Googling your characters' names

[Rainbow Skin]

Sometimes I give my characters surnames as well as forenames. Not often; but sometimes I remember to be prudent and Google for them first. For example, "Jennie Cornwell" has a few hits but nothing significant. So it's safe to use.

I had another one with a girl called "Marly" -- deliberately a made-up name, unusual but possible. I'd never heard of it as a name, but it also didn't sound too wrong. Later in the story I had occasion to talk about her brother... so he was something very bland, Graeme White.

Then I do a sequel, and for no particular reason I use her full name in the title: her brother's White, so she's Marly White. I never thought about it as a name, just used it.

Now I've just found that "marly white" is a kind of pigment: 'Unusual pigments that are centuries old like Marly White, Lithopone White, Nickel Yellow, and Barite Green are available.' And/or a china pattern.

Hm, looks like there are also a couple of real people already called that. But I wish I'd thought to check beforehand!

 

[Svenskaflicka]

I never bother do check if someone in RL has the same name as one of my characters! First of all, I always use names that are so common that they could refer to hundreds of people, second, I rarely name places, so no-one needs to feel pointed out, third, if they have such a lack of imagination that they have to name their kids the same names I name my characters, they deserve all the shame they can get, and fourth and finally - it's FICTION!!! Come on...

 

[openthighs_sarah]

Actually, I do search for my characters on the web, but for a different reason. There's just a tiny part of me that wants -- and believes it's possible -- to find them. Not the names, but the characters themselves.

It just seems like you can find anything or anyone at all on the web, so sometimes I'll give it a shot...

 

[snooper]

I never bother do check if someone in RL has the same name as one of my characters! First of all, I always use names that are so common that they could refer to hundreds of people, ...

I agree, that works fine for ordinary characters, but for some you have to be careful. I invented a place called Kobekistan and did a lot of checking to make sure it didn't exist. The same with one character in the Kobekistan books, the Earl of Bargoed. His country house is described based entirely on a real house, and moved six miles to a real village, and this is acknowledged in the intro to the book.

Conversely, real people can intervene. For example, if someone had been kidnapped, I would not hesitate to have her captor say, "So you think George Dubya's going to send the Marines to find you? You're no Jessica."

 

[English Lady]

I don't think I often use a characters full name anyway, and i don't ever check it.


though for my latest story I did look up a name for my female character using a baby names site *L*

 

[Guest]

I don’t know. It’s weird. I would get just a bit queasy using surnames and will likely continue avoiding them in short erotic stories. But the funny thing is, though, if I ever force myself into writing a novelette, I actually think it appropriate to describe characters with full names and would likely do so!

But I do search or google (is this now a verb?) for meanings-behind-the names (baby name sites are excellent for this as suggested by English Lady). Besides, it's an interesting diversion (at least for me), and I sometimes use the results from some of those searches for characters names in several of my stories.

 

[destinie21]

I don't ever search to make sure the name i pick isn't real although I do look at sites for certain names such as an Indian or Hindu name. I also like to use names with meanings behind them it helps me form the chracter even though I know the reader will most likely have no idea that the name Mya means vision or great beauty.