Character Trait Tips Part 1...

  Hello again :) To carry on from my character naming, you can see that personality can influence the name a lot. Struggling to think of traits to make your character come to life? Well, look no further :)

 Here, I have put a list together of 100 traits for your characters (hopefully I haven't put some twice...). All you need to do is pick three numbers from 1 to 50 for 'good' traits and 51 to 100 for 'bad traits'. This will balance out your character and give them a varied personality. Obviously, you can add more traits for your character but, if you stick to these three, others will bloom as your character achieves more depth as the story progresses :)

   It's best to try and balance out 'good' and 'bad' traits within every one of your characters, otherwise you end up with a hero who's so bland and a great story pulled down by it's lead.

   You could take a trait and turn it into something that could be seen as 'good' or 'bad'. Like being too forgiving or too lively. Some traits could also fit into both categories, like being serious would be good in a work situation but not if they're at a party.

   Also, if you end up getting a 'good' trait as patient and then a 'bad' trait as impatient, you will have to choose another number since they will contradict each other. Unless you're character has a shifting personality due to eating something awful from another planet... (Carrots are best left alone...)

   I've left some open ended, such as flexible, which could be in mind or in body. Enjoy :)

  So, the 'good' traits:

1. Adventurous
2. Ambitious
3. Attentive
4. Brave
5. Calm
6. Caring
7. Cheerful
8. Confident
9. Creative
10. Curious
11. Determined
12. Devoted
13. Easy-going
14. Enthusiastic
15. Excitable
16. Flexible
17. Forgiving
18. Good leader
19. Good listener
20. Grateful
21. Hard-working
22. Honest
23. Hopeful
24. Intelligent
25. Kind
26. Lively
27. Loving
28. Loyal
29. Lucky
30. Mature
31. Obedient
32. Open-minded
33. Optimistic
34. Passionate
35. Patient
36. Peaceful
37. Polite
38. Protective
39. Quick
40. Resourceful
41. Responsible
42. Romantic
43. Sensitive
44. Sociable
45. Spirited
46. Studious
47. Thoughtful
48. Understanding
49. Wise
50. Witty

 

And the 'bad' traits: 

51. Aggressive
52. Angry
53. Argumentative
54. Bossy
55. Careless
56. Cautious
57. Childish
58. Close-minded
59. Clumsy
60. Confused
61. Coward
62. Crazy
63. Cruel
64. Daunting
65. Dishonest
66. Doubtful
67. Fierce
68. Foolish
69. Gives up easily
70. Gloomy
71. Greedy
72. Green
73. Guilty
74. Hateful
75. Hopeless
76. Indecisive
77. Jealous
78. Lazy
79. Lonely
80. Loud-mouth
81. Mean
82. Messy
83. Mischievous
84. Moans a lot
85. Nosey
86. Over-protective
87. Pessimistic
88. Rough
89. Self-centred
90. Selfish
91. Shy
92. Sly
93. Sore-loser
94. Stubborn
95. Stuck-up
96. Stupid
97. Thoughtless
98. Unforgiving
99. Unsocial
100. Workaholic

   I hope there's enough for you and a variation :) They're might be a couple of strange one's in there since I was writing this late, but they will certainly make your character very unique. Have fun


 ~White Ravens~

P.S. Another post will follow on from this one on how to get these traits across in your writing :)

Thinking of Character Names Part 4...

   Once again, the second to last chapter of my tips for naming characters. :)

4. Use the Names of Objects, Flowers, Animals etc.

 

   Of course you wouldn't name your main character Chair or Zebra, but you could always base them on that. This is a more difficult way of naming characters because you'll think up new names but you must be able to pronounce them easily as well as make sure it fits. If you can't say the name, then the reader's stumbling will interrupt their flow.

   Flowers are an easy way to go for basing character names. They're mostly used for females, but you could find ones that work for males to. Take Valerian for example, the masculine version of Valerie and a herb. I also think that this is good for fantasy stories but could work with any other genres as well.

   Though some flowers are worth avoiding. Like Daisy and Lily for a cute innocent girl is used a lot and Rose for the beautiful stranger but how about mixing a name that may not fit the personality... Nature is perfect for inspiration

   With animals, birds are a good way to go, like Raven and Robin and Phoenix. You could also use names that mean animals, like Rachel means Ewe and Tiger, well, means tiger...

   If your new name is difficult to pronounce but you really want to use it, then try using a nickname or shorten it for your characters and only use their full name a few times, so the reader rarely has to try and figure out how to say it in their heads :)

  Just look around you when you're outside then the names will come to you. :)

~White Ravens~

Thinking of Character Names Part 3...

   Another quick tip for character naming :) I hope you've thought up some interesting names with these tips :)

3a. Use the Names of People Close to you: 

 

   The simplest way to name characters is using family and friends names. They could reflect their character's personality and relationships or you could just like the name and allocate a character.

   If your Mum's name is Jane, then so could your main character's Mother. Or, you could name a very protective and loving character Jane. You could call a boat the heroes are travelling on 'The Jane' or just find a person who acts just like your own Mum and call her Jane.

   The opportunities are endless with this tip and you could name your whole cast and crew after people you know and love. This gives you someone to base your characters on, typical names if your story is set in modern-day and an endless list of names to choose from.

   I'm sure people will be very touched that your best-selling novels include them as the heroes and you can tell the bully what you really think if you use them as the villain!

3b. Use Famous People:

 

  This is also another small tip, but must be used carefully

   You could also use famous people as inspiration, but it's best not to call the character their full name exactly unless the character's parents were obsessive fans. If the character's Mother loved Twilight so called her daughter Bella Swan, it would have to fit the story or plot in some way.

   Here's the tricky part. The person that you use will be known to many and already exists so using their name could cause confusion with readers. It's best to keep this as a reserve or use sparingly as a tribute to a personal inspiration.

   Loosely basing the name on someone famous is perfect. For example, there's already been a Leonardo Da Vinci, the famous painter, inventor and all round clever guy, and I had a clever character in need of a name, so Leo was born. Leo also means 'like a lion', so connotes he will be brave too. Inspiration is everywhere so how about watching out for your favourite celebrities every now and again?

~White Ravens~

Thinking of Character Names Part 2...

Hello again :) Another tip for thinking of character names for you. :) Translators are another good way to go:

2. Use a Translator:

 

  Whilst not the best for long passages for French essays, just think of a trait for your character or part of their history and translate it to think of an unusual first name or unique last name. Like if a character is a copycat of everyone without their own thoughts, then translate something like 'Clone' into another language such as Italian or Danish.

   Take Professor Lupin from J.K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter'. Many of you may already know that 'Lupin' is derived from 'Lupus', the latin for wolf. This indicates his darker side on a full moon. Also, Voldemort literally translates to 'Flight of Death' in French and this murderous character lives up to his name. J.K. Rowling thinks up so many amazing names that fit her characters perfectly as well as creating the most wonderful, magical world of all time! (Can you tell I'm a Potterhead ;) )


   Another fun way I use a translator for is to create a hidden message behind the character through their full name.

   For example, take the main character from my story 'Everto'. Her name is 'Ena
Intenebris'. I used a name meaning website to find 'Ena', which means 'bright and shining', and then a translator to combine 'in ténebris', which means 'in the dark', to create 'Ena Intenebris' - 'Bright and shining in the dark.' This leads on to different possibilities in the rest of the plot and the all important prophecy. Most people might not notice this but it's fun to add a little back story to a name that only you know.

   However, with this way you run the risk of translating wrong, but it's not much of a problem if you gain an interesting name from it :) 

  Another part in this series of tips up and running :) I hope they've been useful but there's three more to come if you're looking for something else :)

~White Ravens~

Thinking of Character Names... :)

  I find this one of the most interesting parts of planning a new story. There are many ways to go about finding the perfect name for your heroes, villains, background characters etc. but if you're struggling, here are a few tips that help me :) I will post five in total so keep watching for more:

1. Use Name Meaning Websites and Books:

 

  This is probably one of the more obvious ways of naming your characters. There are so many useful websites all over the interweb waiting to be found as well as baby naming books in the shops and libraries. Just think of the main trait of your character or the main aim in their lives and find a suitable name that fits that meaning.

    You could go for a really simple trait, like one of my characters is extremely clever, so I typed in 'clever' to a name meaning website and it came up with a huge list. My eyes fell upon Cassidy and that's my character's name. :) Simples!

   Or perhaps you could use an aim of your character. Sofiel is a young boy who wants to protect nature, so I searched a name that meant something along the lines of 'Nature's Guardian' and Sofiel meant 'Angel of Nature'. Perfect :)

  On the other hand, you could type in a name you fancy, find out the meaning and then allocate a relevant character. For example, I love the name Brianna so I wanted to call a character that and up pops the sidekick to another story again. Brianna means 'Strong one' so perfect for a girl who has been through a lot but keeps on going for her friends and future.

  It's really easy and there are so many sources for you to use. Many websites and books give you snap shot meaning as well as detailed history, the name's popularity, origin and other useful information.

   This is the first tip so stay tuned for another one soon :)

   ~White Ravens~