My story (I call it a ‘story,’ although it’s well over 200 pages long by now) is about three-quarters done, and I’ve changed the names of some main characters several times already. My little sister, who’s my biggest fan AND my biggest critic, said she didn’t like some of the names, but wouldn’t elaborate on the subject.
The story’s set in modern-day [name]Washington[/name], D.C., and is a slightly silly fantasy story about a bunch of eighth graders whose varied and untrained magical powers get them into all kinds of bizarre trouble. I’d say I’m aiming it at readers from age 10 to 13. Anyway, I’d love some alternative name suggestions.
Here are the characters:
*[name]Phineas[/name] [name]Fenton[/name], called “Phin.” He’s the narrator, main character, and the only one whose name is totally set in stone. He’s small, with red hair and braces, seems younger than thirteen, and can be quite immature, hyperactive, and overly idealistic, making him a generally unreliable narrator. That said, he’s a great friend and probably the most enthusiastic character. I’ve had his name floating around in my head for about seven years, without knowing how I was going to use it.
*The [name]Wong[/name] twins, Phin’s close friends. I’ve called them [name]Luc[/name] and [name]Jules[/name] [name]Wong[/name], short for [name]Lucien[/name] and [name]Julien[/name]. They’re both very eccentric and intelligent, in different ways. Their mother is a French actress and their father is a Chinese-American historian. [name]Luc[/name] is a great artist and always has his head in the clouds, but although he often seems stupid and careless, he’s extremely observant and surprisingly responsible. He’s a gentle giant, has spiky hair and glasses, and wears lots of bright colors. [name]Jules[/name] is very skinny and angular, with a ponytail and baggy black clothes. He’s sarcastic and cynical and uses a lot of long words and very old-fashioned slang. [name]Jules[/name] has about eight different bizarre and crippling phobias, which he’s always trying to cure, never with much success (but causing much hilarity). Although he’s very smart, nothing ever seems to go right for him. The two brothers bicker constantly and disagree on everything, but are very close. In the current draft of my story, their birth certificates read [name]Thomas[/name] [name]Lucien[/name] [name]Wong[/name] and [name]Alexander[/name] [name]Julien[/name] [name]Wong[/name] (but they have to go by middle names due to extenuating circumstances in the plot). However, it was originally [name]Lucien[/name] [name]Jefferson[/name] “[name]Jeff[/name]” [name]Wong[/name] and [name]Julien[/name] [name]Hamilton[/name] “[name]Ham[/name]” [name]Wong[/name], and any combination of those names-- or similar ones-- would work.
*[name]Magdalena[/name] [name]Camille[/name] Parasol-- Phin’s best friend, and the principal’s daughter. I want her name to be as flouncy as possible, and she never goes by a nickname. It’s been Magdalia, [name]Magdalena[/name], [name]Magnolia[/name], Magnificence, Aubrietta, and Citronella in different drafts. She’s tiny, blonde, and chubby, and she wears very frilly feminine clothes. Despite her girly mannerisms, girly hobbies, and girly taste in basically everything, she’s a self-proclaimed ‘criminal mastermind’ who is always creating mischief and trouble, is a black-belt, and has a giant pet snake named [name]Ichabod[/name]. She’s got her dad wrapped around her finger and is wonderfully manipulative and sneaky.
*[name]Rhonda[/name] Blenkinsopp-- Phin’s beloved chorus teacher, who he calls by her first name. She’s a (rather frumpy and unattractive) mermaid and teaches from inside a huge tank of water that has to be wheeled around. Everyone treats this as totally normal for no apparent reason.
*[name]Roberta[/name] [name]Joy[/name] Nobbs-- This is the one whose name is the least certain and has changed the most. She’s the new kid, very quiet, thin, and plain, and is not very nice to Phin at first, though they end up becoming good friends. Her mind is more straightforward and direct than the other characters, and she’s the most action-oriented. In my original draft, her name was [name]Matilda[/name] and Phin nicknamed her “[name]Matt[/name].” Then I remembered that I already have a character named [name]Magdalena[/name], and that [name]Matilda[/name]'s already been used in another famous story about kids with magical powers. I switched to [name]Roberta[/name] so that Phin could call her “[name]Bob[/name] Nobbs,” but I was wondering if that was too similar to ‘[name]Rhonda[/name].’ I was also considering [name]Robin[/name], or another boyish name.