I’m currently working on a writing project that I began back in [name]November[/name]. It’s the longest I’ve ever stuck with a story and I’ve done A TON of work on it, so I think it might be “the one” if you know what I mean. Lately I’ve been struggling to write, and I think I found the problem.
My main character and her cousin don’t have the right names. My main character is [name]Marissa[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name], called Riss or Rissy. It doesn’t suit her at all. Her cousin is [name]Eleanor[/name] [name]Grace[/name] called [name]Ellie[/name], which also doesn’t fit her at all.
“Riss” has twin brothers named [name]John[/name] [name]Howard[/name] ([name]Jack[/name]) and [name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Floyd[/name] ([name]Benjy[/name]) who are named after their grandfathers. “Riss” is not named after anyone. “[name]Ellie[/name]” has a brother named [name]Tristan[/name] [name]Elijah[/name] ([name]Tristan[/name]), which is a different style from [name]Eleanor[/name] [name]Grace[/name].
“Riss” is headstrong, understanding, a little quirky, independent, eager to prove herself, and adapts easily to her situation. She has reddish brown hair, green eyes, and is a little overweight. “[name]Ellie[/name]” is very girly, athletic (she’s an avid gymnast), vibrant, talkative, emotional, and tends to linger on things more than she should. She has blonde hair, brown eyes, and is lean and muscular.
Ideally, both of their names will be in the top 50 (US) the year they were born (1994 for “Riss”, 1997 for “[name]Ellie[/name]”). “Riss” was a tomboy when she was little so I liked the idea of her having a name that could shorten to a boyish nickname.
[name]Hope[/name] someone can help! I definitely need some outside opinions at this point.
I’ve done the same thing. I recently slammed on the brakes 50,000 words into a project I was loving and couldnt figure out why, renamed one of the characters and back on track, somehow it makes ALL the difference.
I usually read Top 100 names from the year of birth to get some inspiration too, just trying to think like that parent. Let’s see if anything works or at least inspires a direction for you…
1994, so currently [name]Marissa[/name]/Riss/Rissy
[name]Cassandra[/name] nn [name]Andy[/name]
[name]Melissa[/name] nn [name]Mel[/name]/[name]Melly[/name]/Mels/Lissy/[name]Lissa[/name]
[name]Christina[/name] nn [name]Stina[/name]/[name]Tina[/name]
[name]Michelle[/name] nn Chele/[name]Mitch[/name]
[name]Alyssa[/name] nn [name]Al[/name]/[name]Ally[/name]/Lyss
[name]John[/name] [name]Howard[/name], [name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Floyd[/name], and [name]Melissa[/name] [name]Amber[/name]
[name]John[/name] [name]Howard[/name], [name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Floyd[/name], and [name]Alexandra[/name] [name]Eve[/name]
[name]John[/name] [name]Howard[/name], [name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Floyd[/name], and [name]Cassandra[/name] [name]Jane[/name] (Could get [name]Andy[/name], [name]Cassie[/name], CJ, etc…)
1997, so [name]Ellie[/name], [name]Eleanor[/name] [name]Grace[/name]
[name]Melanie[/name] (I danced with a girl with a similar description in the 90s, so I think this is where I went first!) nn [name]Melly[/name]
[name]Danielle[/name] or [name]Daniella[/name]
[name]Samantha[/name]
Thanks guys! I forgot to mention in the original post that their surname is [name]Hardy[/name]. I’ve been giving this issue some thought and have gone all the way back to my very first notes for this story for ideas. This is what I’ve come up with.
For [name]Marissa[/name]/Riss:
I’m liking [name]Jessica[/name] ([name]Jess[/name] or [name]Jessie[/name]) or [name]Alexandra[/name] ([name]Alex[/name]) the most. Right now I’m leaning toward her middle name being [name]Sanders[/name], which is her maternal grandmother’s maiden name. I think her middle name is mentioned twice in the entire story, so I’m not making a big deal out of it. [name]Jessica[/name] [name]Sanders[/name] [name]Hardy[/name] sounds the best to me…
For [name]Eleanor[/name]/[name]Ellie[/name]:
I’m stuck on [name]Brianna[/name], [name]Brittany[/name], and [name]Danielle[/name]. Which combination sounds the best with last name [name]Hardy[/name]?
For the character [name]Marissa[/name]/Riss, here are the names I thought of (that are also in the top 50 names at the time)
[name]Nicole[/name] ([name]Nic[/name])
[name]Amber[/name] ([name]Amie[/name]/Ambie)
[name]Victoria[/name] ([name]Tori[/name]/[name]Toria[/name]/Vix)
[name]Shannon[/name] (I know this is no.60 but when I read the description this name came to me straight away)
And for [name]Eleanor[/name]/[name]Ellie[/name], I like [name]Brianna[/name] out of the names you chose, but here are a few of my own just for you to look at.
@bethlow: Thanks for the ideas. [name]Shannon[/name] is a really good suggestion. I like [name]Brooke[/name] and [name]Lauren[/name] for “[name]Ellie[/name]” too.
I really like [name]Alexandra[/name] and [name]Danielle[/name] from your narrowed choices.
[name]Jessica[/name] and [name]Brittany[/name] are very 90s in my mind though, so I think it depends how specific you want…I don’t really like to use names that key in too too much to the decade, just feels distracting to me, but to each his own of course.
@lineska: I think I’ll take [name]Brittany[/name] off the list. I agree with you about it being too 90s. [name]Jessica[/name], although it was the most popular girl’s name of the 90s, actually doesn’t feel that dated to me.
So here is the new shortlist for [name]Marissa[/name]/Riss:
[name]Jessica[/name] [name]Hardy[/name] ([name]Jess[/name]/[name]Jessie[/name])
[name]Alexandra[/name] [name]Hardy[/name] ([name]Alex[/name])
[name]Shannon[/name] [name]Hardy[/name] (wouldn’t use a nickname)
I like [name]Alexandra[/name] better because you could use Xana, Xara, [name]Andy[/name], Lany.
While I like [name]Jess[/name], it feels more stunted, maybe you’re leaning toward that because you’ve been calling her an ‘ess/iss’ name for so long.
For the cousin, I like [name]Bree[/name], but I like [name]Dani[/name] and [name]Danielle[/name] better than [name]Brianna[/name].