Giving Name to Mother Character

Writers' Corner
1

Hello All!

I’m in the middle of writing a short story about a woman returning home after several years. In this story so far is her newborn daughter, and her longterm boyfriend. The names for the newborn daughter and husband came easily, but the name for my main character is eluding me.

The story takes place in Upstate [name_m]New[/name_m] [name_m]York[/name_m], near Niagara Falls, in the present era. My main character is in her early 30s, about average height (I see her as being around 5’6"), with dark wavy hair, dark green eyes, and is olive-skinned. She’s very no-nonsense and straightforward, but loving and has a good sense of humor. I have no idea what to name her, because trying to find a balance between strong names and names from the decade that she would’ve been born in is tough.

Her longterm boyfriend is named [name_m]Mark[/name_m], is in his late 30s, and he’s quite tall, and very sweet and hardworking. I’m settled on his name, I think it fits his character and the story perfectly.

Then there’s their newborn daughter, who is named [name_f]Zinnia[/name_f], and who takes after her mother quite a bit already – part of the story takes place before her birth and then a majority of it takes place afterwards, where her parents are returning to the place they met (and where the main character grew up) about six years earlier.

I’ve considered a few names, such as [name_f]Dawn[/name_f], and [name_f]Heather[/name_f], and even plainer names like [name_f]Jane[/name_f] and [name_f]Kat[/name_f], but I haven’t found one that fits just yet. So far [name_f]Heather[/name_f] is my favorite, but I don’t know if the plant connection between [name_f]Heather[/name_f] and [name_f]Zinnia[/name_f] is a little much?

Any opinions or suggestions would be much appreciated!

2

Most people, at least in [name_u]America[/name_u], don’t really realize heather is a plant, and for many who do it’s a secondary recognition and they strongly relate to word heather to a name first, a lot like how [name_m]Austin[/name_m] or [name_u]Chelsea[/name_u] are locations, but most people don’t think about it. I personally think the flower connection wouldn’t be too much. I will say, though, that in the 90s, [name_f]Heather[/name_f] was the #2 most popular name for the white lower class via Freakonomics, and as such it might not be the best choice for an olive-skinned character. What is her specific ethnic background? Would her parents opt for a name that reflects their background and culture or would they choose one from another (specifically [name_u]America[/name_u]'s white lower class) culture? Was she named by someone other than her parents perhaps?

3

I like [name_f]Heather[/name_f].

[name_u]Chelsea[/name_u] is nice too.

Other suggestions: [name_f]Moira[/name_f], [name_f]Marin[/name_f], [name_f]Laurel[/name_f] and [name_f]Gwen[/name_f].

4

[name_f]Rosa[/name_f], [name_f]Rose[/name_f], [name_f]Michelle[/name_f], [name_f]Melissa[/name_f], [name_u]Kelsey[/name_u], [name_f]Ivy[/name_f], [name_f]Eva[/name_f], [name_f]Sonya[/name_f]

5

[name_f]Laura[/name_f], [name_f]Missy[/name_f], [name_f]Liza[/name_f], [name_f]Grace[/name_f], [name_f]Amelia[/name_f]

6

I like [name_f]Heather[/name_f]!

7

[name_f]Heather[/name_f] is lovely however weirdly she sounds like a [name_f]Adeline[/name_f] or a [name_u]December[/name_u]. Maybe??