Monday, June 4, 2012

Information Gathering

So I know you're all so totally wrapped up in my life and hanging on my every word around here that you don't need any reminder in the least . . . but. ;-)

The whole NaNoWriMo thing?  Still happening.  I think I even have a pretty good plot idea . . . which I shall be keeping under wraps.  *cue the hearts of the plagiarists of the world breaking*  I really like it - it may even be good enough for trying to publish when I'm done, although that remains to be seen.  Either way it'll feel good to be (non-blog) writing again.  I've missed it.

Anyway.  I'm planning on spending the summer doing some prep work - sketching a bit of an outline and making up a dramatis personae.  (side note: doesn't that sound so much more literature-y than character list?  I should get bonus points with publishers just for knowing the term, lol!)

Anyway.  I'm currently still in the process of naming (and in some cases creating) characters.  I've mentioned . . . okay, mostly ranted . . . about it a few times before, but I am a total names junkie.  As in, I can spend hours reading articles about baby names.  And picking and re-picking names to use on theoretical future children.  (this is the part where I should probably not admit that at one time I was absolutely determined to saddle some poor girl with Alexandriana.  that would be tougher to learn than Ashleigh Elizabeth . . . which apparently almost happened.)  But I sometimes get the feeling that I get lost in all the names.  You know how if you read or say a word over an over for some reason it starts to look and/or sound wrong?  Like when you're correcting a spelling test and by the time you get to the end you're not sure if the kid who spelled it "August" got it right . . . or the kid who spelled it "Ogst" did.

Also - that, you know, totally didn't happen last week.  And Katie totally doesn't need to go through those tests again to double check them.  (one of those sentences is true, lol)

So I need a little outside perspective.  I have a few names I like and am possibly kicking around for this story . . .or maybe another one . . . or possibly a child, although I'm trying to stick to names I don't quite like that much for characters.  Because I like so many names - especially girl names.  Anyway.  Since it's me, by a few I naturally mean pretty much every name I like in every possible version and with every possible spelling that doesn't look like a made-up Polish word or the ultimate in secure, unbreakable passwords.  Which do you prefer, why, what kind of character comes to mind when you hear that name?  (and at this point at least all the characters are pretty WASPy so keep that in mind if a particular name calls to mind a Polynesian princess or something.  that's the perspective I'm looking for.)

Also I'm just a huge dork who wants to know what everyone else thinks about a bunch of not-quite-random name variations.

Voila!:

Julie/Julia/Julianne/Julianna

Marie/Maria

Claire/Clara/Clarissa(?)

Clarissa/Marissa/Melissa

Sara/Sarah

Jennifer/Jenny/Jenna/Jen

Katherine/Catherine

Katherine/Katrina/Katya/Katerina

Olivia/Sophia

Rachel/Rachelle/Raquel

Adrianne/Adrianna

Adrianne/Emmaline  (Is pronouncing it Emma-leen too out there?)

Beatrice/Ophelia

Jacob/James

John/Jonathan

Caleb/Kevin

Nathan/Nathaniel

Alec/Alex

Philip/Phillip

 Quin for a boy - has it become to girly?
Quin for a girl - too trendy?

Brendon/Brandon

Brad/Brett(Bret)/Brian(Bryan)

Christian/Christopher

Theodore(Ted/Teddy)/Tobias(Toby)

Ian/Issac

Mark/Marcus


I could seriously go on for days . . . but I'll spare you.  I get the feeling you're already bored. :-)

I need to find a less nerdy hobby.



P. ost  S. cript
Some days it doesn't take much at all to crack me up.


9 comments:

  1. I love the name game. When we role play (not kinky- think D&D) my favorite part is creating the character and my favorite part of that process is coming up with a name.

    So- this will be a lovely and long comment. Enjoy!
    Julie/Julia/Julianne/Julianna---the last seems juvenile. (Which is fine for a youngish character) Don't really know why but the other three have a more mature feel to them.

    Marie/Maria---I'm partial to this simply because it's a family name being that I come from good Catholic stock. Maria sounds Hispanic to me- perhaps because the only Maria's I know are Hispanic and Catholic...hmm...perhaps I'm simply stereotyping.

    Claire/Clara/Clarissa(?)---Clarissa explains it all?

    Clarissa/Marissa/Melissa---I like Marissa the best of the three.

    Sara/Sarah- potato potahto. The h has a more finished feel to me.

    Jennifer/Jenny/Jenna/Jen- I picture outdoorsey, go get 'em kind of gal.

    Katherine/Catherine---I would do a K but only because my SIL is with a C and it would get too confusing.

    Katherine/Katrina/Katya/Katerina--- I LOVE the last two. Katya especially.

    Olivia/Sophia---Funny because I have a friend with two little girls named Olivia and Sophie.

    Rachel/Rachelle/Raquel---I like Rachel. Raquel feels like it would be hard for some readers.

    Adrianne/Adrianna--- We have this debate amongst family members: How do you pronounce it? It's not a huge deal. My niece is Arianna. Are-ee-ahn- uh or Air-ee-ahn-uh. Her parents chose the latter- I always say the former. So with AdriAHna or AdriANna you might run into the same thing. Not a big deal but one of the things that can bug me as a reader (mostly when discussing with someone who chooses the other pronunciation).

    Adrianne/Emmaline (Is pronouncing it Emma-leen too out there?) Yes. See above.

    Beatrice/Ophelia- Dramatic. I like Ophelia. "I don't want to be Bernice Matisse." Just what pops into the ol' noggin of mine.

    Jacob/James- like them both

    John/Jonathan- same.

    Caleb/Kevin- I like Caleb with a C. Kevin was a cute boy in elementary school with a charming smile and strong jaw.

    Nathan/Nathaniel--- I Nate as a nickname for either.

    Alec/Alex---My friend's nephew is named Alec Dane and they mocked him (well his parents mostly) saying "What's his name?- Alec Dane.- Oh, I like Dane too but what's his name?" My vote is Alex.

    Philip/Phillip---Two L's

    Quin for a boy - has it become to girly? I don't think so.
    Quin for a girl - too trendy? yes

    Brendon/Brandon---- #2

    Brad/Brett(Bret)/Brian(Bryan) I like the Y version and I think these are all strong male names.

    Christian/Christopher-- 1st one is a man's name 2nd one is what a mom would call her son.

    Theodore(Ted/Teddy)/Tobias(Toby)--- I'm partial to Toby and Tobias.

    Ian/Issac--- Like them both.

    Mark/Marcus----Marcus sounds like a snake oil salesman but that could just be from the bully that grew up in my neighborhood.


    Made it to the end? Good job. Thanks for playing the name game. Hope your drafting of ideas goes well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You know, kinky role playing where you get to make up a character with a new name every time might be fun . . . ;-)

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  2. PS- I know someone who had never heard the name Carlisle pronounced so when we were talking about Twilight she pronounced is Car-li-SIL and I had to work hard to not physically cringe. Talk to people. See how things are read (not necessarily how they're SUPPOSED to be pronounced)

    Tawnya will like these but there's a K-Me here... Kay-me and a KD (Katie) and I've heard of La-a (La-DASH-a). Oh my.

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    Replies
    1. I'm sorry. K-Me?! K-ME?! Oh. Man.

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    2. There's a girl at Ellis named Kye-me, but it's spelled so it looks like a name so it doesn't bother me too much. (doesn't hurt that she's adorable) But Key-me and KD's parents are seriously sending the impression that they didn't make it past 3rd grade.

      I've heard lots of stories about La-a, but it's always the friend-of-a-friend, I've-heard-that-name-is-out-there sort of story. I'm beginning to wonder if it isn't just some really believable urban legend that says a lot about our society by the fact that it is so believable.

      Also - I was totally one those people who thought it was Hermy-own instead of Her-my-oh-knee. On the one hand it was really clever the way JK Rowling taught everyone how to say it in one little scene in the fourth book . . . but on the other I've always wondered why Viktor Krum would be pronouncing it like Hermy-own when he was introduced to her verbally, not by reading her name like the rest of us were. Shouldn't he have pronounced it correctly from the start? Or at least mispronounced it something closer to what it actually sounds like?

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    3. I have actually seen a La-a. When I was working at the Polynesian, La-a and her mom came to the desk for a birthday button. While I am not the one that handed her the button, I did watch my co-worker write it and hand it to them.

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  3. I tend to always associate names that I hear with other people that I know with that name ... for example, I've known 3 Nate/Nathaniel, and 2 of the 3 of them have been annoying little brats, so when I hear the name, I think of it as a name that is more likely to belong to a brat.

    Of the list that you posted, I tend to think of "Raquel" as a less "WASP-y" name, and I think that "Beatrice" and "Ophelia" sound rather grandmotherly. Also, I tend to think of "Katerina" as an anorexic figure skater ... am I dating myself here?

    ReplyDelete