Names in Fiction are Important by Val Penny

 When I worked in the real world, long before I was an author, I met many people from different backgrounds and each had a name. There was the lady who had married twice - her maiden surname was Robertson as was the surname of both her husbands, so she was Mrs Robertson or Robertson or Robertson. There were the people who made up what I called my dark rainbow, Mrs Brown, Miss Gray, Mr Black, Dr Green and Dr Orange and the fun names, Mrs Bird, Miss Snowball and Dr Bean. 

Then I set to thinking about the importance of names in fiction.There are many fictional names that have become pivotal, Scrooge has become synonymous with meanness, Fagan is known as a thief and Gandalf acknowledged for his wisdom.

When I was choosing a name for my lead detective in my books I chose the name Hunter. I felt this reflected his job seeking out criminals in the pages of my novels. However, that name in itself was chosen by chance.

My husband and I were driving through Edinburgh to visit my mother. We stopped at a set of traffic lights and noticed an office 'Wilson Hunter'. I suggested that would make an excellent name for my protagonist, but my husband suggested that I shouldn't use it exactly. That is when I changed the names around and my character Hunter Wilson was named.

Hunter is trustworthy and dependable. I could never have called him Judas. He has a kind spirit, I would not have named him Scrooge. I want him to be interesting to the readers so I didn't want too popular a name like David, or John. Indeed, whenever I am writing, I do think about the names I give to my characters to try to reflect their story or background. 

I do think fictional names are important to readers and to writers. I have fun choosing names for my characters because I hope readers will enjoy reading my books.