What's In a Name?

Do names matter? I think so. Mine is "different" but must admit that's appropriate. I try to choose names that “fit” the characters in my books, because I believe name associations set up readers’ expectations about personality. Eudora is a name that was used in my family for generations, although not recently. While I might not call the heroine of a contemporary novel Eudora, that name would slip easily into a story set in the 19th century. Names can be tricky when the setting is historical, particularly for writers like me who like to draw inspiration from those interesting people who populate the Bible. Their genealogies are helpful in one respect, because the names are provided--and usually have an interesting meaning. Princess Michal's name, for example, can be roughly translated as "brook" or "little running brook". But what's to be done with a woman named Hoglah, one of the daughters of Zelophehad, son of Hepher? I cannot prove nicknames were or were not in use in ancient Israel, but I used one in "Daughter of the King". Ahinoam is an unusual name for us today, and there were two prominent characters by that name--Princess Michal's mother as well as the mother of King David's eldest son. Time for a little imagination, giving the wife the moniker of "Bird." Did it work? You know my standard answer to that question--Daughter of the King will be released this fall by Prism Book Group.