Random Name Generators

I've mentioned a couple of times on Twitter lately that, if you know you're going to have to mass murder a bunch of characters, start with a lot of characters so you have some to choose from and some left over afterward.

But how do you name lots of characters?

Random name generators!

Some reasons to use random name generators:

• Easier on your brain. 
• Kinda fun. 
• Easy to deliberately populate your book with a good mix of ethnicities and backgrounds. 
• Hides your "naming tics," like some authors without knowing it name their characters only sweeping, romantic names, or names that only begin with the letters A-G, etc. 

Some of my favorites: 

Behind The Name : One of my favorites. Includes first. middle, and last names, plus you can restrict the search by gender, by many, many ethnicities (Maori, Catalan, Provencal, Galician, Breten, Frisian, Czech, and Slovak, to name a few), and/or by other categories. Other categories include Goth (excellent for vampyres,) Greek myth, Hinduism, Ancient Celtic, Biblical, Literary, Kreatyve, Hillbilly, Hippy, and Transformer. Includes Native American names that are real names, not like "Little Foot Redfeather" or "Dances With Wolves." Does not have a Mexican ethnicity, which is odd. Also only gives you one name at a time.

Ultimate Random Name Generator : Another favorite. Can restrict search by gender and a list of some ethnicities, including Mexican. Gives you a long list of names rather than one at a time.

Let's face it, you don't have to carefully craft the names of minor characters, especially when they're just going to all die horribly in Chapter 7.

TK Kenyon

Great Article about Picking A Title (For A TV Show)

There's a great article up at Yahoo TV about picking a title for a TV show.

Everything in there can and should be applied to novel and short story titles. It's a great article.

Some highlights:

THE DO'S AND DON'TS: Nine vital title tips from execs and producers who know you don't get a second chance to make a first impression

DON'T Be Too Witty

A title that gets executives excited may just be too cute for viewers. "We loved Better Off Ted internally," 20th Century Fox Television's Dana Walden says of Victor Fresco's critical darling that was dropped by ABC after two seasons. "We thought it was so smart and funny. We went with the witty, pithy title, and it just didn't work."

DON'T Be Too Generic

If a title feels like it could be slapped on any one of a dozen shows, it's probably the wrong title. "Every year, there are 10 shows that all sound the same," says one studio exec. "You can't distinguish them. You want to avoid those generic titles." If Desperate Housewives had been called, say Housewives, would it have become a zeitgeisty hit? 

DON'T Be too Long

Titles that are too long will get reflexively shortened -- by your onscreen guide and viewers. So save everyone the trouble and stick to a half-dozen words or less. People referred to The New Adventures of Old Christine as Old Christine. Beverly Hills 90210 became 90210. When people write, blog or tweet about How I Met Your Mother, it's HIMYM. For the latter two series‚ one a reboot with high title familiarity and the other an established hit that came into its own in a pre-Twitter era -- it's not a problem. But for a new series finding its footing and in need of constant brand reinforcement, a long title can hurt.

Read the rest at: The Strange Art of Picking a TV Show Title

Harry Potter, Othello, and The Matrix: Story Structure

This excellent lecture in five parts by Dan Wells (he of the excellent podcast Writing Excuses) on story structure is a must-see. Get out a big notepad and prepare to take notes.

Dr. Kenyon’s Daily Writing Apple is a daily writing prompt to help you with your fiction work-in progress, instead of an unrelated writing exercise in creative futility that asks you to write about an elephant or how some other character feels. Subscribe via Atom Posts at http://tkkenyon.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default (LINK) or Like on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dr-Kenyons-Daily-Writing-Apple/157414557652275 (LINK).

Tweet with me onTwitter: @TKKenyon. I tweet where to find excellent free fiction on the internet daily! 

Good other posts to read: 

Kurt Vonnegut explains story structure: http://tkkenyon.blogspot.com/2011/09/kurt-vonnegut-explains-story-plots-for.html 

How to introduce a character: http://tkkenyon.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-to-introduce-character-in-your.html 

What is your character's lack and compensation?

All good, round, deep characters have a flaw. Sometimes it's a tragic flaw; sometimes, it's a fatal flaw. Other times, it's the shattered facet that keeps a character human.

So what's a flaw?

Often, it's a lack of something.

If a character feels a lack of something, it motivates him. Often, nearly always, this character has a goal that symbolizes, to him/her, the satisfaction of this inner, private need.

It could be love (too many to mention), success, money (all the Nero Wolfes), affection for his family (It's a Wonderful Life,) , a family, safety from a criminal (Silence of the Lambs), a certain level of society (The Great Gatsby,) etc.

In short, it is anything that threatens your character's sense that s/he controls his/her own destiny.

When a person is aware of such a lack, they are ill at ease. They try to compensate. More on compensation tomorrow.