Thanks, Stacia, for requesting this. I got to push it up the priority list because of that, and now I'll have fun with this.
For starters, I have a long name. My real name is 18 letters and 2 spaces long ( Yes, I have a first name, a middle name, and the last name, problem? ) and I absolutely HATE that. Look at it this way: You're giving a character a long name, and neglect to mention the problems they'll face as a result of that name.
1. They'll be teased by other people. I, for instance, spent my entire childhood being called, 'rice', and trust me that it's not good for a person's self-confidence.
2. People won't be able to pronounce their names correctly. Another problem I faced as a girl with a long-ass name: Nobody pronounces it right. I always get something so far away from my real name, and it pisses me off.
3. They'll have too many names for people to care about. While I honestly didn't face this problem, your character definitely will. Kids and teens are cruel to their peers, so their names will 100% be made fun of.
So, please don't name your character something of the likes of, 'Strawberry Banana Chocolate Pastry Cadbury.' It will suck for both the reader and the character.
Honestly, here's my tip for naming your character: Think of your character as your brainchild. I would say child, but in your child, you'd have to do a lot of work such as changing smelly diapers.
Now, think of what you would like to name your real child. You'd want to give your child a realistic name, now, wouldn't you?
Here's a list of names for girls, boys, and unisexual names.
Girls Names:
Lillian
Olivia
Emma
Ava
Charlotte
Sophia
Amelia
Isabella
Mia
Evelyn
Harper
Camila
Abigail
Luna
Selena
Ella
Elizabeth
Layla
Penelope
Tina
...And many more
Boys Names:
Liam
Noah
Oliver
Elijah
James
William
Benjamin
Lucas
Henry
Mason
Ethan
Daniel
Jacob
Levi
Sebastian
Mateo
Jack
Owen
Theodore
Aiden
...And Many More
Unisex Names:
Bellamy
Charlie
Dakota
Denver
Emerson
Finley
Skyler
Kai
Elliot
Hunter
Avery
Briar
Dallas
Gray
Haven
Indigo
Morgan
Onyx
Robin
Rory
...And Many More
I honestly just name my character after crawling around through baby name websites for a while. I even find that sometimes, you can give your character a name that is important to the plot. Make it up if you can't find it ( Te-hee-hee Lorelle )
If you want to look for last names or first names that are particular to some nationality or religion, just go to google and search, '[nationality name] last names/first names'. That's what I do.
In conclusion, don't give your character names that are too long, because there are a lot of complications attached to that. I hope this chapter helped you!
