Saturday Writing Quote — on naming

IMGP2188I’m working on a new novel, and discovering the characters’ names is always interesting. Our names shape us, and many of us have love-hate relationships with them. Some of us change names during our lives, changing how we view ourselves. More than once, I’ve written an entire draft, then changed a character’s name, for various reasons, and seen that character suddenly come alive when given the right handle. So, for April, a few quotes on naming.

“From time immemorial men have thought that there is some mysterious essential connection between a thing and the spoken name for it. You could use the name of your enemy, not only to designate him either passionately or dispassionately, but also to exercise a baleful influence over him. . . . Not only people, but plants, animals, forces of nature, gods, demons, in fact all creatures could be affected for good or ill by solemn pronunciation of their names in the proper context.”
— Margaret Schlauch, The Gift of Tongues (1943; repr. 1960)

(Quote via Bryan Garner’s occasional blog on usage.)

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