tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post5581484614300372010..comments2023-10-11T09:22:33.136-04:00Comments on Paperback Writer: Noun NamesUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-2454146266588968172013-01-26T21:05:57.676-05:002013-01-26T21:05:57.676-05:00Personally, I love noun names. I can agree that a ...Personally, I love noun names. I can agree that a cowboy named Metro or Neptune would be out of place and distract from the story. But there are plenty of noun names - not nicknames, but given names - that are fairly prevalent in today's society. In my own experience I've known people named Jade, Candy, Cherry, Faith, Grace, Daisy, Lily, April, Autumn, Willow, Charisma, River, and Phoenix. And those are only a few I could think of off the top of my head. The idea that a given name need be something out of the history books in order to be legitimate is going out. So while it can be a tricky business coming up with the right noun name for your character and story, I honestly prefer it to overused run-of-the-mill names. If I pick up a book and the main character's name is Christopher I'm more likely to put it back down than if the main's name is Cash. I've known too many Christophers and the name has left a bad impression, and that's tough for an author to compete with. I haven't, however, known a single person with the given name Cash, so the author has a fairly fresh slate to work with.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-8272152144860590772012-11-27T17:20:09.943-05:002012-11-27T17:20:09.943-05:00Would noun names make more sense if in a dystopian...Would noun names make more sense if in a dystopian society, everyone had noun name? What if it was the law that your name had to be a noun for some odd reason? Would it be weird or interesting?<br /><br />What do you think of the names Sonnet, Chance,Price, and Quest? What gender would you assume that these names would be for? Would these names turn you off as a reader? Do they have any "weird" associations?samplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16776318013843466973noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-34951670970498010352011-06-06T18:17:59.520-04:002011-06-06T18:17:59.520-04:00Names are so important. I try to stick with the s...Names are so important. I try to stick with the simple ones although I can't help admiring David Duchovney for naming his kid 'Kyd'.lol You can't get more simple than that.Marsha Sigmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11095210839900479297noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-42672430305729755022011-06-04T18:49:30.275-04:002011-06-04T18:49:30.275-04:00Oh, boy do I agree with this one because through t...Oh, boy do I agree with this one because through the whole read, all I kept thinking of was Moon Unit Zappa...<br /><br />Poor kid.nightsmusichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05984119792540771870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-38447601216438372532011-06-04T17:06:26.248-04:002011-06-04T17:06:26.248-04:00Noun names are very common here. Several of my co-...Noun names are very common here. Several of my co-workers have them. Justice, Precious, Freedom...some others. One can't get away from them here. <br /><br />One should also be careful with made-up names. David Eddings had me laughing right out loud a few times. His "Arends" especially. In my native language, "Arend" means "Eagle", so whenever he described the Arends as stupid and blundering, but intensely proud people, I had visions in my head of braindamaged eagles blundering around the countryside. :pKeita Harukanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-84441646881259110582011-06-04T15:59:08.787-04:002011-06-04T15:59:08.787-04:00Lynn you always put in so much insight and thought...Lynn you always put in so much insight and thought into the topics you write about. :) Ahh I am in the process of picking the right name for my MC #2 and it is so hard to find one that clicks like it does with my other characters. <br /><br />~TRA<br /><br />http://xtheredangelx.blogspot.comWendy Luhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08048944852796207898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-11031737870120623052011-06-04T13:34:42.119-04:002011-06-04T13:34:42.119-04:00I tend to rely on baby name searches, especially f...I tend to rely on baby name searches, especially for time periods/regions. But now all I can think about is how tragic it is that some people think cilantro tastes like soap. And how glad I am that I can taste it for the flavor explosion it is.Charlene Tegliahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01483186891214783397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-11671327819663489292011-06-04T12:27:47.135-04:002011-06-04T12:27:47.135-04:00While reading this, I kept thinking about that old...While reading this, I kept thinking about that old TV show "Blossom". Not only was the main character named <i>Blossom</i> but her best friend was <i>Six</i>. That name always jolted me - why would her parents name her Six? Was she the sixth kid to come along? Was she born on the sixth? Did she weight six pounds, six ounces? Did she have six fingers or six toes? <br /><br />If a character has a noun name that is unusual, there needs to be a great story behind that name.<br /><br />And I also think of all of the celebrities who go with the noun-as-name trend. <i>Apple</i>, daughter of Gwyneth Paltrow. <i>Sunday Rose</i>, daughter of Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman. And the mother of all ridiculous noun names, <i>Moon Unit</i>, daughter of Frank Zappa. Of course, she can't complain too much. She has a sister named <i>Diva Muffin</i>...Lynn Mhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13444488890483608914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-10121605447537045372011-06-04T12:12:21.147-04:002011-06-04T12:12:21.147-04:00I've noticed a lot of people around here with ...I've noticed a lot of people around here with noun names. We have Mercedes, September, April, May, June, Tuesday, Wednesday, Sunday, Baltimore, Rose, Lily, Iris, Daisy...hmm, there are more and some are really odd. I could break out my kids' yearbook and probably find more.AnnaM.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-89368073277861737732011-06-04T08:12:37.099-04:002011-06-04T08:12:37.099-04:00As for noun names in other languages, in "The...As for noun names in other languages, in "The Hotel New Hampshire" John Irving has two characters named "abortion" and "miscarriage" respectively. There are hints in the text that Irving knows what the words mean, but it's still terribly distracting to read something like: "And then I kissed Abortion, while Miscarriage looked on disapprovingly."Corahttp://corabuhlert.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-76001790458411350682011-06-04T07:14:16.348-04:002011-06-04T07:14:16.348-04:00Great, thoughtful post as ever, Lynn. One thing th...Great, thoughtful post as ever, Lynn. One thing though: whilst I agree with most of what you say, I think that a DEA agent called Peyote would be wonderfully ironic. Some noun names, like April and Saffron, are so common now that they're not really considered as such anymore, either. I think the point is that any name should be well considered, and not just chosen at random.JamesOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09332376784689207703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-90531469023059720392011-06-04T07:01:11.581-04:002011-06-04T07:01:11.581-04:00Picking names is so important! I've always fou...Picking names is so important! I've always found it most difficult when a single novel has five or six odd names... makes me wonder whether the book is actually sci-fi. Even in sci-fi and fantasy, though, names have to be pronounceable. If I can't figure out how to say it, it's going to be hard for me. <br /><br />Reminds me of the Chevy Nova, intended for distribution in Mexico and South America. Nobody bothered to see what no va means in Spanish--"does not go." HUGE mistake.Dr. Cheryl Carvajalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15323455180953109460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-50378796955445227032011-06-04T01:52:54.072-04:002011-06-04T01:52:54.072-04:00... not sure if it's regional, generational, o...... not sure if it's regional, generational, or what, but I'd have to say that in the northwest US, noun names (and even more unusual things) seem to have steadily increased in number in the last 15 years since my oldest was born. <br /><br />All mine have mundane names like Michael and Christopher - and I'd guess that the unusual names are probably running 50-50 around here with the traditional, if not slightly more.<br /><br />So while current adults might balk at some of these names now, once these kids are grown, might be a whole different ballgame.<br /><br />Just don't go naming anyone Jerimiagee - like a friend's two year old son - unless the name is a focal point of the story. Please. (And the mother won't tolerate nicknames... yeah, that's going to be interesting to see as time goes by.)Shawnahttp://tenacitydivine.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8343238.post-62296736023114701102011-06-04T00:34:29.151-04:002011-06-04T00:34:29.151-04:00Oh come on. Now you just HAVE to write that as a ...Oh come on. Now you just HAVE to write that as a short story at least. I can see it now. After a lifetime of drug jokes, Peyote Phillips becomes a DEA agent to put a rest to any further efforts to embroil her in a drug culture she has no respect for ever since it swallowed her parents who never understood the ritual attached to peyote visions. But how can she explain this to her boss, who finds out about the latest attempt and tries to enlist her for undercover work.<br /><br />Wow, that throwaway line really inspired me :). I can see her even.<br /><br />Regardless, good reminder on name choices.Margaret M. Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00537558539259791284noreply@blogger.com