by Hallee Bridgeman, @halleeb
I am TERRIBLE with names. I never remember them. I can tell you everything you ever needed to know about a character *I* created – where they went to school, their greatest fear, their biggest dream – but I have to have a cheat sheet to remember names.
I also have a tendency to pick names that start with the same letter or have the same kind of beat to them. I don’t know what’s wrong with my brain that it does that. Even though I’m completely aware of it, I still do it!
I’ve come up with a couple of cheats to help me with the name issue.
I used to use the phone book. I’d open the book to random pages, close my eyes, and just point. The world-wide-web has made that a little easier for me.
Now I utilize random name generators. I personally like the one at this site: random-name-generator.info/
I know that Scrivener has a good one, too. It used to be really limited, so I’ve never really dug into using it. However, at some point in time they’ve really supped it up and I recently noticed that it’s probably as good as the website I use.
I’ll set the settings then hit generate. Sometimes, I use the names as they’re given. Sometimes I mix them up. Sometimes, I have to hit generate several times before a name resonates with me. I love the tool and the process. Something about finding the right name for a character really helps the book start to come alive in my mind.
I also have created a form. It’s pretty simple. It has six squares across and four squares down. Every letter of the alphabet is represented by a square (X , Y, and Z share a square). Every time I create (or generate) a name, I write the first and last name in the square of the letter of the first name and also write the last name, first name in the square with the first letter of the last name. I do that for every character – even minor characters that may only have a first name. If I see I’m leaning heavily toward a certain letter, it’s very visual for me and I can go back to the random name generator and hit refresh until I find another name I like – preferably with different first letters.
When my names are all established, I use Scrivener’s Character Sketch template and create one for each of my characters. I don’t necessarily fill out the sketch – I just name each one so that I have a list of characters along the side of my Scrivener file that I can glance at. Sometimes, I add a photo to the character sketch if I want to remember what they look like in my mind.
It really helps me to keep my characters straight and prevents me from changing the name of a character halfway through the book (or changing the spelling!)
It may seem odd to seek peace by moving to a war-torn African country, but for medical missionary Dr. Cynthia Myers, it provided a way to escape a shallow life of unearned wealth, a philandering fiancé, and a father now square in the public eye as Vice President of the United States. At least here she knows her work and life have meaning. But all that is thrown into chaos when she fails to save the life of a local warlord’s mortally wounded son.
As part of the Army Special Forces “A-team” on a mission to capture and subdue the warlord dispatched to extract Cynthia’s team, Captain Rick Norton is compelled to use deadly force to save Cynthia’s life. Enraged at the violence she witnessed and riddled with guilt that men died because of her, Cynthia tries to hold onto her anger—but an unwanted attraction is taking hold.
With two members of his team badly injured and rebels in hot pursuit, Rick will have to draw upon all of his strength and cunning to get her out alive . . . because he’s beginning to think they just might overcome their differences and be able to make a life together.
With nearly a million sales, USA TODAY bestselling and award-winning author Hallee Bridgeman writes action-packed romantic suspense focusing on realistic characters who face real-world problems. Her work has been described as everything from refreshing to heart-stopping exciting and edgy. Hallee has served as the Director of the Kentucky Christian Writers Conference, President of the Faith-Hope-Love chapter of the Romance Writers of America, Secretary and Assistant Programming Chair of Novelists, Inc. (NINC), is a member of the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), and the American Christian Writers (ACW). An accomplished speaker, Hallee has taught and inspired writers around the globe, from Sydney, Australia, to Dallas, Texas, to Portland, Oregon, to Washington, D.C., and all places in between. Hallee loves coffee, campy action movies, and regular date nights with her husband. Above all else, she loves God with all of her heart, soul, mind, and strength; has been redeemed by the blood of Christ; and relies on the presence of the Holy Spirit to guide her.