I’ve been asked how I come up with character names. Sometimes the name is announced in my consciousness. Louise, in Leaving Ordinary, arrived that way. For my contemporary novels, I pay attention to names I’m seeing and hearing in the larger collective community and media.
For historical names, I mine three major sources. One place is the first and last names of people I’ve heard of and known growing up and living in North Dakota. For example, the last name of Huber is a family name and common last name in the Upper Midwest. Another pool is small town names and sometimes they remain as they are and other times I change them for other purposes, for example, there is a Wheatland, North Dakota, that I altered to become Wheatville, Minnesota.
The most fascinating treasure trove is obituaries. Names are varied and ample and I often read the life summaries. I have written two obituaries in my life. Both were challenging. I wrote one while wrapped in grief for my maternal grandfather. The other was my own. Stories are important to me and I wanted to tell a few special ones and reduce my loved one’s burden and, of course, my name is included.
