How I Craft My Characters: Names

Last week, I confessed that – with the exception of a few setpiece elements – I tend to make things up as I go along.  The natural follow-up question is, “What about your characters?”  The short answer is, again, a little bit of both.

There’s actually kind of a long story behind how exactly my characters became who they are.  In fact, I’ve split the story into two multiple parts.  This week, I’ll tell you about the names of my characters:  something that was planned, and in the future, I’ll tell you how they somehow managed to evolve to take on a life of their own.  And, like any good story featuring a huge geek such as myself, this story starts at a gaming convention…

No. Think geekier…

 

There you go.

 

I’m a huge fan of Role-Playing Games, otherwise known as RPGs… yes, I do like video game RPGs, but, as a writer, I prefer the kind where you sit down with a pencil and paper and construct a character from scratch, giving them skills and abilities that enable them to interact with the game that the Game Master creates for you.  Essentially, a pencil-and-paper RPG is an interactive story that you help to tell, based on what you do with your character.  As a writer, what’s not to love?

Okay, enough nerding out.  Anyway, my story starts at DexCon 2012, where I had the privilege of playing Night’s Black Agents, with its creator, Ken Hite.  Night’s Black Agents is a game that pits highly-trained special agents against various paranormal threats, particularly vampires.  After playing, I was so impressed with the game, that I began planning my own storylines, for hosting games with my friends.  My first scenario, which was never actually played, turned into my (as of yet unpublished) novel, Blood of the Innocents.

So, how did I get started?  Well, I knew from my “wish list” for the book, that I wanted a heist scene at some point, so I knew that I needed a team of characters, not one or two.  From my years of experience (strikethrough) watching Leverage and Mission:  Impossible, I knew that a heist team needs a mastermind, hacker, muscle, etc. and that these people did not necessarily need to know each other previously.  But before I talk about my own characters, let me say a few words about names.

Note:  About halfway through writing this article, I realized that I’d bitten off more than I can chew by deciding to talk about character names, skills, and function in one post.  So, I’ve decided to dedicate the rest of this post to character names, and I’ll discuss character skills in next week’s edition.  I plan on doing a multi-week run on creating characters after the run of “Science Explains Fantasy.”

Name.  What’s in a name?  Naming a character can be one of the trickiest aspects of creating a character, because names can convey subtle, yet useful, information about a character.  Let’s take an example that I just made up:  Frederick Hargrove III.

Granted, due to the institution known as “name changing,” anyone may have any name that they desire.  So, names need not necessarily carry stereotypical information, but in many instances, they do.  For instance, when you read the name Frederick Hargrove III, you probably thought of a very wealthy – possibly British – person of pampered upbringing.  Like I mentioned, this is not necessarily the case, but usually when names are passed along through three generations, there is a strong sense of family name.  When paired with a traditionally “British-sounding” name, one immediately assumes a wealthy person.

When I give names to my own characters, I follow a few rules.  The character’s name should be consistent with the character’s:

1. Age
2. Ethnicity
3. Country of Birth

Age.  Picture in your mind two women.  One is named Alexa, and the other is named Mildred.  Got a picture of them?  If you pictured Alexa as being young and vivacious and Mildred as old and feeble, this is because you know something about names.  Very few parents give the name “Mildred” to their daughters anymore; however, the name used to be popular years ago between 1900-1929.  Hence, most people named “Mildred” that you might meet are relatively advanced in age.  Similarly, “Alexa” is a more modern name, gaining popularity only recently in the 90s.

When I name my characters, I ensure that their name is age-appropriate, unless there is a plot-related reason to do otherwise (perhaps the young and inviting Mildred is a vampire who stays forever youthful by feeding on the blood of potential suitors).

Ethnicity.  If the character is from another country (than the US) or has roots from another country (than the US), I usually make his or her name reflect that.  However, with this, I also make sure that the name I choose is easy to read and pronounce.  “Readability” is usually increased for English-speakers when most of the consonants in the word are each separated by vowels (for instance, “Mjolnir” is a tad harder to read than is “Aricin,” even though both words are likely foreign to the reader, having hailed from Norse roots).  Also, one study suggests that the “readability” (or how easily the names may be pronounced)  has a noticeable correlation for how well those names are liked.  So, you may want to think twice before naming your protagonist Mr. Vougiouklakis.

Country of Birth.  In some countries, you cannot legally name your child “Pluto” without special permission from the government.  In fact, in places like Denmark, the government has pre-approved a set of names from which you may name your child.  If you want to name your child something that’s not on the list, you must pay a fee.  While this may sound quite strict, new sets of names are approved every year.  And, although you can’t name your kid “Pluto” in Denmark, apparently you can name him “Awesome.”

This is a roundabout way of saying that different countries have different customs when naming children.  I try to do my research when selecting a name for a character who hails from anywhere other than the US, where ethnicities intermingle so much, literally any name is possible.

So what about my characters?  Well, let’s take a look at my female lead, Talia Salomon.

Since my female lead was from Israel, I wanted to give her a traditional female name from that culture.  I settled upon “Talia,” because the consonants are each separated by vowels – usually a good indicator of readability – and because readers may already be familiar with the name, courtesy of Batman villain, Talia al’Ghul (spellcheck).  I’d arrived at the surname “Salomon” through a similar process.  I’d initially opted for “Talia Solomon,” but I thought that the same exact “ah” sound found in four out of the six vowels of the name might be a bit too repetitive.  By changing her surname to “Salomon” – another traditional name of Hebrew origins – I replaced one of the “ah” sounds for “a” as in “cat.”  It gave a better “musicality” to the pronunciation of the name.  Since I’d opted for a traditional name, I was unconcerned with preconceived notions about age, since names in Israel can be passed down through generations and generations.

 

Thank you for staying with me through that long post.  Next week, I’ll discuss character skills, and how I use them to propel my plot forward.  You can expect to read the originally planned post “How I Craft My Characters:  Personality and Goals” to appear sometime after I’ve finished up with my posts on “Science Explains Fantasy,” which is scheduled to run from September to (at least) December of this year.  Please stay tuned for that.

And, as always, thank you for reading my weekly words.

 

Jonathan MacGregor is a writer, currently seeking representation for his urban fantasy thriller, Blood of the Innocents.  If you have any suggestions for future installments of MacGregor’s Pen, you may tweet to him (@JDMacGregor) using the hashtag #Ideas4MacPen.

Writing by the Seat of Your Pants

Making it up as you go:  a completely viable way to write a book.  Last year, I attended the Writer’s Digest Annual Conference in New York, and one of the classes was dedicated to this topic.  The title of the class was “Take Your Pants Off and Write.”  I’m not exactly sure what kind of imagery that label was supposed to evoke, but attendees were setting up chairs in the hall in order to hear the lecturer.  This was the first time I’d ever heard people refer to “pantsing” as making up the plot as you write your book.  I was laughing to myself the whole time because of the phrase’s alternate meaning.  In fact, during Q&A time, whenever a person with a question was handed the mic, they usually began with, “I am a pantser,” or “I, also, am a pantser.”  It felt like an AA meeting for pantsers.

Before I go any further, yes, I’m writing this article in order to tell what I find to be a slightly funny story.  However, I’m also trying to show that a lot of writers don’t necessarily have everything neatly outlined before they go to work on their book.  There are even a few points in favor of this method:

• You don’t know how the story ends.
• You have time to incorporate new research.
• Last minute changes aren’t a hassle.

Let’s take a look at them:

You don’t know how the story ends.  If you don’t know how the story ends, chances are, you’ll become more motivated to finishing it.  And, if you’re writing a page-turning thriller, you can bet that the last fifty or so pages will fly by as you race to figure out how your hero(ine) will save the day.

You have time to incorporate new research.  Just because you make things up as you go, doesn’t mean that you should make up everything.  Always do your research (hyperlink).  Sometimes, the research that you perform will inspire you in ways that you don’t anticipate.  It’s entirely possible that your plot could change just because you didn’t know that something was possible in the first place.

Last minute changes aren’t a hassle.  In line with the last point, if you decide to change your plot in light of some new information, it will have little bearing on your forward progress.  Compare that to individuals who carefully plot out each scene and chapter.  If they change one little thing, they have to go back to their outline and figure out how far they’ll be set back.

But, let’s be honest, pantsing has its downsides as well, namely:  you’re not sure if you’ll be able to tell a coherent story with the elements that you have.  That’s a sizeable downside, considering that writing is all about the story.

Personally, when I write, I practice both.  For my (currently unpublished) novel, Blood of the Innocents, I decided that I would need a diverse team of rogue agents and criminals for characters.  I really wanted to have a casino as a setting – to get something of a James Bond vibe – so I selected the Monte Carlo casino.  From there, I told myself that I would need a car chase, a heist scene, and a climactic finale on a boat; and, I wove my plot to work in those story elements as I went.

The bottom line of all of this is that you don’t need to know the intricate details about your plot in order to tell a good story.  What I’ve learned is that good storytellers always tell good stories, regardless of their approach.  And, whether you are a plotter, a pantser, or a little bit of both, the most important thing to remember is to keep on writing… and to keep your pants on.  Please.

Thank you for reading my weekly words.

Fear Itself

Note:  The following is my interpretation of a lecture by literary agent, Donald Maass, who I had the pleasure of hearing speak at ThrillerFest 2015.  For more of his brilliant insight, read his book, Writing the Breakout Novel.

Fear.  At the climax of every thriller, whether book or movie, new or old, is the emotion of hesitance, surprise, and apprehension.  It almost becomes part of the formula.  But writers seek to break formulae.  We can’t just sit back and write “Our hero is scared.”  This is predictable.  This is old.

One way of working around this is to give the reader a bit of credit.  It’s the big climax of the show, and the hero has met his mortal enemy, who has the upper hand in the final showdown.  Of course they understand that he or she is scared… so, let’s dig deeper.

Instead of focusing on fear, focus on another emotion:  something that is motivating the character besides fear.  Something that makes sense in context.  If you’re a writer, do this now.  Think of the climax of your thriller and what your hero is doing.  If you’re not going to write about fear, what will you write about?  Take a minute and write it down.  Seriously, take a minute, I’ll wait.

…

Got one?  Good.  Now cross it out.  Cross it out, because, as writers, we don’t want to go for the obvious.  We aim for subtlety.  So now, let’s repeat that last exercise; however, this time, don’t choose fear or the emotion you already crossed out (don’t worry, you get to keep the emotion you think of this time).  Take a minute to write it down.  Please, take your time.  Write the other emotion.

…

Now, let’s take that emotion and use it in some kind of metaphor.  Now write that.

…

When your readers read that metaphor, they will be caught off-guard, expecting to see your character(s) reacting in fear.  However, when they start to really ponder why your character is acting as he or she is, everything will start to make sense within context.

If you’re wondering what this would look like if it were part of a novel, take a look at an excerpt from my unpublished novel, Blood of the Innocents.  Below, I’ve adapted a key moment in the book so that it can be read with minimal spoilers and minimal required background information.  I performed a variation on Mr. Maass’ technique, by having my main character, John Cato, gauge the reaction of his partner, Talia Salomon, to their oncoming demise:

 

Talia can’t run.  I can’t fight.  Our enemy wants us dead…

As the white moonlight shone off of the silver crucifix that hung from his hands, his gaze shifted to Talia’s alert green eyes, looking at him expectantly – almost pleading with him to do something.

Those eyes.

He felt his pulse pounding as his opponent ran toward them.  To him, it seemed as if the man were running in slow-motion.  He took another deep look into Talia’s eyes, half expecting them to be filled with rage or contempt, but to his surprise, he found something else.  They were filled with hope:  hope that he could save them, hope that he would make the right choice, hope in him.

 

As you can see, the final product reads much better than:  “Talia and Cato were scared stiff.”  At least, it does in my opinion.  If you would like to hear more good ideas from Donald Maass, his book Writing the Breakout Novel is available at Amazon here.  If you would like to read more of my writing, two excerpts of Blood of the Innocents are available on my 20lines account here.  Don’t forget to like and share if you enjoyed the post.

And to all of you, thank you for reading my weekly words.

Some Semblance of a Plan…

Hello, everyone.

For starters, I hope that you like the new blog layout.  I really liked the simplicity of the old one, and it pains me to part ways with it, but this new format offers several new features that the old one did not.
At this point, I’ll direct your attention to the new (and quite helpful) sidebar, which not only keeps you up to date on what I’m doing here on MacGregor’s Pen, but it also provides links to the rest of my social media platform (please follow, like, and share if you enjoy my blog).  This move was a necessary one that could not be avoided.

Anyway, this week was supposed to mark the start of my scientific commentary on fantasy, creatively titled “Science Explains Fantasy.”  However, I’ve decided that I need a solid plan moving forward with this blog, and I should take the time to inform you of what to expect in the future.  I usually try to provide interesting content each week, but this week will provide you with a teaser of the next 6 weeks (and beyond… technically).

“Talking about planning is fun!” – said no one ever.

So here’s where I stand:  my blog updates every Sunday at noon, and I plan to focus on the “Science Explains Fantasy” piece for several weeks.  I’m coming up with great ideas every day, and I can’t wait to share them with you.  But here’s the rub:  I plan on releasing the introduction to “Science Explains Fantasy” on September 13th, and I’m going to try to heavily publicize the release of the second post, which will be a special Saturday release on September 19th, addressing the topic of immortality.

You might have noticed that there’s a lot of time between now and September 13th.  And you might say, “What will you post in the meantime?”  To answer your question, hypothetical blog reader, I’ve posted this handy table.

• August 9th:  “Some Semblance of a Plan” (today’s post)
• August 16th:  “Fear Itself” (a retelling of a lecture by literary agent, Donald Maass)
• August 23rd:  “Writing by the Seat of Your Pants”
• August 30th:  “How I Craft My Characters:  Names, Skills, and Function”
• September 6th:  “How I Craft My Characters:  Personality and Goals”
• September 13th:  “Science Explains Fantasy:  An Introduction”
• September 19th:  “Science Explains Fantasy:  Immortality” (special Saturday post)
• September 20th:  no posts scheduled (because of the special post)
• September 27th:  “Science Explains Fantasy:  Shapeshifting”

After that, I intend to continue on with more “Science Explains Fantasy” posts until I run out of ideas.  If you have any suggestions that you would like me to cover, let me know on twitter (@JDMacGregor) using the hashtag #ScienceExplainsFantasy.  If you enjoyed the read, please share my blog on social media.

And, as always, thank you for reading my weekly words.

Always Do Your Research

To some, looking up facts may be a boring, tedious process, offering little to no payoff.  However, I find the opposite to be true, because as they say, “Truth is stranger than fiction.”  Many of the times I go to track down information on one topic, I find myself being inspired to write another book based on some of the wild, tangential information I stumble upon.

You might argue that as a writer of fiction, you need not be concerned with factual information and that any information you are unsure of may be improvised on the fly.  That approach is okay in small doses in cases where you find yourself unable to find any solid answers on the matter at hand, but in general, the current writing market is not very agreeable to that method.  Let me explain what I mean.  There are two things that consumers of entertainment are trending toward in today’s market:  authenticity and plausibility.  Let’s tackle them one at a time.

Authenticity.  Would you rather read a fast-paced, action-packed crime thriller written by an ex-FBI agent, or some student with a writing degree?  Provided that all other things are equal (quality of prose, quality of plot, etc.), people would rather hear from an expert who can give them insight on the world of law enforcement, rather than someone who cannot.  In fact, there are numerous resources and programs available to writers who wish to learn more about law enforcement.  Writer’s Police Academy is exactly what it sounds like, and there are numerous blogs on issues concerning law and law enforcement; the most well-sited I’ve seen is ThrillWriting by Fiona Quinn.

What about plausibility?  As a culture, as our understanding of science increases, our capacity for imagination and fantasy dwindles.  I understand that this is a sweeping generalization, but the mainstream audience (not fans of niche genres) will have the tendency to analyze your plot and characters through the lens of scientific plausibility.  When it comes to addressing science in your writing, you should take one of two approaches:  don’t mention it at all OR do your best to get the details right.  Anything in the middle ground will come across as a weak attempt to rationalize an implausible occurrence.  In a society where its just as easy for fans to check your science facts, why shouldn’t you.

You may be wondering why an urban fantasy writer is bothering to lecture on the merits of research.  I assure you that even though my novel is a work of urban fantasy, the “real-world” characters it follows must obey the same natural laws as you and I, and maybe some of them try to rationalize the science behind the fantasy elements – more on that later.  Anyway, if you’re interested in some examples of interesting facts that I’ve found, you can check out my Twitter feed (@JDMacGregor), where I post a few of these under the hashtag #RFotW – otherwise known as Random Fact of the Week.  You can also expect future installments of MacGregor’s Pen to feature some of the “Science behind the Fantasy” concepts to help rationalize fantasy for a science-minded audience.

If you enjoyed the post, please subscribe.  Thanks for reading!  Follow me on Twitter:  @JDMacGregor.