About Names...
Sep 5, 2021
Please be advised that this blog post contains spoilers for The Delicate Things We Make, The Perfect Match, and The Headmistress
I very rarely read reviews of my books. Blame it on the anxiety or the abject fear of seeing people disappointed in my work. Still, I have friends who forward me the reviews that they believe I need to see. Last week I was sent one of those, and yes, very much yes, I needed to see it.
It was a gorgeous essay on The Headmistress and the mythology of the book, its characters, and the setting of the events. The author of the essay dove deep into why Magdalene and Sam were named the way they were - concluding that I must’ve had a reason for the appellations and trying to see if those names were inspired by Biblical notions, historical, or happenstance.
The essay, compounded by several other people - you know who you are, KJ - asking me about why I named the characters in my books the way I did, made me redesign my whole website - thank you, Luce, you’re the best broski - in order to add a blog and write this post.
Names of my characters are oftentimes what decides whether the book will or will not be written, and when that is going to happen. I have a queue of eight fully plotted out ideas, that periodically switch places in said queue, jump ahead of each other, or get in the back of the line. More often than not, a new idea pops up, pushing all the others to the backburner. The new idea is very often driven by a name of the character, and then it definitely pushes everything else aside.
The Headmistress was born out of a name. In fact, The Headmistress was born out of two names. Threadneedle and Nox. Or well, Knox to be exact. You see, I was reading about the gold reserves of various countries. I read a lot of weird things, so please, no judging.
Sam Threadneedle - named after the street the Bank of England is situated on and where the English gold reserve was housed and Magdalene Nox - named for both Fort Knox which houses the US gold reserve and the Latin word for “night” - Nox. The names for the two “guardians” of the nations’ gold got me thinking about mythological creatures that guard gold in fairy tales - dragons - and so the Three Dragons were born.
The reader is informed early on that Sam is the Fourth Dragon. But only by the end of the book does the reader see that Magdalene is in fact, one of the protectors and guardians as well. The Fifth Dragon. Why was there a need for five, you may ask? Well, in numerology, the number five stands for freedom and for change. And who can bring change and freedom? Who is truly the nations’ gold? Children. This the Five Dragons guard their gold - their students.
Knox became Nox because of Willoughby, actually. The cat who followed the Sun suddenly followed the Night. It was meant to be a clue for the reader that absolutely nothing is what it seems where one Magdalene Nox is concerned.
My previous two books also had characters whose names had meanings that were chosen for some particular reason. In fact, all the characters have them. Sabine from The Perfect Match is Goddard and Abbie is Angellini, in a book full of gods and angels, these last names slot in well and are meant to symbolize their place among the mythical creatures.
Jameson Walker and her name are explained in The Delicate Things We Make, her father having been an alcoholic who named all his children after his poison of choice. Vivian DeVor has a more complex meaning behind her moniker. She changes it after the incident that nearly ruined her, and while she didn't pick the name herself, it means “to be alive, to survive” and it fits her character arc like a glove. The DeVor part of her name is something that I am not yet ready to divulge, but I’m welcoming guesses.
Please be advised that this blog post contains spoilers for The Delicate Things We Make, The Perfect Match, and The Headmistress
I very rarely read reviews of my books. Blame it on the anxiety or the abject fear of seeing people disappointed in my work. Still, I have friends who forward me the reviews that they believe I need to see. Last week I was sent one of those, and yes, very much yes, I needed to see it.
It was a gorgeous essay on The Headmistress and the mythology of the book, its characters, and the setting of the events. The author of the essay dove deep into why Magdalene and Sam were named the way they were - concluding that I must’ve had a reason for the appellations and trying to see if those names were inspired by Biblical notions, historical, or happenstance.
The essay, compounded by several other people - you know who you are, KJ - asking me about why I named the characters in my books the way I did, made me redesign my whole website - thank you, Luce, you’re the best broski - in order to add a blog and write this post.
Names of my characters are oftentimes what decides whether the book will or will not be written, and when that is going to happen. I have a queue of eight fully plotted out ideas, that periodically switch places in said queue, jump ahead of each other, or get in the back of the line. More often than not, a new idea pops up, pushing all the others to the backburner. The new idea is very often driven by a name of the character, and then it definitely pushes everything else aside.
The Headmistress was born out of a name. In fact, The Headmistress was born out of two names. Threadneedle and Nox. Or well, Knox to be exact. You see, I was reading about the gold reserves of various countries. I read a lot of weird things, so please, no judging.
Sam Threadneedle - named after the street the Bank of England is situated on and where the English gold reserve was housed and Magdalene Nox - named for both Fort Knox which houses the US gold reserve and the Latin word for “night” - Nox. The names for the two “guardians” of the nations’ gold got me thinking about mythological creatures that guard gold in fairy tales - dragons - and so the Three Dragons were born.
The reader is informed early on that Sam is the Fourth Dragon. But only by the end of the book does the reader see that Magdalene is in fact, one of the protectors and guardians as well. The Fifth Dragon. Why was there a need for five, you may ask? Well, in numerology, the number five stands for freedom and for change. And who can bring change and freedom? Who is truly the nations’ gold? Children. This the Five Dragons guard their gold - their students.
Knox became Nox because of Willoughby, actually. The cat who followed the Sun suddenly followed the Night. It was meant to be a clue for the reader that absolutely nothing is what it seems where one Magdalene Nox is concerned.
My previous two books also had characters whose names had meanings that were chosen for some particular reason. In fact, all the characters have them. Sabine from The Perfect Match is Goddard and Abbie is Angellini, in a book full of gods and angels, these last names slot in well and are meant to symbolize their place among the mythical creatures.
Jameson Walker and her name are explained in The Delicate Things We Make, her father having been an alcoholic who named all his children after his poison of choice. Vivian DeVor has a more complex meaning behind her moniker. She changes it after the incident that nearly ruined her, and while she didn't pick the name herself, it means “to be alive, to survive” and it fits her character arc like a glove. The DeVor part of her name is something that I am not yet ready to divulge, but I’m welcoming guesses.
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