This post was first published in April 2018 and last updated in June 2025.
You’re probably known by several different names in your life.
I’m “Ali Luke” to Aliventures readers.
I’m “Alison Luke” when I fill in a form.
I’m “Mrs Luke” to my bank and to cold-callers.
I’m “Mummy” or “Mum” to
my kids.
I’m “Ali” to everyone who met me after I turned 18, and “Alison” to some of those who met me before that and never adjusted!
I’m “Kitty and Nick’s mum” to their friends and the parents who don’t know me very well.
Like real people, your characters will almost certainly have more than one form of their name. They might also have a particular role or profession (e.g. “solicitor”) that you could plausibly “name” them as.
When it comes to your narrative, though, your character needs to have one name
that you use consistently.
It’s confusing for readers if you switch between their surname and first name a lot, or if you use descriptions to try to shake things up a bit (“the girl”, “the tall man” “his friend”, “the cop” etc).
Using a character’s name repeatedly is like
using the word “said” repeatedly: readers will barely even notice.
Read more...
