How to Name Your Characters in Fiction
Naming Your Novel’s Protagonist and Other Characters
craft of fiction
How to Name Your Characters in Fiction
Naming Your Novel’s Protagonist and Other Characters
Photo by Timon Studler on Unsplash
If you like this post, you might also enjoy reading the post The Lives and Logic of Minor Characters.
On the subject of character names, playwright Sarah Ruhl writes, “The art of naming a character is sacred and mysterious,” Ruhl writes (100 Essays I Don’t Have Time to Write).
I love this book of very short essays and highly encourage you to read it for Ruhl’s thoughts on dramatization and other subjects. That said, please don’t get too caught up in the sacredness of your characters’ name at the beginning! A name, like anything, can be changed when you revise your novel.
*Michelle Richmond is the New York Times bestselling author of eight books of fiction, the founder of **Fiction Master Class*, and the publisher of Fiction Attic Press.
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