but it caught me eye. The very title had a message, as did (of course) the writing below.
That message (at least for me) was that a name is your main label to tell you which bottle is honey and which bottle is pepper. I never really thought about it before, but a name reflects who the person is. It also brings out a little more of their background - specifically the surname.
I know, that's all basic, and hopefully everyone knows it. But me, well, I needed a refresher. Sometimes I'm one of those people who simply names them for the sake of naming them. I'm slowly realizing that that's a bad idea. I believe that characters are, in some form, living within our minds. And that being the case, they already have names. So, you need to get the right one.
An example of this happened last night. I was working with Jessi on a book idea, and her main character was named Anne. But, as we went on, she was constantly almost calling her Kate. So, I guess it would be obvious that I eventually insisted we rename her Kate. And honestly, it fits her better. :)
The moral to the story? Know your characters. Because if you know them, everything else will come in good time.
It took two weeks to come up with your awesome name.:-)
ReplyDeleteHaha! Well, it fits, so thanks. :)
DeleteSo true! Names are such a big part of our characters. I always try to choose names that fit the people I'm writing about.
ReplyDeleteThey really are! And so do I. It's really important, in my opinion. Helps me feel them out a little better. :)
DeleteNames are almost as important as the story itself. A character's name, if they're appropriately named, can tell the reader so much about them. It explains their personality and perhaps their past through the meaning, the sound, and even the background of the name. The names aren't only for characters, remember? It applies to places as well.
ReplyDelete