Names, Names, Too Many Things to Name

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Naming characters, fictionalized towns, ranches, and businesses is a daunting task for me with every story I write. In my current project, Aiming for His Heart, Book 10 in the Pink Pistol Sisterhood Series, (I’m so excited to finally be able to say that!!!) my hero Dalton walks into the town’s main restaurant after an incident makes him become the town’s latest gossip victim. Frustrated, he calls for everyone’s attention to set the record straight. Goodness, I’m still working on naming all the folks in that scene! (Because of course, even the cooks come out to hear this juicy news!) Since he’s grown up in the town, when he enters the restaurant, I can’t refer to someone as the waitress or the bartender because he knows everyone from the owner to the cooks and thinks of them by name. (How on earth do authors of 50 plus books name new characters after creating thousands of characters?!)

Often, I asked for help. Once when my youngest son, Nathan and I were driving from Dallas to Clovis, New Mexico, to visit my oldest son, to stay sane and awake on the long stretch of nothingness road through west Texas, we brainstormed names for businesses for my Wishing Texas Series. That task proved extra daunting because Wishing was known for its wishing well, and all the business chose names that had dreams, wishing, or fit in with that theme.

Because of this and that I write at a certain well known chain coffee shop, Nathan sent me a post he’d seen. It’s from @byalexcrespo and reads, “writing at coffee shops is great bc every time I need to add in a minor side character I just steal the name and essence of whoever is picking up their order from the barista in that moment. Enjoy your cappuccino Isaac you are about to die to advance the plot.” My son then asked if I did that. While I have killed off people before the story opens, like Cassie’s sister and brother-in-law in To Love a Texas Cowboy, I don’t do that in the stories. However, I told my son I would definitely use that technique to name characters from now on.

I’ve also discovered another strategy. Yesterday when I needed a last name for my hero’s best friend’s first love, I scrolled through my contacts on my phone for one. Oooh, my FB friends could also be a good source. Yippee, another strategy! And then I realized yet another one. You wonderful readers! But don’t panic. Since you’re all so sweet and wonderful, I’d never give a grumpy character part of your name. ? But you’re warned. Don’t be surprised if your first or last name shows up in one of my books.

Giveaway:  To be entered in my two random giveaways this month, tell me what’s the craziest, funniest, or most confusing business or town name you’ve heard of.  If you haven’t heard of anything with a crazy name, what’s the wildest one you can think of for a town or business? And don’t forget to tell me what the business is or does. 

 

 

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Julie Benson has written five novels for Harlequin American, and her Wishing, Texas series is available from Tule Publishing. Now that her three sons have left the nest in Dallas, when she isn't writing, Julie spends her time working on home improvement projects, rescuing dogs, and visiting Texas wineries with her husband. Visit her at www.juliebenson.net.

54 thoughts on “Names, Names, Too Many Things to Name”

    • Debbie, that is fabulous! Reminds me of the Slurpee! I’m going to start a file with names y’all have found or created. Don’t be surprised if yours shows up in a book some day. It sounds so Texas and Oklahoma. I may even need to come up with a scene in a coffee shop so I can use the name in Aiming for His Heart.

  2. Accident, Maryland
    Boring, Oregon
    Why
    State: Arizona
    Santa Claus
    State: Indiana
    Coward
    State: South Carolina
    Batman, Turkey
    Chicken
    State: Alaska
    Dummer
    State: New Hampshire
    Okay
    State: Oklahoma
    Bigfoot
    State: Texas
    Rough and Ready
    State: California
    Beer Bottle Crossing
    State: Idaho
    Humptulips, Washington
    Ding Dong
    State: Texas
    Booger Hole
    Whynot, North Carolina
    Cut and Shoot
    State: Texas
    What Cheer
    State: Iowa
    No Name
    State: Colorado
    Chugwater
    State: Wyoming
    Scratch Ankle
    State: Alabama
    Possumneck
    State: Mississippi
    Catfish Paradise
    State: Arizona
    Worms
    State: Nebraska

    • Charlene, those are crazy. Really, would you want to live in Worms, Nebraska?! My favs are Boring, Why, Rough and Ready, Beer Bottle Crossing, Ding Dong, Cut and Shoot. Those are definitely going on my list for when I need an unusual town name. Thanks for being here today and for your terrific suggestions. Have a fabulous day!

  3. Darling – the station sign says‘Hello Darling!’

    Then there is the South African favourite-

    Tweebuffelsmeteenskootmorsdoodgeskietfontein
    Northern Cape, South Africa

    The most famous of all the unusual town names in South Africa. This farm, located in the North West province, has the longest name in the country, and one of the longest in the whole world.

    Tweebuffelsmeteenskootmorsdoodgeskietfontein translates directly to “Two Buffalos Shot ‘Totally’ Dead with One Shot Fountain”.

    The farm was founded in 1866 by A.P. de Nysschen, who was evidently a crack-shot buffalo hunter.

    • Jeannette, thanks for being here and thanks for including the translation! I’m a former teacher and can sound out what little kids write pretty well, but that one had me stumped! And I’m not surprised that’s the longest town name in the country. Can you imagine having to write whenever you had to fill out paperwork with your address. Yikes!

      I love the Darling suggestion. That would make a great Texas town. All the businesses could have names that played into the theme or the musical! Oooooh, I’m so excited about this! There would, of course, be a Sweetheart Cafe…

      Thank you sooooo much for being here today. My mind is spinning with a story set in Darling, Texas. But I can’t think about that now. I still have a couple chapters to write in Aiming for His Heart.

      Have a terrific day.

  4. I’ve actually driven unscathed through Accident, Maryland.

    The Horse You Came In On is a real bar in Fells Point in Baltimore. Allegedly one of the last places Poe was seen alive. I’ve been there. In my 20s.

    And, there are a lot of interesting villages in Lancaster County: Bird in Hand, Paradise, Intercourse, Ronks, just to name a few. Yes, I’ve driven through all. My grandma lived in Manheim.

    • Denise, I love the town name Accident. I’ll have to research how it got its name just because there has to be a story behind it. I love the Lancaster County names. I’m scared to think about the story behind the name Intercourse. Can you imagine having to tell people you’re from Intercourse? Yikes.

      Thanks again for being here again, Denise. I appreciate all you faithful followers more than I can say. Have a terrific day.

      • It was originally call Cross Keys, founded in 1754. The name changed in 1814. It was a cross roads route and the word “intercourse” was commonly used to describe the ‘fellowship” and “social interaction and support” shared in the community of faith, which was much a part of a rural village like this one.

    • Why our town is called Accident

      About the year 1751, a grant of land was given to Mr. George Deakins by King George II, of England, in payment of a debt. According to the terms, Mr. Deakins was to receive 600 acres of land anywhere he chose in Western Maryland. Mr. Deakins sent out two corps of engineers, each without knowledge of the other group, to survey the best land in the area.

      After the survey, the engineers returned with their maps of the plots they had surveyed. To their surprise, they discovered they had surveyed a tract of land starting at the same tall Oak tree and returning to the start point. Mr. Deakins chose this plot of ground and had it patented “The Accident Tract;” hence, the name of the town.

      The area around Accident was laid out in military lots and was given to Revolutionary War soldiers in lieu of cash for services rendered. Most soldiers sold their lots and never lived in Western Maryland.

      Accident was incorporated in 1916.

  5. Harold’s Place Hot Beer and Poor Service was a joint I went by every time I went to Pratt, Kansas. I never went in even after I was old enough. Janine’s Cat House was a gift shop on the outer banks that featured cats in every room. The cats had their own territories and enjoyed the attention. Driving back from the outer Banks once I told my wife to remember Highway 14. At the junction she told me 214. We drove until we got to a sigh that said, “Welcome to Nebraska!” There is a little area in North Carolina named Nebraska.

    • Oh, goodness…Harold’s Place Hot Beer and Poor Service?! I hope the name is meant as a joke and that isn’t really true. The gift shop, Janine’s Cat House is crazy. I imagine finding cats in every room isn’t the first thing that comes to folks’ minds. I think it’s wild when a state has a town that is the name of another state. Talk about confusing.

      Thanks for stopping by to chat today. Take care and have a terrific day.

  6. I don’t think this is very unique, I don’t have a long list, but I loved Mackinac Island! No cars, trucks, buses…no traffic at all! Unless it was the horses and buggies! Since the island only has horses and bikes, why not name a restaurant The Pink Pony! I don’t know. I still think it’s cool! Heh. But, the other one that I liked, another restaurant, was “Bob’s Eat and Get the H*ll Out!” In Kills Devil Hills, NC. Hilarious! My husband, Bob received a shirt from there! 😉

    • Tracy, I love the idea of a town having no cars, trucks and traffic. Wouldn’t that be fantastic? Think of all the exercise folks must get. Your restaurant name, The Pink Pony is so creative. Now the restaurant…can you imagine the owner’s personality? It does call to mind a certain type of person if someone name’s a restaurant Bob’s Eat and Get the H*ll Out! I bet they sell a ton of T-shirts!

      Thanks for being here today. Take care and have a fabulous day!

  7. Normal, Illinois (state) and there is nothing normal about it LOL
    My name is really: Lournetta I have gotten called a lot of weird versions of this over the years. Mom nicknamed me Lori when I was young because most people had trouble with just plain Lournetta. I was named after dads brother Lourn quilting dash lady at comcast dot net

    • Lori, thanks for being here today. I think There’s nothing normal about it should be the town’s slogan! I think Lournetta is a beautiful name. I love that it has a family connection, but I bet it was frustrating having everyone mispronounce it. With a common name like Julie, I never had to deal with. I had the other issue. There were always other Julies in my classes. I guess like Gilda Radner’s Rosanna Rosanna Danna character said, “It’s always something.”

      I may have to use Normal in a book, and “There’s nothing normal about it” will definitely be it’s slogan! Take care and have a super day, Lournetta!

    • Good morning. You’ve got some great town names here. They’ve got me thinking. Is Zzyzx really a town name? Why and how would anyone come up with that? Like some of the other ones, there has to be a story behind that! I’m also wondering about Tightwad. There has to be a story behind that one, but why would someone choose that name? Hell is also interesting. I can’t imagine having to respond Hell when someone asked me where I lived. Yikes! Someone has a really warmed sense of humor.

      Thanks for being here today. Take care and have a fabulous day.

    • Oh, Tonya, that is just too funny. Now that’s a bar I’d want to have a drink in. Thanks for being here today and for sharing that name with me. Take care and have a terrific day!

  10. I grew up just outside of Peculiar, Missouri. According to legend, they town tried several different names and the state officials said they were already taken so the town wrote back and said just pick a peculiar name for us, and they did!

    • Desiree, that is a fabulous story! I may have to steal that one for a town some day. I guess that’s what you get for not being specific. I bet the state officials had a big laugh over it. They were probably surprised when the town’s residents didn’t come back and say they had to be kidding!

      Thank you for being here and sharing that wonderful story. Take care and have a super day.

    • Laurie, these are all wonderful! I especially like Embarrass. It’s another town that has to have a great story to go along with its name. Thank you for being here and sharing those terrific names. Take care and have a fabulous day.

    • I like the Hole in the Wall idea. I’m trying to think of something to add that would really make it funny like Bob’s Eat and Get the H*ll Out! Most people would’ve called the place Bob’s Eats and left it at that. Maybe I could do something like The Hole in the Wall, [something funny] on the Floor. It definitely has possibilities.

      Thanks for dropping by today to chat. Take care and have a wonderful day.

    • Ruth, oh my goodness, I can’t even pronounce the first one! What a hoot. I wonder how someone came up with that name for a town? Bacon would be a big winner with folks, as would Coffee Springs. But what is a coffee spring? I’d go with Dazzle rather than Dazzleville. To me, adding ville somehow lessens the name’s “sparkle.” Those are all great. Thanks for being here and sharing those names. Take care and have a terrific day.

  14. I live in Arizona where we have some unique town names.

    Showlow-was named during a card game where the card hand “Showed low”
    Ajo-where no garlic is grown or anything else for that matter (Garlic in Mexican is ajo)
    Christmas- where it does not look like Christmas at all
    Mesa-which means Table land and it is actually up on a mesa
    Tuba City on the Navajo reservation and definitely no tubas blown here
    Surprise-east of Phoenix. It used to be a surprise that it was named a city because it was only a few buildings. Now it is a burgeoning city of retirees.

    • Joye, those are interesting stories. It’s amazing how some towns have gotten their names. Some of them, it would be hard to say I was from there with a straight face. The poker hands opens up a lot of possibilities. Thanks for being here today. Take care and have a fabulous week.

  15. The Cat’s Meow was an antique shop in Crawfordsville, IN – it has been out of business for a long time now!
    She rehomed stray cats from the same building!

    • Teresa, I love the Cat’s Meow and that it rehomed cats because I work in rescue. I’ll have to use that idea in a story some time. But I think it would be a hoot if the owner rehomed dogs. Can you imagine the craziness that could ensue?

      Thanks for being here today and for offering that wonderful story. Take care and have a fantastic day.

  16. Not really a crazy name, but one I like. There is a little community I pass called Forks Of Ivy. It is really no more than a gas station, variety store and a cluster of houses, but I love the name.
    There are two local roads that could be used for towns that aren’t so nice. One is No Fatty Rd. I have no idea how it got that name but, one could speculate. The other fits the location, Hog Eye Road. The first house at the corner of the road is surrounded by junk, bags of trash, and broken vehicles. In thirty years it has remained the same. Not all the houses on the road are this bad, but there are a few.
    If you ever drive through an area of camps or summer homes, you might get some good ideas. I remember one camp/home called Done Roamin’. A good name for a ranch.

    • Patricia, I should’ve added sentimental and sweet names to my list. That’s how everything in my Wishing Texas series is. The businesses and ranches all have names with dreams, wishes or hope in them. Forks of Ivy is a beautiful one. I love the ranch name Done Roamin’. I haven’t hit on one that I love for Dalton’s ranch in Aiming for His Heart. The ranch has been in his family for generations, but I think you may have found it for me! That’s what his ancestor could’ve thought when they reached Oklahoma, especially if the he intended to go to California. Thank you for this and for being here. Have an amazing day.

    • Alicia, that’s such a cute name for a really small town. I love it. Thanks for stopping by and telling me about Wink, Texas. Take care and have a wonderful day.

  18. Wow reading everyone’s comments… I am familiar with a bunch of the town names… the restaurants and others are definitely interesting…
    The Crispy Biscuit
    Next Door
    Taste My Pasta
    Nin Com Soup
    Pita Pan
    🙂

    • Colleen, these are hilarious, especially Nin Com Soup and Pita Pan. What a hoot! Thanks for stopping by and sharing such clever restaurant names. Take care and have a fantastic day.

  19. Some odd names for towns in North Carolina are : Bear Grass (where I live), Kill Devil Hills, Tick Bite, Lizard Lick, Bat Cave, Climax, and Meat Camp.

    • Connie, Climax rates up there with Intercourse. Makes me wonder what those town folks were thinking when they chose those names! Tick Bite is wild. I wonder if they had a parasite problem. Lizard Lick, wonder how someone came up with that. I’ve got to ask, are there a lot of bears around where you live?

      Thanks for sharing those names. Take care, watch out for bears, and have a terrific day.

  20. @Julie I enjoyed your post and have wondered how authors come up with all the people, places, and city names! Then ya gotta keep track of everybody or we readers will let you know if you don’t.

    My name is Rachel and idkw but people have called me Becky many many times. It must have something to do with Rebecca…shrugs…

    I like the town name of Pie Town, NM and I wish I was there right now. 🙂

    • Rachel, keeping track of character, business, and animal names are hard. And you’re right. We do have to keep track of them because we don’t want to use a name twice. That’s why I tend to choose more “common” for lack of a better words for secondary characters such as waitresses that are only in one scene. For horse names when I wrote Roping the Rancher and my hero ran a equine therapy program on his ranch, I searched the Equest’s website. (an equestrian therapy program in the Dallas area who generously helped me with research) and checked out their horse’s names. I’m also constantly searching baby names websites for suggestions. For older secondary characters I’ll Google most popular names with the year that makes them the age I want.

      I’m sitting here shaking my head that with your name being Rachel people have called you Becky. My guess is they weren’t listening well and thought your name started with R and was something Biblical and landed on Rebecca.

      Thanks for being here today, Be– I mean Rachel :). Take care, have a fabulous day, and don’t let anyone call you Becky!

  21. Hi Julie – while we were traveling in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, we were in a remote area and pulled up to the UP Chuck Bar and Grill in a small town. We had a good laugh over that one.

    • Kathy, good to hear from you today! Up Chuck Bar and Grill?! Part of my says what was that owner thinking? We all know it’s a joke, but I’d still seriously consider if I wanted to go in. I guess I’d give it a try and hope the name wasn’t an omen of things to come…up. LOl. Take care, thanks for stopping by, and have a blessed day.

  22. There are towns called Heaven and Hell in Michigan
    Knockemstiff, Ohio
    Kinnikinnick, Ohio

    And then there are weird restaurants
    Punkin Inn
    Tootle In
    Bottom’s Up
    Hootin’ Tootin”
    Possum Trot (at a crossroads named “Nipgen”)

    • Thanks for being here today! Those are some interesting town names, for sure. The restaurant names are wild. I’m not sure I’d be brave enough to eat at one called Possum Trot. Makes me wonder if possum’s on the menu.

      Take care, stay safe, and have a super rest of the week.

  23. These responses are fascinating and so much fun! I grew up near Bacon Hill and never really thought about where the name came from. Since I have known people whose last name was Bacon I always thought it must have been someone’s family name.

    • Alice, today has been so much fun for me, too. The ones that I can’t get past are that Climax, Intercourse, and Hell are all real names of towns. How do the residents of those three look anyone in the face to answer the simple question, “Where are you from?” I think if I lived there I’d be starting a petition to change the town’s name.

      Thanks for being here today. I’m so glad the exchanges have made you laugh. I’m not sure any of us do enough of that! Take care and have a fabulous rest of the week.

      • Like the word “climax” we often have different meanings for them today than what they meant in the past. “Gay” dog was my favorite card in our Old Maid game. Is that name even allowed today?

    • Alice, you’re probably right about the words having a different meaning than they do now. Above Denise said this about Intercourse. “It was originally call Cross Keys, founded in 1754. The name changed in 1814. It was a cross roads route and the word “intercourse” was commonly used to describe the ‘fellowship” and “social interaction and support” shared in the community of faith, which was much a part of a rural village like this one.” It has to be hard on the citizen’s though because people don’t realize the other meaning of the word. I bet they do a lot of explaining.

  24. My daughter’s father-in-Law has a cabin in Pocahontas County, in West Virginia and it is Beautiful Have a Blessed Day!

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