Victor

In the phonetic alphabet, Victor represents the letter V. As you might guess, the name Victor means victorious, and the definition is, one who defeats or vanquishes an adversary; the winner in a fight, battle, or war.

My favorite is Victor Frankenstein, as played by the inimitable Gene Wilder...(I'm hoping there will be a video for you to watch but if there isn't you know who to blame. Hint. Begins with the letter B.)

 
 

go on and tell me he's not brilliant.

Romeo

In the phonetic alphabet, Romeo represents the letter R. The name Romeo means pilgrim, which I'm sure we all remember from William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

"O! she doth teach the torches to burn bright"
- William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, 1.5

Oscar

In the phonetic alphabet, Oscar represents the letter O. Oscar is also a masculine name meaning, divine spear. Who would’ve guessed that?

Today we’ll keep it short and sweet and I’ll just give you my favorite Oscar. I was admittedly a little older when Sesame Street first arrived but my younger siblings LOVED and grew up with Sesame Street so I became well-acquainted with the characters. I always really liked Oscar the Grouch.

Who was your favorite Sesame Street Character?

Mike

In the phonetic alphabet, Mike represents the letter M. Mike is also short for Michael, a boy's name which means who is like God.

A few famous Mikes:


Mike Tyson - boxer
Mike Huckabee - politician
Mike Myers - actor

But my favorite Mike is Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton.

  

Who's yours?

the name of the rose

I have always loved names. And I have always wanted to be named something else. I’m glad I don’t have a common name but I wish my not so common name was prettier, more interesting. Eleanor has been my favorite for the longest time. I know, it’s terribly old-fashioned, but I still love the name and I gave it to one of my favorite characters who – unfortunately – is still languishing in a wip I may never finish (another historical romance set in the era of clipper ships, a fascination I once entertained). I do, however, think my feelings around my own name have made me careful in choosing the names of my characters. After all, I don’t want to burden them – as I feel I have been burdened – with a name that doesn’t fit. It has to be the right name, a name that sounds like the character, a name at ease in its surroundings, a name that brings to mind a glimmer of who the person is before you, the reader, gets to know them.

Here are a few examples from my own (completed) works that I hope illustrate what I’m talking about:

In Almost Paradise I wanted to recreate the old west from the perspective of people from the future. My two main characters had to have timeless names that work in our future, or back in 1881 where most of my tale takes place. Jack and Katherine worked perfectly. But I also had to choose names that sounded as though they belonged in 1881, hence Jim Woolbridge and Larry Sweet, my Pinkerton detectives. Larry’s the well-dressed one.

In Grimoire, which takes place in an alternate 1806, I had to have unique names for my witches – like Yvette for the queen, Adrian Sinclair or Lord Wyndham, and Cato, the adept. I also needed names that fit the period, hence Clarissa deVere, the daughter of the Earl of Oxford, Lady Ann North, and Mrs. Fitzherbert, The Prince Regent's first wife. As for Arlen, I found her name in my Character Naming Sourcebook. It means ‘oath.’

Lastly, I’ll mention The Way to Dendara, in which Lucy, a young librarian with bad dreams and a tragic past suddenly finds out she belongs someplace completely different. I gave Lucy a fairly ordinary name but one which I like because it always reminds me of the spunky Lucy Pevensie – although my Lucy has a darker side to her. The rest of the names, however, needed to belong in Dendara, my imaginary world. Hence we have:

Corliss; Queen of Dendara
Bertrade; a troll and a battle maid
Lilka; expert at the Kazmirez, a troll game (also Bertrade’s daughter)
Llew; a claimant to the throne
Vinn; a claimant to the throne
Zhora; a sorceress
and Kunagnos; the Wisest of the Wise

Names are fun and I have to admit this is one of my favorite parts of creating. I love choosing just the right name for the person or place, be it a real or imaginary. I love learning about the meaning of names, their origins, and see them in their different forms. My favorite name, Eleanor, means light and can be spelled many ways, depending upon the country of origin. In French it’s Elinore, Greek Eleanore, Gaelic Eilionoir, and Elena in Spanish.

How about you? How do you choose a name?