I’ve been writing a book/novella, and there are seven main characters (it’s a lot, I know): [name]Jaz[/name], [name]Ezra[/name], [name]Mina[/name], [name]Basil[/name], [name]Harvey[/name], [name]Perry[/name], and [name]Pascal[/name]. My main character is [name]Jaz[/name], who’s a girl. But recently, I’ve been feeling less and less confident about the choice of the name ‘[name]Jaz[/name]’. She just doesn’t really feel like a [name]Jaz[/name], and with that name, I can’t get a clear picture of her in my mind. This is pretty late in the game to make a big change like this- I’m 32 Microsoft Word pages into the book, and I only want to make all the change once.
Right now, she’s tough and responsible, pretty uptight. She’s responsible for taking care of the other kids, and since [name]Perry[/name] and [name]Pascal[/name] are the youngest, at age 10, they’re like a little sister and brother to her. She’s the leader. She takes care of everyone, and generally puts them first. When she does let her guard down and relaxes and lets herself have fun, she can be pretty easygoing and in for a laugh. She’s kind and smart, but because she’s responsible for everyone, she can be a bit of a worrier.
I think physical attributes play a huge part in the feel and naming of a character, and right now I’m bouncing between two different physiques which both work for the character:
slight, small, very curly dirty blonde and brown hair, tan, with brown eyes
average size, red hair, pale, sage green-grey eyes
I’m considering the names [name]Emily[/name] and [name]Natalie[/name] right now, but they’re not clicking as well as I’d like. They’re a little too “heard of”, for lack of a better term, for the character. I adore the names, but they don’t seem to fit in with names like [name]Pascal[/name] and [name]Ezra[/name] and [name]Basil[/name].
My issue with the name [name]Jaz[/name], while, awesome, is that it doesn’t offer much depth and the only full name I can find for [name]Jaz[/name] on a girl is [name]Jasmine[/name], which isn’t a favorite of mine.
I’m looking for something that isn’t frilly, that isn’t too “sweet” sounding, and isn’t too childish or too business-woman. For example, I can’t really envision her as a [name]Nancy[/name] or an [name]Ellie[/name].
Usually, I’m much more organized than this, and I realize that this isn’t really much to go on, and if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. Thank you so much!
I always see [name]Andrea[/name] as a strong yet feminine name; it has a very classic feel to it, while still having that tomboy aspect with the nickname [name]Andy[/name] or maybe Dre.
^This saved my life 70 pages into my most complete project. I’ve used it more times than I care to admit. I also use it to fix apostrophes when I copy-paste… (I like curly ones, not straight ones)
I was unaware of the ‘replace word’ function! That’s so helpful- thank you so much! It will be a lifesaver, I’m sure! Thank you so much for all of your help, everyone! I really appreciate it. Short, punchy names are what I’m leaning towards, or names with a defined, hard syllable, like [name]Natalie[/name]- the T stands out. I really like names that aren’t particularly masculine are feminine, but are still short. That’s why I selected [name]Jaz[/name]- it’s short and sweet, not exactly boy or girl. This is why I couldn’t use something like [name]Jen[/name] or [name]Matt[/name]- they’re preconceived as gender-specific. If I were to use a girl’s name, I wouldn’t want it to be particularly girly. I like the name [name]Johanna[/name]- it doesn’t suit the character, but as an example, it’s delightfully to the point without too many frills. [name]Just[/name] as an example, and I so appreciate your insight, I don’t think I could use [name]Lydia[/name] on this character because it’s so beautiful. I have to say though, as the only exception so far to the non-genderbinding rule, the name [name]Una[/name] is starting to grow on me. I don’t know if I’ll ever actually use it, but I like it, and it has the short, punchy feel I’m looking for.
Thanks again! I really appreciate all your help!
Well, I know a girl who goes by Madd sometimes. Her full name is Madelyne, she goes by [name]Maddie[/name], but we call her Madd sometimes. [name]Mattie[/name] could work as well.
[name]Jill[/name]
[name]June[/name]
[name]Jade[/name]
[name]Onyx[/name]
[name]Ash[/name]
[name]Cora[/name]
[name]Zel[/name] (short for [name]Giselle[/name] or something)
Find big words in the dictionary and break them into pieces; it helps bring you out of the ‘name’ box, and more into the realm of short and sweet.
The dictionary trick is really cool- I’ll have to use that next time! I really like [name]June[/name]; I actually ended up using [name]Junia[/name] for another short story I wrote! Same with [name]Cora[/name]. [name]Ash[/name] was on the list as a replacement name- it made it to the finals. In the end, with some insight from a friend, I ended up going with the name ‘[name]Wren[/name]’. What do you think? [name]Do[/name] you think it works with the other names I’ve selected for the other characters in the story?
Some names I thought of:
[name]Keturah[/name]
[name]Talia[/name]
[name]Manon[/name]
[name]August[/name]
[name]Lenore[/name]
[name]Feodora[/name]
[name]Justice[/name]
[name]Juno[/name]
[name]Laurel[/name]
What about [name]Natalia[/name]? It has the very similar sounds that [name]Natalie[/name] has (obviously, haha) but yet I think it has a more unique and dare I say, exotic sound to it? Other than that, names I would suggest are:
Okay, I know I’m kinda late, but how about [name]Tassia[/name]? It’s a nickname for [name]Anastasia[/name], but it stands fine on it’s own - it’s familiar and interesting at the same time, and it has that strong ‘T’ you liked in [name]Natalie[/name].