Quick & Dirty Research
The Name Game
The NAME GAME
It's easy to name a real life character for a biofiction book like Under Her Skin. Virginia Apgar's name, so familiar to me from working for years as a labor and delivery nurse, was ready-made, as were her nicknames, "Gin and Ginnie." But all the other characters in that book are fictional. Let's look at how I chose some of their names.
I'm careful about naming fictional characters. I could use my friends or family for inspiration or maybe pay tribute to a mentor, and on occasion that does happen. l want to make sure the names I'm using make perfect sense in their historical placement and social groups. And often, the meaning or origin of the name is reflected in the character's personality, occupation, or destiny.
One of the major characters in Under Her Skin is a woman who is a luthier, or violin builder. She is loosely based on an actual friend of Apgar's, but I chose not to depict real people in this novel. Instead, I started with the idea that she literally makes music with her hands, and let my mind drift into an imaginary chorus, and plucked a name from within that sound—Monique. That may sound too poetic to be true but it is.
Monique is petite and graceful and is a foil to Gin's height and larger frame. She is married, exotic in her tastes and activities, and brings Gin along on adventures plus teaches her how to build a violin. The French name Monique, which is derived from the original Greek name Monica, is closely associated with someone who is an advisor or BFF. I did not know that meaning when it came to me, so my muse was working in the background to bring me the right moniker for Gin's close friend.
Have you read my free story called The Lifeguard? In it, you'll meet Vivi. She once reflected the meaning of her name—Life. But she worked as a nurse in a prison, and was worn down by the prisoners' ills. Like many other prison nurses, Vivi suffered from correctional fatigue. I used the contrast of her name against the stressors of her job and home life, to offset the child's personality in the story, a girl named Liberty. The lovely press, NiftyLit published this piece. Enough about me.
Without a real life character as the basis for my second novel, I considered the names popular in the era. In late 19th c. New England, women's names were often derived from flowers or royalty. One of the most popular girl's names was Ada, which happens to be the name of my lead character in Kissed by a Midwife—the current working title. "Adah" is mentioned in the Bible in the first book of Genesis and is a wife and mother. My Ada is a wife, mother, and midwife. She makes smart choices but pride often interferes. The name itself is associated with nobility, wealth, and happiness in different cultures.
Ada's daughter is named Marigold. Cue the flowers. I wanted to give her a nickname that would stick. Looking at the spelling of her name, which means "golden flower," I opted for "Mari." The name is pronounced like "Mary," the common Biblical name of Jesus' mother. Mari is a major character whose story makes up the second half of Kissed by a Midwife. And she is no virgin.
In addition, since Ada, the mom, is an herbalist, naming her daughter after a pretty plant makes sense. I've always thought marigolds got a bum rap. My mother hated marigolds because of their off-putting smell, so I suppose using the name of the pretty gold flowers that grow easily in our summers in New England is a nod to Mom. They also are said to repel certain pests and attract bees, so marigolds do a lot of good in the garden. My Marigold does a lot of good in the world.
Name Generators, Scrivener, Baby Name Books. Name generators are just that. I'd like to imagine that authors are a little more evolved in the way they do name selection. There is a program that I write first drafts in called Scrivener. It contains a ton of writing tools and resources including a handy dandy name generator. For example, I can ask for relatively obscure Finnish men's names that start with K, and arrive at Keven Potton-Lowes, maybe a future character. Baby name books that give the meaning of names are great too. Alina means Light, and Alvey means Warrior. They immediately have a backstory. In some respects, I take almost as much care naming my characters as I did naming my children!
Ever wonder why I use the "J." in my professional writing name? Probably not. But the decision had a specific reason. When I was setting up my website and googled my name, I found another writer named Nancy Fagan. She writes couples' therapy books. I chose, instead, to add my middle initial to all my writing profiles, social media, and my website to distinguish us. After everything was set up, paid for, and launched, I discovered that her middle initial is J too! The best laid plans!