misnomer

[marycatelli]

I think my muse might have lost interest in a story because the hero is misnamed.


Quite possible.  Naming a character correctly gives him form and concreteness in my experience.  (Other writers find that giving a name too soon drags in baggage that defines the character without their realizing it.  I find it helpful.)

It does get kinda awkward when the story is otherwise ready, and I can even envision the character as a complete personality without the name. 

Other writers can use placeholder names.  I can use them in outlines, but for actual writing, I need to know -- or, as observed up top, my muse wanders off.

Time to start brainstorming a name, perhaps.

Comments

[dharma-slut.livejournal.com]

This is true, even though I didn't use to think so.

In Principle Of Moments, we have a character, who was named Dia. There were SO MAN Y characters with three-letter names, and ALL of them had a D or an A so we tried to rename Dia and she became Grace-- and promptly went way off tack.

[marycatelli]

The gentle art of balancing the two requirements: defining the character, and giving the reader a way to tell characters apart.

[izuko.livejournal.com]

The series, "Aria" did one better...

Aria
Alicia
Akari
Akira
Aika
Athena
Alicia
Ai
... The list goes on.

[marycatelli]

Were they trying to get the readers to confuse them?

[izuko.livejournal.com]

Possibly. I consider the series to be a work of art, first, and secondarily a story.

[marycatelli]

Oh, well. There are writers like that. . . but I wouldn't do anything such thing myself.

('cause I would confuse the characters while writing!)

[dharma-slut.livejournal.com]

Was there a reason?

[marycatelli]

There doubtlessly was a reason, even if the writer liked the letter "A". Whether they had an aesthetically sound reason, that's another matter.

[izuko.livejournal.com]

Not that I know of... but it made a bloody mess of trying to learn the characters. Of the entire cast, only two of the cats had names that didn't start with A.

[marycatelli]

And it requires you to read slowly once you learn them so you don't accidentally misread one.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

Names are so important, I agree!

I can remember as a child being thrown out of 'Lord of the Rings' because the name 'Frodo' kept making me think of frogs, and I couldn't help thinking of the character as sort of pale and slimy! In the end I was only able to read past the first few chapters by substituting a different name in my head. :-D I got over it eventually, but I *still* think Frodo is not one of Tolkien's better-chosen names!

So easy to stumble over names when everyone has their own culturally-determined concept of that name though... I always remember Donaldson : 'High Lord Kevin' indeed :-D

[marycatelli]

True, you can't control someone else's baggage -- it's hard enough to ensure that you put all your baggage, at least all that's necessary, into the prose outside the name, because the reader can't pick it up from the name.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

... or at least to try to. Though, for example comedy writing quite often uses incongruity of name as a joke in itself, and assumes shared experience of that name - EG, the Life of Brian: explaining the joke takes the fun out of it... And Tolkien, ISTR, believed that people could instinctively pick up the heritage of many words and names, even when they couldn't articulate why they responded to the name as they did...

A hard balancing act!

One issue it occurs to me you rarely get mentioned in books is the problem of unexpected/unpronounceable names. I named my dog 'Brythen' thinking that it was short and easy to pronounce and spell - but I have found that because it is an unfamiliar word, people have *enormous* difficulty hearing the word 'Brythen' spoken out loud. They mishear it as 'Bryn' 'Bran' 'Brian' (yay!) and even 'Chris'.

(It is just the Cornish for 'Brindle' - but not many people speak Cornish!)

[marycatelli]

When the Gray Mouser first met Fafhrd and was told his name he asked him how it was pronounced, not spelled.

[izuko.livejournal.com]

Name him "Ken." Ken is a heroic name. All Kens should be heroes, and all heroes should be Kens.

Love,
Ken

[marycatelli]

Ah, but that gives away his heroic nature too soon. I want it to come at least somewhat of a surprise to the reader -- as it will certainly surprise his companions.

[arhyalon.livejournal.com]

That happened to me once. I had to change a character's name to finish the book.

[marycatelli]

Fortunately changing it to a similar name seems to have gotten the story going. Or maybe it was just getting past the slow start that I am going to have to go after with a machette come revision time.