"Always end the name of your child with a vowel, so that when you yell the name will carry."
--Bill Cosby
I recently came across the following statement in a book on novel writing. I'd never heard this "rule" before. Have you?
"Choose names with long vowel sounds for principal characters, shorter for lesser."
No discussion of why followed. And since I'd never heard this before (and with apologies to the author for not accepting the idea at face value), I decided to put the theory to the test by conducting an informal poll on main character names. I took the names from books I have on my shelf, particularly classics and Newbery award winning authors since they've stood the test of time. Here's my list:
Long Short
Jo, Little Women (Louisa May Alcott) Scarlett, Gone With the Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
Mary, The Secret Garden (Frances H. Burnett) Meg, A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L'Engle)
Andi, Revolution (Jennifer Donelly) Anne, Anne of Green Gables (Luci Maud Montgomery)
Tilly, The River Between Us (Richard Peck) Miranda, When You Reach Me (Rebecca Stead)
Zola, The Unfinished Angel (Sharon Creech) Jess, Bridge to Terabithia (Katherine Paterson)
Abilene, Moon Over Manifest (Clare Vanderpool) Mibs, Savvy (Ingrid Law)
Jethro, Across Five Aprils (Irene Hunt) Kit, The Witch of Blackbird Pond (Elizabeth George Spears)
As you can see, the results ended in a tie.
After this, I went back and checked the last names on the short-vowel list, and found that four of the seven carried long-vowel sounds, three short. Not quite a tie there, but close.
So I asked myself, do vowel sounds carry that much weight? Or are there other considerations for choosing character names?
Actually there are. One of the best ways is get to know the characters--their personalities, quirks, and backgrounds. This way, the "ear" will be more open to the name that fits. Not only that, but names should be chosen with an ear to historical and cultural accuracy. Also, ideas for names can come from a variety of sources, like baby name books, lists of names popular to an era, movie and tv credits, business directories, old yearbooks, phone books--sometimes even cemeteries. For some writers, the name's meaning is important, for others it is simply a matter of what "feels" right. Yes, it boils down to how a name sounds, but not only because of long or short vowels.
And, unlike Bill Cosby's reason for choosing a child's name ending in a vowel, if we utilize other resources, we'll have no reason to yell. The name will carry itself.
At least that's what I think. What do you think?
p.s. for some good guidelines (not rules!) to aid in choosing character names, you might want to check out these sources:
How To Give Your Character the Perfect Name, Writer's Digest
Name That Character, Top Ten Tips, The Script Lab
Tips for Writers on Naming Fictional Characters, Baby Names
Eight Things to Keep in Mind When Naming Characters, Jody Hedlund
Name That Character, Writing World
*photo courtesy of www.sxc.hu
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