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Name My Characters
Hi Abigail,What is the time period for the two stories? If they're both contemporary, that's one thing. But if they're say medieval, Regency, or Victorian, to name just a few, that would certainly influence the choice of names.
You mean y'all can't read my mind? :) Sorry about that.Contemporary, both of them.
My sense is that since both last names are several syllables, the first names should probably be short. Here are some I've come up with:1) Bart, Hank, Hal, Mace Cumberland
2) Brock, Garth, Webb Rutherford
Damien, Raymond CumberlandAiden, Ethan, Hayden (not sure if there's an actual person named Hayden Rutherford, but this combo keeps coming back to me lol) Rutherford
For the first I think you need a name that is able to become a good guy in the sequel. Something short as Gerrie said, maybe Rafe, Gabe, Evan, Luke.
The second has to be something more sinister because i don't think cheaters can ever be redeemed in Romancelandia! Lucan, Jude, Dimitri
1. Jackson, Cal, Barrett, Lucas Cumberland2. Vince, Robert, Stephen Rutherford
Cumberland has been named! I'm taking Hal. Thanks, Gerrie and everyone else for your suggestions.
Thank you Abigail. I'm really excited that you used one of my suggestions. It makes me feel like a part of the book (I get to do the fun part without any of the hard work).
Congrats, Gerrie!
I'm glad you feel like that because I found a new favorite way to name things in my book!!!
Jack, Eddie, Drew Rutherford
Keep 'me coming! I think I want something snooty sounding for Rutherford.Oh - I also need some male names for non-descript boyfriends. First and last.
Alastair, Bradley, Neilson Rutherford
Actually, just using a guy's full name instead of a nickname can be snooty. James, Charles, or William Rutherford come to mind (notice, they're all names of English kings). There's a big difference if a man insists on being called James instead of Jim. The majority of American men go by nicknames, so it's somewhat elitist to go for the full name (imho). And if this guy is a cheater, can't you see him going around like some jerk insisting that everyone call him James, William, etc.I'll try to think of some "non-descript boyfriend" names. Thanks Abigail, this is fun!
Algernon, Archibald, Barnaby, Desmond, Edgar, Edmund,Godfrey, Humphrey, Neville,Sheldon, Theodore, Williardnon descript boyfriends - Adam Rogers, Tim Williams, John Whitfield, Silas James, Geoffrey Harding, Bryan Goode, Reggie Farr, Lance Martin
Sebastian, Mortimer, Anderson, Reginald, Quintan, Zachary, Elijah, Visroy - RutherfordNon-descript bf: Troy McCallister, Nick Southerland, Patrick Kincaid, Robert Eckersley, Corey Drummond, Noah Greenley
How funny you picked Sebastian. He's already a character. A Prince, actually.
Lol cool, Sebastian does have that aura...lol
Dillon, Clayton, Thornton, Bryce, Nigel RutherfordNondescript bf: Blake Adams, Ethan Garrett, Heath Manning, Travis Walker
I wanted to name him Lucien, but every time I thought of him, he insisted his name was Sebastian. So now his brother is Lucien. :)Thanks for the great names, Nikki!!
Haha Mortimer is my friend's last name
I assume these all have to be white guys? lol
No... White, black, purple, silver, whatever. I like having non-white characters in my stories and NOT making race as issue.
Cool. That would change some of the names then.
Non-descript boyfriend names - Cal Morgan, Dan Foley, Ron Vincent, Ted Baker, Ira Benson, Lyle Carlson, Fred Williams, Paul Straker, Bill Eckert, and Tim Farmer.
How funny that you should use Ira. I was just thinking today of making Carrie Jewish.
Abigail, I have to admit I threw in Ira because of the name. I always enjoy seeing a character whose name sounds Jewish, even if religion is not in any way a factor in the story.There were some discussions on both Amazon and Goodreads about Jewish characters in historical romance. Since I read mainly historical romance, I participated in those discussions. There aren't very many Jewish characters in historical romances (especially those that take place in Europe) since Jews were not part of the mainstream during the time periods involved. But there are a few really good books which do have Jewish characters, and the authors did a fine job of describing the considerable obstacles to a marriage between a Christian and a Jew in those times, especially if the Christian was an aristocrat.
How true, Gerrie! I haven't thought much about it, but you're right about the lack of Jewish characters in a lot of books. I remember one with Jews as secondary characters, and they were bankers, go figure.This will be fun. :)
Abigail, I'm looking forward to hearing more about your characters and books as they develop. And you clearly have a whole group here who love naming characters.
I am afraid I have to see the face to give a name. visual mind. So here is my hottie of the jewish faith.
Yowsa! Who's that? I don't like the earrings, but the rest is a-ok! (and it's not that I don't like earrings on men. I just like them smaller. (and how often do you hear THAT when talking about a guy?))I have a friend named Ira. He's about 5'2, flaming red hair, and is a lawyer. No stereotype there!
Sunny, your picture reminds me a little of David Beckham (who actually happens to be part Jewish). The guy in your picture is a hottie, but I also think Beckham is too.Abigail, I went to high school with a couple of Iras, but none of them were particularly physically attractive. I don't know what you envision for the "Ira" character, but you could also use Eli, Aaron, Ari, or Dov to name just a few off the top of my head. And maybe they'll have smaller…earrings. Lol!
Gerrie wrote: "There were some discussions on both Amazon and Goodreads about Jewish characters in historical romance. Since I read mainly historical romance, I participated in those discussions. There aren't very many Jewish characters in historical romances (especially those that take place in Europe) since Jews were not part of the mainstream during the time periods involved. But there are a few really good books which do have Jewish characters, and the authors did a fine job of describing the considerable obstacles to a marriage between a Christian and a Jew in those times, especially if the Christian was an aristocrat. "Fictional or non-fictional? Which books? Cause I would love to read a HR with a main character that's Jewish. The story angle you described sounds really angsty and I've always wanted to find a book where faith/social status is used as a conflict between a couple.
Melody, these are all fiction. Most are historical romances, the others are historical mysteries. I'll see if I can find the discussion and link it, because a number of people recommended books, far more than just the books I had read. The books I recommended:
Carola Dunn wrote a terrific trilogy that took place during the Napoleonic Wars. The first book is Miss Jacobson's Journey. Both the hero and heroine are Jewish, and the hero is a courier for the Rothschilds and carries gold to pay the English troops fighting on the Peninsula. The hero and heroine from the first book are major secondary characters in the second book, Lord Roworth's Reward. The Rothschilds make major appearances in both books. These were romances.
By the way, in Carla Kelly's Marrying the Royal Marine the hero and heroine are aided by one of the Rothschild couriers while escaping from the French army.
Nita Abrams wrote a 5 book series, "The Couriers," about a Jewish family who are spies for the British during the Napoleonic wars. A great series. These were all romances. In one of the books, the Jewish heroine marries a Christian nobleman, the hero.
There's a great historical mystery series by Sharan Newman, which takes place in medieval France. The first book is Death Comes As Epiphany: A Catherine LeVendeur Mystery. The heroine has been raised as a Christian, but finds out that her father is a secret Jew. She marries a Scottish nobleman who is also aware of her family secret. While the heroine remains Christian, she and her husband both embrace her father's family, and her father's family members are all major secondary characters throughout the series.
I also love the author Kate Ross, who wrote 4 fabulous Regency themed mysteries before she passed away. One of those books,Whom the Gods Love: Julian Kestrel #3 has a major secondary character, a Jewish financier, who's in love with a beautiful aristocrat. It's a major element of the story.
Finally, there's Zoe Archer's Lady X's Cowboy, which is set in Victorian England. Both the hero and heroine have strong Jewish connections, although it's not a major component of the book. But they do occasionally speak Yiddish to each other.
Okay, I named the Married Man Anderson Rutherford, courtesy of Leslie. :)I love when things like this happen: My heroine calls him Andy. She doesn't realize he's married.
The hero (who's in love with the heroine but she doesn't know it yet) Googles the guy to make sure he's okay. But he thinks Rutherford's name is Andrew, so he finds nothing.
I chose Anderson because it was perfectly pretentious. The wrong name came up while I was writing the story. Isn't that funny?
This is a book that i read years ago but remember it because of the beautiful writing. It is a historical romance between a Jewish midwife and a Dutch clergyman. IIRC it has a very sad, emotional ending but worth reading especially if you like a solid historical base along with your romance.
It sounds beautiful. I'm not sure if I can do a sad emotional ending.
Lisa, thank you, it does sound beautiful, although I've gotten addicted to happy endings. Like Abigail, I don't know if I'm up for a sad ending. I recently read a beautiful contemporary love story with a beauty and the beast theme, and was shattered at the tragic ending. Melody, I found that discussion on Amazon that I mentioned, although I'm not sure how to link it. If you go to the Amazon Historical Romance Forum, you can find it under the thread "Jewish Hero." There were some great recommendations (I posted there under Gee Gee).
Round Two!I need a name for an older movie star. In my mind, it's a woman, but it could be man. She lives at a bed and breakfast and thinks it's her home and the owner is a servant. Think Sunset Boulevard, and ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille!
She's a nice woman, just a little confused.
Her name cannot start with B, C, F, H, J, W, or S.
And GO! :)
Adelaide Graham
Effie Dawson
This is fun! You guys are awesome. :)
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Both are more villainous-types and for two different stories.
The first is the brother of the hero so his first name has to fit with the last name Cumberland.
The second is a married man cheating on his wife. He has no name at all yet but I'm leaning toward the last name Rutherford.
These books are not yet contracted. And I can't use the full name if someone personally known to you. But the first name is your jerk ex husband? Bring it. :)