Choosing character names
How do you develop and decide on names for characters?
–Lauren
First, decide if you’re usually going to refer to this character by their first name, last name or some other nickname. In GO, Ronna and Claire are always referred to by their first names, whereas Gaines and Singh are last names, while Tiny and Junior are nicknames.
Once you’ve decided which part of the name is most important, pick one that sounds appropriate to the character. How you choose that name is up to you. Some people use baby names books or the telephone directory. For some reason, I name a lot of characters after streets in my neighborhood. If you’re really stuck, Final Draft has a names database that can be helpful in a pinch. However you find the name, it should start with a different letter than any other name in the script, just to avoid reader confusion.
Now pick a first or last name to go with it. Often, I’ll just pick a letter at random and start sounding out names until I find one that seems to work. As a final check, I always wrack my brain to see if I remember anybody else with that name. It’s creepy how often I’ll end up with somebody I already know.
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August 29th, 2005 at 9:26 am
I once gave a character the name Mr. Drug Dealer. I called him this because I didn’t want the reader to like or identify with him.
February 16th, 2006 at 1:30 pm
I’d add that you should take into account the age and social background of the character, also his/her origins. If the parents are characters of the film/TV show, think how they would have named their child when they had him/her. That usually works for me.
May 19th, 2006 at 7:49 am
I am wondering if there are any legal considerations to choosing a name? If somebody already has a name can i use it? Is it different for common names and unique names?
November 7th, 2006 at 8:53 am
Hi, John. I am trying to find out if there is a strict rule on giving a character a nickname, or is the formatting of it fairly loose. Example: I have a character named PETER PEPPINO and within the script he will be referred to by some as Pete or Mr. Peppino, but also he will be known as Little Pepe, his street name and this is how I will name him in the script: LITTLE PEPE. When he is first introduced would I capitalize all of it as PETER “LITTLE PEPE” PEPPINO or PETER “Little Pepe” PEPPINO, keeping the nickname in small case? Or PETER PEPPINO (Little Pepe) use brackets or just mention something in the action like “To all his cronies he is known as “Little Pepe.” How would you do it? You can reply back to email. Thanks,
April 6th, 2007 at 7:41 am
Love this site. I love naming characters. I have used names of actors I know or who I visualize in the part, just to help me in seeing them in my head. Most of the time, I turn to the library in my writing space and pull out a book and pick a name or will use an authors last name.
June 21st, 2007 at 2:17 am
Re: naming a character mr drug dealer I work in the criminal justice field mainly with drug users/dealers and although the crimes committed by some can be quite nauseas they are not 1 dimensional people and have similar goals/desire and fears as anyone else. A writer who wishes to portray a drug dealer as totally unlikeable is limiting theirselves completely.
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January 5th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
Hey, also to take into consideration when naming a character: phoenetics (did I spell that right?). As another writer once pointed out to me, “Captain Kirk” has an extremely strong sound about it – you know this guy can not only lead a starship, but bed the ladies as well. Hard names often imply tougher characters (and vice versa for “soft” names). Even in stuff like PULP FICTION, “Mr. Pink” is a crisp, authorative name, aurally.
February 20th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
Hilary, Mr. Pink is a character from Reservoir Dogs, not Pulp Fiction.