My other sci-fi/fantasy novel is currently on hold as the main character refuses to be named and I keep hitting a wall when trying to move forward with her unnamed. Sorry this is long but thanks in advance for any help.
In the inerim I’ve decided to work on another novel which I recently became inspired for. This one is set in a more real life paradigm, although a little more into the future (not to far, just a handful of years, I’m thinking somewhere around 2020). You could say the “main character” or at least the main focus of the story is the girl who I’m trying to name but it is told from the POV of her fraternal twin, [name]Arianne[/name]. At the onset of the story [name]Arianne[/name] is in her early twenties. It is late summer, the 8th anniversary of her sister’s disappearance.
Although it has been 8 years and there were never any clues to her mysterious abduction (at least, this is what is assumed after so long) [name]Arianne[/name] has never stopped believing that her sister is alive, somewhere out in the world, unable to get back to them. They live somewhere in the midwest (or maybe Northeast) I’m thinking somewhere like [name]Montana[/name], Idaho, [name]Indiana[/name] or [name]Vermont[/name] or some other similar place, in a midsize town, a lot of easily accesible nature about (woods, hills, mountains, meadows or similar etc.) with distinct seasons that make those lazy summer days all the more golden and precious. On this anniversary [name]Arianne[/name] recieves a letter, handwritten. All it says is “I am sorry, [name]Annie[/name]”. [name]Arianne[/name] swears it is from her sister, the only person who ever called her [name]Annie[/name]. With nothing but this mysterious letter and clues almost a decade old, [name]Arianne[/name] begins to search into her sister’s private life, trying to discover what happened to her all those years ago and where she might be now.
The sister is only ever seen through [name]Arianne[/name]'s memories, home movies, and photographs (most self portraits). She wanted to be a photographer and had natural talent for it. She disappeared shortly after the twins 16th birthday. She was friendly, gregarious, a little bit of a tomboy, a prankster and a joker. She made friends effortlessly. She had a good ear for languages, spoke French and Spanish fluently and dreamed of travelingto South [name]America[/name] and Europe. She had known her boyfriend since Kindergarten, their first kiss was in the 3rd grade and they had been together ever since. Everyone was convinced these childhood sweethearts would go all the way. She was an avid hiker and swimmer. She loved kayaking and snorkeling (when they vacationed in warmer climates with corals reefs. Really anything outdoors among the trees or in the water, she loved. Her favorite color was green. She loved animals and had a Karelian [name]Bear[/name] Dog who was her constant companion. After she disappeared [name]Arianne[/name] took care of her but she’s never been the same, as though she too is waiting for her owner to come home.
I guess I could go on and on but that might get tedious I just realized how long this had gotten. Anyway, she is the physical opposite of [name]Arianne[/name], dark where [name]Arianne[/name] is fair. I want a name with a sort of heavyness or richness that reflects her physical darkness and maybe even the implied darkness of her story (if that makes sense) and possibly something with a boyish nn. Some names I have considered but discarded for one reason or another are:
[name]Delilah[/name]
[name]Dahlia[/name]
[name]Eve[/name]
[name]Clio[/name]/[name]Cleo[/name]
[name]Regina[/name] (nn [name]Reggie[/name])
[name]Parker[/name]