Well, that title’s a bit off actually because who wants a perfect hero or heroine? As a writer, I confess, I like to torture them a little. After all, by the end I’m giving them a happily ever after and I want them to appreciate it. *g*

I’m a plotter and my stories tend to be plot, not character, driven. I like to start with an idea for a scene or a book, and then figure out what kind of characters would make it the most interesting. In my paranormal, Under Cover of the Moon (to be released in July), I wanted the hero to be new to town, a werewolf, and very driven. Darius was born. He’s rough around the edges and the banished leader of a new pack. He has his work cut out for him, settling a new pack in and keeping control. Darius has no fun lol. So I wanted his heroine to be softer, but still able to hold her own and shake his life up a little. Well, okay, a lot. *g* Meg’s a girly bartender slash business owner slash witch who likes her solitude. She needs a little shaking up of her own. Voila! The birth of two characters lol.

Naming characters seems one of the most difficult parts of creating a story to me. They have to be perfect, right? You want them to say something about the character without being cliche or too obvious. Under Cover of the Moon is the first in a series and I wanted the pack leader’s name to set the same tone for it as well as his personality. I chose Darius after Darius the Great of Persia. It seemed masculine and different without being odd. It was a hard name to find. Meg’s name was an easier choice for me. I envision a Meg as a fiery spitfire kind of woman and that is exactly the kind of character Meg grew into.

Generally for naming though, I go to my notebook. I keep lists of last names and first names. The first names I have divided into generations. For instance, in one column I list the boys names that were common when my brother and I went to school. I have another column for my dad’s age range and for my kids’ age range. I do the same for girls. I try not to give my characters names that wouldn’t have been used when they were born. My biggest obstacle in that regard is that my heroines are always Southern and I like to give them names that reflect that. I’m writing a Scarlet now, and in the past I’ve had Jessalyn’s, Mary Sue’s, Julie-Ann’s, etc. My approach to last names is not too different. I try to stay aware of regions when I pick them. A check in the local white pages is the easiest way to find the names most common in a particular area. For instance, here in Alabama my husband’s last name is very unusual so I would never use it for a character that was local. It is very common for New York City however, so would make the ideal name for a New York transplant.

So there’s the crash course in how my characters are born and named. I started the name lists some time last year and can’t recommend that approach enough. Every time I run across a new name I like, I add it to the appropriate column. It’s saved me hours of agonizing over the perfect choice.

Please let me know if I can clarify anything. Tomorrow, epubbing.