One of the things we’ve learned in class is that character names matter. Imagine two princesses, one named Priscilla and the other, Ivana. Chances are, you didn’t imagine identical twins.
George Lucas may be the master of obvious names. The lone smuggler’s last name is Solo, and the alien who shows up to collect money from him is Greedo. One particularly nasty enemy is named General Grevious. Luke comes from the Latin word for light, and may be related to Rey (of light) as well. The overweight X-Wing pilot was named Porkins. You get the idea.
Here are the character names from my current novel:
Skip: The protagonist’s name is Skip. He’s been on the run, and people are trying to find him. Like skip traces. I’m thinking of calling the book “Tracing Skip.”
Sarah: Skip’s late wife. I just picked this name because it starts with the letter “S.” I have such a hard time keeping names straight when I’m reading, so I decided to do the reader a favor.
Bart: The bartender. Bart. The Bartender.
Pearl: A waitress at the bar. I random;y picked this name and am not set on it.
Monica: One of the major characters. I’m also not set on this name. It was just a place holder that stuck.
Drew: The main antagonist. Again, not set on this one.
I picked most of the names so I could start writing. As time goes on, I’m going to have to go back and spend some more time picking names that reflect their true character and motivations.