Naming Opportunities by Mary Dutta

 In the world of philanthropy, a naming opportunity is a way to entice donors. In exchange for their munificence, a benefactor's name will be plastered on a particular space or even an entire institution. We've probably all found ourselves in the so-and-so gallery or the such-and-such lobby.

Authors have a different type of naming opportunity--the chance to call our characters anything we choose. Today I submitted a short story about a woman named Cecile, or maybe it was Celeste. At several points in the story the name changed. I knew it was a woman's name of French origin, but sometimes my brain supplied one and sometimes the other.

Name mix-ups can happen to the best of writers. We might rename a character but fail to catch every use. Or we confuse Jack and Jake, or Mary and Marie. Or we misremember a minor character's name. Hopefully we catch such errors before they make it into print.

I don't start my short stories knowing my characters' names. I begin with a story idea, then do a lot of brainstorming and make copious notes. Choosing names comes later, so I use placeholders like MC for main character or BF for boyfriend. One time I got pretty far into actually writing the story and had a character I was still referring to simply as "guy." His name in the finished version? Guy.

I usually assign names with more care than in that instance. Once Cecile become the protagonist of my latest story, for instance, I emphasized her family's French heritage by naming her sister Monique and her daughter Esme.

Sometimes character names just hit me and sometimes I do searches for things like "most popular girl names in 1982." Inspiration can come from anywhere. When I still had a landline, I kept a list of the names used by scammers who left me messages. I've also had luck with cemetery headstones. 

I don't have any repeat characters in my stories, so every story I start offers a new naming opportunity. Names can do a lot of heavy lifting, revealing character or suggesting background. The name Esme, for instance, means "loved," which made it the perfect choice for the daughter in that latest story of mine, which is all about a mother-daughter relationship.

Shakespeare asked what's in a name. For all his fellow writers, the answer is whatever we choose.

How much do character names matter to you?

Figs! Recipe Request by Molly MacRae

Fresh figs (photo courtesy of Pixabay)

With a deadline looming, my post last month was short. The deadline looms ever closer so my post this month is even shorter. I’m sprinting towards June 15^th – the date Come Shell or High Water, book 1 in my new Haunted Shell Shop mystery series is due on the editor’s desk. By golly, I’m going to make that deadline come shell or high water. More about the series next month but here’s a teaser: Figs are big on Ocracoke Island where the series takes place.

Here’s the request and reward: Do you have a favorite fig recipe you’re willing to share? I’m looking for three to use in the book. If I’m able to use your recipe in the book, I’ll mention you in the acknowledgments and in a post with the recipe on Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen. I’ll also name a character after you in book 2.

Questions you might ask:

Q: Is this a contest?  
A: Yes. I won’t be able to use all the recipes sent.

Q: May I send the recipe I’ve been using from a cookbook or an online source?
A: Yes, but please tell me the name of the cookbook or website, so that I’m aware. I’ll adapt the recipe to make it my own – and will still give you credit.

Q:What will you do if you end up with too many wonderful recipes?
A: Eat too much while testing them. I hope to put three recipes in each of the books, though, so if I end up with more than the three I can use in Come Shell or High Water, then I’ll save three for book 2 and three for book 3.   

Put your recipe in a comment below or contact me at MMWoolly@gmail.com.

Thank you! 

Fig pie (photo courtesy of Pixabay)

 

 

 

 

 

Rules to Remember When Naming Your (Fictional) Children by Susan Van Kirk

As a former teacher, I know the old joke about the pregnant teacher who could not think of a good name for her impending baby because each name she thought of had some darker association with a former student. “I can’t name him ‘Ben’ because of that teenager I had in class named Ben who always whispered obscene things under his breath to the girls who sat around him.” When it comes to determining fictional character names, it is not a problem—probably because they are not my real, non-fiction children.

When I write mysteries, I keep a notebook full of the names of people in my three series, each set in small towns. The list helps me choose names for new characters and keeps me from repeating names I have used in the past. Since I’m currently on my sixth mystery with three different towns, I have peopled a rather good slice of my fictional universe, and I need to be careful about how I name new characters. With that in mind, here are seven ideas I follow when naming my fictional children.

First, I need to make sure I do not use a name and location of a real person I’ve known. I found myself subconsciously doing this with a minor character who had the first name of a long-ago college roommate and lived in her hometown. Obviously, my brain had connected the two. A week later, I realized what I had done and changed the name.

Second, the main character must have a name I love because I will use it a great deal in more than one book. It needs to sound perfect. Grace Kimball, my main character in my Endurance Mysteries, has such a name. I love the concept of “grace under pressure” from Hemingway’s novels. “Grace” is also the middle name of one of my grandchildren. “Kimball” was simply a last name that came into my head when I was not thinking about names at all. But it works well with Grace.

Elizabeth Russell, or Beth, is the protagonist in my Sweet Iron Series. I love the name “Beth” because it is short, practical, and is a single syllable. My Beth is practical and no nonsense. It seems to me a single syllable for a main character’s first name is easier to say and remember. Then I have Jill Madison in my current manuscript. Again, a single syllable first name is followed by a last name that simply sounds right to me when I combine it with Jill.

Third, I never introduce too many names of characters at once. I bring in characters gradually so readers won’t get mixed up. When I began my third Endurance mystery, I planned to write about the Endurance school board. Eventually, I changed the plot concept because it was too confusing to introduce seven or eight board members at once. I try to introduce characters in unique ways with different names and not too close together.

Fourth, I make names memorable so the reader won’t have to page back to figure out who this character is thirty pages later. For example, my detective in the Endurance Mysteries is TJ Sweeney, a decidedly detective-sounding name. Not until much later in the book does the reader learn the “TJ”

stands for Teresa Johanna.

Fifth, in a series with history, I try to make connections between names in a family. In A Death at Tippitt Pond, Beth Russell’s uncle is named Jeff Tippitt. When Beth checks her genealogy records, his full name is Jefferson Webster Tippitt. In the second book of that series, I will introduce an ancestor named William Webster Tippitt, a newspaper publisher during the time of the Civil War. Jeff, in the present, has a middle name based on this publisher from the past, his 3^rd great-grandfather.

Sixth, I make sure my main characters have names with different vowel combinations and different first letters. This makes it easier for the reader to remember which character is which. I don’t have a Sharon, Susan, Sandy, and Shauna in the same story.

Seventh, I believe a great way to introduce humor is to use a name to indicate what a character is or is not. In my small town of Endurance, the mayor’s name is Mayor Blandford. And, yes, he is bland. I also include a character with a slobbering, pet dog like the Bordeaux bulldog in the movie, “Turner and Hooch.” The dog’s owner named him “Adonis,” a name from mythology symbolizing a handsome male. This dribble-mouthed dog is anything but.

Eighth, I use different names for characters only if I am sure the reader will understand. Otherwise, confusion reigns. Grace would call her friend “TJ,” but others would call her “Detective” or “Detective Sweeney.” Her boss, Stephen Lomas, might yell, “Sweeney.” And to vary descriptions, “TJ” can sometimes be referred to as “the detective.”

            

When I first began to write books, I assumed character names could simply be anything I wanted. Not so. Have you read a book where you couldn’t keep the characters straight?

                       

What a Character!

I accepted a blog hop invitation from Christine Finlayson (if you missed her discussion of her protagonist Maya Rivers, you can find it here.) It occurred to me after I accepted the invitation that I had already written quite a bit about Seamus McCree. I provided his quick bio on my website, and I published an interview with him in my first newsletter. So, what to say?

When I invented Seamus, I chose his first name for two reasons. Seamus is the Irish equivalent of James, and while I was writing his story he would temporarily be my alter ego. Also, the name is a homonym of the slang word (derived from Yiddish) for a detective (shamus), which I thought would be a little inside joke mystery readers might enjoy. With Seamus as a first name, he should have an Irish background. Since I had spent some time in Boston, that was a logical birthplace for my creation.

Seamus needed a last name. I know what happens when you do an internet search on “Jim Jackson.” I am someplace within the 3.9 million results, but not on page one. I wanted a surname that would allow him a bit more visibility. McCree served the purpose: it’s an uncommon Irish family name, and even rarer when combined with Seamus.

And that, dear readers, is how he earned his name. The Seamus McCree I described in the bio and newsletter is not your typical hero. However, more important than my intentions is how he came across to readers. To discover that, I decided to read Amazon reviews for Bad Policy, the first in the series.

Here are some reader comments:

Seamus McCree is a fascinating protagonist, more complex than the usual thriller tough guy: He's got a no-nonsense attitude and can keep his cool even when the police are questioning him about a homicide, but he also sings in the church choir; he has few illusions about life but knows how to relax with a good meal or a good book; he refuses to keep a gun in his house but doesn't hesitate to use one when he has to. His family connections and painful past add further depth to his character.

Seamus McCree, one of the most well-rounded, likeable heroes to come along in awhile.

Financial investigator Seamus McCree is smart, rich, and in big trouble. He's also a caring dad and son. I usually read cozies with female protagonists, but Jackson's male character is well drawn, caring, and likeable.

I had become [so] very attached to the character and his world that I had this inexplicable urge to call him and have a chat. I don't remember the last time a character seemed so real to me. The only bad news was that when I finished I realized I miss him terribly and can't wait to see him again.

Seamus McCree (don't you love that name?) is from Boston and has Mafia ties, and he has anger issues. But he's a different sort of PI. He isn't independent but works for a security company doing financial analyses; he has a family—son and mother—he really cares about; he doesn't carry a gun, though he knows how to use one. Oh yeah, he's got a nice backup of security in the bank and investments—most fictional PIs live from check to check.

If those comments intrigue you, pick up Bad Policy or Cabin Fever at your favorite bookstore or online venue. Regardless of what you think about Seamus, check out characters by two of my southern writer friends, Polly Iyer and Tina Whittle.

When psychic Diana Racine’s old friend is murdered in New Orleans, her love, Lieutenant Ernie Lucier, brings her in to consult on the case. What she sees when she touches the dead man’s body is another man with silver eyes, a gang tattoo, and a bullet in the middle of his forehead.

Before long, Diana and Lucier are drawn into a web of murders that stretches far into the past. The deeper they get into the investigation, the more it appears the deaths are the work of a group of vigilantes on a moral crusade. Vigilantes wearing the blue of the NOPD who won’t let anything or anyone stand in their way.

Here’s the link to Polly’s blog and if you want more information about her and her books, here's her website: http://PollyIyer.com

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It’s taken almost a year, but Tai Randolph finally has her new life together. She’s running a semi-successful Atlanta gun shop catering to Civil War re-enactors. Her relationship with the sexy if somewhat security-obsessed Trey Seaver is going smoothly. Most importantly, there’s not a single corpse on her horizon.

Then a tornado scatters the skeletal remains of a Confederate hero, and Tai discovers a jumble of bones in the Kennesaw Mountain underbrush. Unfortunately, these are no relics. Tai realizes there’s a murderer on the loose, a clever killer who has tried to conceal the crimes of the present in the stories of the past. As she risks her own life to unravel two mysteries, Tai rediscovers her dangerous taste for murder and mayhem.

Here's the link to Tai's post. Here's the link to To learn more about Tai and Trey and Tina Whittle, visit the website: http://www.tinawhittle.com

What Things Were Almost Called

I'm struggling (and failing) to come up with the best name to fit my main character.

My story is about a bank examiner in the early 1890s who finds corruption and murder at a bank. The title Impurple felt right to me. That was the code word some examiners used to indicate they were leaving immediately to take charge of a bank that had closed.

But the character's name eludes me. Should he be called John, William, James, George, Charles, Frank, or Henry? None of these popular names during the era strikes me as quite right for the character I have in mind.

Apparently, I'm not the only one who has trouble naming things. There have been some close calls where things were almost given regrettable names.

Imagine telling a friend, “Let’s grab a Pequods.” It doesn’t have the same ring as, “Let’s get a Starbucks.” But, co-founder and writer, Gordon Bowke, originally wanted to name the company Pequod after Captain Ahab’s whaleship in Moby-Dick. Ultimately, the name of the ship’s first mate, Starbuck, was chosen. An “s” was added at the end because a consultant thought that’s how people would say it.

Some movies originally had different working titles. Here are a few examples from Salon.com:

·         Clockwork Orange was originally titled Chocolate Orange

·         Casablanca was called Everyone Comes to Rick’s

·         For some reason, Cloverfield was originally called Cheese

·         Annie Hall was originally titled It Had to Be Jew

·         Psycho started out as Wimpy

According to Mental Floss, several names originally considered for our beloved Nancy Drew were Stella Strong, Diana Drew, and Helen Hale. Scarlett O’Hara was originally named Pansy and didn’t receive her iconic name until just before the story went to print. Thankfully, Arthur Conan Doyle changed the name of Sherlock Holmes’ assistant from Ormond Sacker to John H. Watson.

Some authors of classic literature had trouble choosing the best title for their books, too. It took a few tries until they hit upon the perfect name. While procrastinating my own naming dilemma I created a short quiz for you using Huff Post and Mental Floss articles.

Can you match the title with what the classic book was almost called?

Title                                                                           Almost Called

1. Gone with the Wind – Margaret Mitchell              a. Something That Happened

2. Dracula – Bram Stoker                                         b. Trimalchio in West Egg

3. Nineteen Eighty-Four – George Orwell                c. Mistress Mary

4. War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy                               d. Catch-11

5. The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald                e. All’s Well That Ends Well

6. The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett   f. Tote the Weary Load

7. Catch-22 – Joseph Heller                                      g. The Last Man in Europe

8. Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck                       h. The Dead-Undead

9. The Sun Also Rises – Ernest Hemingway              i. First Impressions

10. Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen                     j. Fiesta

Answers: 1-f, 2-h, 3-g, 4-e, 5-b, 6-c, 7-d, 8-a, 9-j, 10-i

Is it sometimes difficult for you to choose the perfect name for your character or title of your story?

By Any Other Name, Would Marilyn Smell as Sweet?

There have been many highlights to my trip to the Pacific Northwest - the expected, like seeing Daughter Jessy and her S.O. David, and hiking at Mt. Rainier, and the unexpected, like The Garages, the Glass Bridge, and lemongrass chicken lumpia at the Lumpia World food truck at the Tacoma Farmers Market.
Another unexpected pleasure was the lush Rose Garden at Point Defiance Park. You're thinking, of course you should have expected to like a rose garden, they're pretty, but the unexpected fun was seeing the names assigned to each kind of bloom. Shakespeare says a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but maybe he would not have thought so if he had seen some of the names of these blooms.
Some names were perfectly apt. This bright and jazzy beauty is Brass Band.

Brass Band

This neon orange/gold winner has the perfect name. After seeing it, I can't imagine it called anything else.

Las Vegas

Just before I checked the name of this lush and curvy beauty, Hubby told me he thought it had a beautiful shape.

Marilyn Monroe

I kid you not.
This light yellow is something I'd like to see every morning.

Sunshine Daydream

The Namers of the Rose are not above a pun, as Scent from Above for a tall climber and Scentimental for a baby pink sweetie prove.
Mostly, I was impressed by how well the qualities of the flower were captured in the name.
Writers, what are your thoughts when you name a character? Gardeners, do you know the name of your favorite bloom?

FINDING CHARACTERS IN OBITUARIES

Eileen L. Mowery

                                                                        1950 – 2012

                                    Portage Falls – Eileen, 63, of Portage Falls went to be

                                    with the Lord Aug. 4, 2012. She died at home. Cause

                                    of death is being investigated. Eileen was born Feb. 1.

                                    1950 in Cleveland to the late John and Mary Holko

                                    Sutley.  After Mary graduated from Lakeside High School,

                                    She went to Kent State University where she received her

                                    RN nursing degree. She married William Mowery,

                                    June 17, 1973, who died March 17, 2011. Eileen was

                                    a dedicated nurse working at The Millport General

                                    Hospital for 20 years before becoming head nurse

                                    at Happy Days Nursing Home. She loved planting

                                    tomatoes every year,  dancing, playing cards and going

                                    to race tracks and Las Vegas. She will be missed by

                                    daughters, Peggy Smith, Raleigh, N.C., Michelle Jones,

                                    San Mateo, CA, one son, William Mowery of Cleveland,

                                    and five grandchildren, who were the joy of her life. She

                                    will also be missed by Muggles, her dog, and a very

                                    special friend, Alex Mooney, her long time dance partner.

                                    Calling hours etc. etc. etc.

The above obituary is fictitious, of course, but you get the idea. There are lots of ways you could develop this character to fit into a mystery. For instance, just how and why did she die? Could she have been poisoned by tomatoes with something added? If her husband only died a year ago, who is this long time dance partner? Did her love of gambling create a problem in her life? Why did she leave a hospital to work in a nursing home where the pay is less? There could be simple and logical answers to these questions, but there could also be something else. Was she caught stealing meds in the hospital so they let her go, but because of her long service and likeability someone might not have documented what happened so Happy Days might not have known about it? Or could she have lied and said she’d been innocent and someone else took the meds? And could this dance partner be on the Board of Directors of the home and got her the job?  

Even if you don’t kill off this person, you could still use her as a minor character; a neighbor, the mother-in-law of a friend, the main character’s Aunt Eileen, either loved, tolerated or disliked if you add other quirks and habits.

Obituaries are also a good source for names for a certain age group – obviously you’re thinking most obituaries are of an older generation, but obituaries always list names of children and grandchildren or nieces and nephews. It’s a quick and easy way to pick out names for characters.My suggestion, though, is switch first and last names, especially if you’re going to use a lot of information from one particular obituary. Don’t make it obvious to someone reading your book that you used their Aunt Agatha for your character.

Have you ever used obituaries to get names or create characters?

How would you use Eileen in a mystery?