In an earlier post, I mentioned that the characters have pretty much named themselves. The more I got to know each of them as I worked, it was easy to find the right name. I’ve read articles about naming characters and the different approaches. Scrivener even has a random name generator. But, I’ve always loved coming up with names.

Yesterday, though, I realized I’d made a mistake. One of my characters is first generation Irish. I’d named her Stella. I thought the name really suited the character I had in mind. I had a sense of how Stella would think and how she would act.

Unfortunately, Stella is not an Irish name. Today I’ve been surfing, looking for the another name that would work for my character. It’s not just that it has to be Irish, It also has to suit the personality of the character I’ve created. I’ve come up with five names and I’ll need to think about them for a while.

I think names do matter. William Shakespeare’s Juliet declared, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” But then, she meant that even though Romeo came from the house of Montegue, the enemies of her family, he was a good and worthy person and his name didn’t define him. I think it may not have made him a bad person, but it did define who he was.

Thanks for following the journey! I welcome feedback and suggestions.

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