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?