The Future of Fictional Characters: Whats In A Name?

Published: July 13, 2022, 7 a.m.

The Buzz 1: \u201cComing up with a great name for your characters is one of the hardest tasks you\u2019ll ever complete as a fiction writer\u2026 going too \u2018creative\u2019 with your name choices can distract or even confuse your reader.\u201d (nybookeditors.com) The Buzz 2: \u201cInstead of calling the pizza delivery guy \u2018Bob,\u2019 if you give him an interesting ethnicity, a cowboy hat and a name like Galveston Ngyen, readers will remember him when he shows up dead 50 pages later. But beware. There can be pitfalls.\u201d (Anne R. Allen, Naming Fictional Characters) The Buzz 3: \u201cOne sci-fi writer recently joked on Twitter that the worst part of publication is being asked by readers and interviewers how to pronounce characters\u2019 names.\u2026\u201d (lithub.com) The Buzz 4: Popular character names: Captain Holly Short from the Artemis Fowl series; Mia Thermopolis from The Princess Diaries; Maggie from Inkheart. (www.bustle.com) We\u2019ll ask writers Catriona McPherson, Clea Simon, Carolyn Marie Wilkins, Sarah Smith and Edwin Hill for their take on The Future of Fictional Characters: What\u2019s In A Name?