The Jane Doe Ghost is less than a week away! In honor of the upcoming release, I thought I'd share some fun facts about how the characters got their names.
Elspeth (Elle) - I've wanted to use this name FOREVER. I first heard it when I used to listen to Mystery Theater on the radio. The actress, Elspeth Aric, was a frequent performer, as was Mercedes McCambridge. I wrote a story once using both those names that was a dud, and my critique partner tells me the names are outdated. Old names are making a comeback! For instance, my granddaughter shares my grandmother's name. I figured it was time to bring Elspeth out of the mothballs.
Laine - One of the ladies I interviewed for Horned Owl Hollow has a boyfriend named Lane. As I tossed about for a name for Elle's sister, I didn't think he'd mind if I adapted his name and changed his gender to be Elle's sidekick.
Chance - This one is funny (at least I think so). I'd been out with a group of my husband's friends (and wives) and one of the wives mentioned to me she loved the movie Being There with Peter Sellers. It's not a well-known movie, but yes, I've seen it. We joked about it and all the nuances. When the caretaker of the Horned Owl Hollow estate showed up for the first time, I reached into the recesses of my mind for a suitable name and wouldn't you know it? Chance, the gardener, popped up. At the time, I wasn't sure what his role was going to be. Obviously, my Chance isn't anything like Chance the gardener, but his name stuck.
The rest of them? I keep a database of names to use, along with names I've used in other books (so I don't reuse them). Names pop out at me every day as I live my life. Most of the names I pick are random, or appropriate to the role based on free association. When I named the people in Maine in this book, I did do a search to see what names were popular in Maine for a taste of authenticity.
Sometimes I do have name snafus. For instance, in Cookie Therapy, I'd named a character Shannon. Time came for a last name, and I was searching about for what fit with Shannon. Somewhere in my subconscious, I picked Doherty. An Irish first name should go with an Irish surname, you know. It got all the way to my editor before she pointed out there was "someone else" name Shannon Doherty, and did I really want to use that name? Oops. Sometimes there's a reason those names sound so good together! I tend to Google names to make sure I haven't conveniently forgotten someone with that name, a lesson I learned writing my very first book that I neglected to do with that book.
Now I have to remind you that you can preorder The Jane Doe Ghost! Oh, and have I mentioned the audiobook of The Architect is available? If you buy it this month, you get the discounted launch price. Get it while it's hot!
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| Click here to preorder |
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| Buy it now before the price goes up! |
One (of many) of my naming challenges is to avoid fixating on a letter of the alphabet, or having soundalike names, or visually "alike" names. Or repeating names. My editor missed that I had three characters named Hank in one of my early books. I keep a spreadsheet now, which helps with the repeats, but I'm always scouting for new names.
ReplyDeleteIt's always a challenge to keep track of sound alikes and repeats. That's why I started my book bible to keep track. Even with that, sometimes I overlook names that sound alike or start with the same letter.
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