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I love Dominic(k), because he’s so dominating! I’ve used the name myself. And I’ve used Harry too, because he seems like a simple guy who gets complicated by the heroine. I kind of like last names being shortened; in my current wip, Baron Hartford is Hart to his friends.

Oooh, Maggie, I like Dominic(k) too.  And there is definitely something about Harry.  I realized what a cool name it was in relation to the magic thing when I was watching THE DRESDEN FILES recently.  I mean we have Harry Houdini, Harry Potter, Harry Dresden and hey, Prince Harry!

I think it was Virginia Henley who named her hero “Rod” (sorry X-tina...she did this before your concrete/landscape guy). 

It was such a campy choice, I had to approve.

I have no preference actually, as long as the name fits the genre and guy...i.e., it’s much easier to read about a “Wulfgar” in a medieval than if he were strutting around a contemp (though it might be funny to read about some poor dude saddled with such a name because his mother was constantly reading medieval romances).  Wulfgar Smith from Richmond.  Ha. 

See?  I have no preference.  But I do have aversions.  I don’t know if I could read about a wonderfully scorching hero-type named: Eugene (sorry to those Eugenites.  Nothing wrong with the name; just don’t want to think about his penis is all). Or Bubba for that matter.  But I’m also sure that in the right (write!) hands, Eugene and Bubba could work, but it’d be a major challenge.

Wulfgar Smith?  I love it, J Perry! 

Could anybody live with a George?  I always intended Lottie and Laura’s brother George from A KISS TO REMEMBER to be a secondary character but I’ve gotten a LOT of requests for his story since then.  I don’t have any plans to write it but I was wondering if I could do a romance hero named George.  (I guess there is George of the Jungle.)

And when I did “Gareth” in SHADOWS AND LACE, I didn’t realized until after I finished that you couldn’t say the name out loud without lisping.

Teresa?

George Clooney.  Now ask me again if you can make a George hottie patottie!

When I think about it, a helluva lot of the major sex-pots have iffy hero names:

Russell
Brad
Hugh
Bert
Errol
Clark
Cary
Rudolph
Elvis

As long as the guy is long on....testosterone, it doesn’t matter.  I once knew guy named Carol.  He was the scariest brute ever.  And I once dated a gorgeous Cuban named....wait for it....Walter.  That didn’t matter either.

So yes, do your George.  Do him well, and then release him unto us (so we can do him too )

Teresa, love the blog!

Heroes names definitely leave a perception.  Does anyone else remember Damien and Prudence? 

Along with Maggie, I like simple names such as Sam, Liam, and Jake.  I really don’t like Mike or Tom, but I think that’s because every single man in my family is a Mike or Tom! 

But I also love the sweeping names: Sebastian, Gideon, Gabriel, and Lucien.  It just screams romance to me.

Jo Beverly has some wonderful George’s in her Rogues series.  I’m sure you could pull it off, Teresa.

I was a Clayton and Royce girl for a long time but that was because I cut my romance teeth on McNaught.  And I like the last name or even title being shortened idea.  Like when I was recently reading The Duke by Foley and Hawksville just becomes Hawk.  Now if it was Clairesville and got shortened to Claire - not quite the same.

I write contemp so I have an easier time.  I think anyway.  My guy is just Bryan.  But I used the y to make it a little different. *g*

Elyssany said:
But I also love the sweeping names: Sebastian, Gideon, Gabriel, and Lucien.  It just screams romance to me.

Is that it screams to you or you can hear yourself screaming those names? 

I don’t know if I have a favorite, I think the romance novel name I remember most is Rothgar.  I’m not sure why, maybe the Waiting for campaign did it, I know I have a button from that campaign tacked to my wall.  I think names are a really tricky thing to come up with.  I am STRUGGLING with writing myself and my male character has gone through a number of incarnations (thank you find and replace).  He started out with the name Sebastian, however I assume I was overusing it because I really became sick of it.  I prefer to read names that are contemporary with the time period the characters are living in.  Keeps the flow going.  No Rock, Rod, Ram, Dirk, Drake, Lance, Snake, Gage and please no Peter.

Terrio:  My heart skipped a beat when you mentioned Clayton and Royce.  Judith McNaught was my introduction into Roamnce Novels, so those men have a special place in my fluttery heart.

I like it when the heros have strong names.  I dated a guy named Lance.  He was over a foot taller then me and played football.  My dad always called him “Lance Romance”.  This always made me crazy, because it made him sound soo..........I don’t know...........wimpy. 

When it came to naming my boys, I felt like there names needed to sound solid.  Here is the silly thing........if I couldn’t picture a strong cowboy sporting the name, I could not use it. Evan and Dylan, now if those names don’t sound like heros, then I don’t know what does. 

Aiden is far and away my favorite name for a hero.  I also like Celtic sounding names - Ian, Hamish, Dougal, Sean, Angus, Colum, Keenan, and Tristan.

Teresa, great blog!

I prefere the sweeping romance archetypes, to be honest. I love Julian, Sebastian, and Gareth. And let us not forget Austyn! Nothing’s worse than having a hero with a dud name like..Bob. Doesn’t exactly send shivers down your spine.

Even in real life, if a guy doesn’t have a good name (first or last)...I’m not interested. Isn’t that awful? I just think a name definitely alters your perception of someone.  But I do love the two British Harrys: Potter and Prince.

I love (or hate) naming characters. Some names just immediatley are right--- Harry from As You Desire, was just exaclt a “Harry” while some of the more melodic names are perfect for their stories. Sebastian, Devlin et al. Could Peter Whimsey BE Peter Whimsey if he hadn’t been so named? How about Heathcliff? Or Maximillian from Rebecca?

Right now I’ve got a hero named Joe and soon, when i start the historical novella, I’ll have to come up woth a name for him. But you’re right,Teresa, sometimes you have to see how they act before you name them. That’s how tis guy is going to be...maybe a Leighton or a Xavier.

Oh god, I don’t think I could read a hero named Angus. I’d keep reading it as Anus! Plus, it unfailingly reminds me of the “Colonel Angus” sketch from SNL. Did anyone see that? hehehe what a hoot.

I also don’t think I’d like a hero named Merrill, although I do like other sex-transfer names, like Jordan, Morgan, and Loren.  I love the names Bentham and Bennet and Beckitt - these are all for English historicals, though.

As for Harry, Elizabeth Hoyt put that name to beautiful use in The Leopard Prince, with Harry Pye. In fact, I love all her names, unusual as they may be. They just fit so perfectly with her characters.

The hardest time I had was when the hero switched names mid-book in A KISS TO REMEMBER.  He was called Nicholas when he had the amnesia but regained Sterling along with his memory. 

And Sterling is from one of my favorite Victoria Holt books of all-time--THE SHADOW OF THE LYNX.

I think I love most of the names mentioned here. 

Personally, I love Nathan (they call him Nate in the books), Max (it’s just sexy), and although I’ve only seen it once, Landon (but everyone would call him by his last name I’m sure.)

Sebastion and Gabriel are my historical English favorites.

Names are very important in how I view a hero and heroine. Doug’s just don’t do it for me and I just can’t seem to like ladies with the name Regina. (No offense to anyone named that).  I don’t like my own name but I’ve seen it now at least a half dozen times in romance novels. 

ha! my word is men93!!!

Hi Theresa,

I don’t really mind the character’s name as long as he is hot (and they are always hot!)

I tend to like names that are Italian, Giovanni, Angelo, Roman---they all seem sexy right off the cuff.

I also like names like Beau -French and strong and very beautiful, and I love Jesse (he’s a bit of a bad boy who’s just waiting to be tamed.) These are the names I chose for my sons, and I think both boys will grow into their names.

I enjoyed this blog, and all the answers.

Like Avery, I love Celtic names so Aidan, Ian, Shawn/Sean and Tristan are favorites.  Sebastian, Lucien, Gabriel and Giles are great names, too.

I’m not keen on nicknames for heroes.  I adore Stephanie Laurens’ Cynster series (I read them over and over) but I prefer the Cynster’s real names Sebastian, Spencer, Richard, Rupert, Harry and Alasdair over Devil, Vane, Scandal, Gabriel, Demon and Lucifer.  Vane and Gabriel had the best nicknames of the lot.  I’m sorry, but who would want to call their husband Demon or Lucifer on a daily basis?  Yes, I know, it’s a book, not real life (as my hubby keeps telling me).

One of my favorite names from fiction is Granville Bennett, the larger than life veterinarian from the James Herriott vet books (which are absolutely charming and hysterical).  What a great name.

My all time favorite hero name is Derek. Not only is he the hero in my favorite Kleypas book, that is my husbands name.

And just as a side note - For some reason almost my entire household is named after Lisa Kleypas characters: me - Amanda, husband - Derek, son - Cam, and I am waiting for my daughter to pop up somewhere - Caitlyn.

oh, Ana Maria, I LOVE the James Herriott books! I read every single one when I was a girl, and they always made me laugh (and cry). After all these years, I do remember Granville Bennett. You’re right, it is a very strong name. Must reread them!

Am I the only one that’s noticed that kilt is riding up pretty far in that picture?  Just wondering…

If my daughter would have been a boy, it would have been the name Garrett from Message in a Bottle.  What can I say?  I saw the movie while I was pregnant and I have a thing for Kevin Costner.  *g* It’s a very strong name IMO.

And I hadn’t even met the Earl of Mayne yet.  That’s just a happy coincidence....

I love the name Darius.  It’s a strong name that can be proudly called out in war or passionately called out in bed.  Darius sounds like he would be the type of man everyman admired and every woman wanted to marry.

I also like the name Luke or Jack.  Those are sexy rugged names.  You just want to see these men sauntering or riding a horse (or Harley) toward you.

Yum! 

Deb

I’m not really all that fussy when it comes to the names in the books I read.  I like almost all of the names mentioned here.  I even liked Walter, but I think that is because that was my fathers name!! 

I love medieval books.  So I like the names that are found in them.  And since I’m mostly Welsh, I like the names Rhys and David. 

I hate my name and thank goodness, I’ve never seen a heroine named Dorothy.  It’s always been reserved for the mothers name or the maiden aunt!!  lol

--dorothy

The server just ate my post. I hate it when that happens because the retyped version is never as scintillating as what was lost.

I think a good writer can take almost any name and make the character a credible hero. If anyone had asked me about a hero named “Reginald,” I would have scoffed, but MJP’s Reggie Davenport is one of my favorite heroes. Someone mentioned Rothgar, and his given name (Beowulf) is even more startling; yet Jo Beverley creates a great sense of the intimacy of the relationship when “Rothgar” becomes “Bey.” And “Rupert” would have seemed most definitely in the non-heroic camp until I fell in love with Loretta Chase’s Mr. Impossible.

My hero is Max, not a name I ever imagined naming a character. But there he was in my head, telling me his name was Max, and I was unable to change his mind.

When I think of hero’s names, I automatically think of J.R Ward books. Wrath, Rhage, Zsadist, Butch.  I mean these are names are kinda corny, but they totally work.

My Favorites:
Brodrick Buchanan (Ransom)
Derek Craven (Dreaming of You)
Ian
Sean
Lucas
And I’ve never found it in a Romance novel but I love the name Aragon from Lord or the Rings.  I know I’m a geek (Don’t judge me.)

I like pretty much like all the names just so long as the hero is hot. For instance I never liked Sebastian until I read Devil in Winter.  Now I love that name!!

Though I think the worst name I’ve come acrossed is John Black only because his nickname is Jack.
“Jack Black” just like the actor/comedian, it totally ruined the book for me.  Don’t get me wrong I love Jack Black as a comedian, just not as my romantic hero.

Don’t be silly, terrio.  That’s not a kilt in the picture.  It’s a mini-kilt.  (And that’s the original stepback art from A WHISPER OF ROSES.  I kind of liked it because the heroine got to be the dominant one for once )

And no, the model isn’t Fabio.  I like to call him “Not-Fabio.”

Hey if Jane Austen can have Fitzwilliam Darcy, who’d to say what a name can be! i like most of the names above, I have a special place for James and Thomas, family names!
-Anne Stuart had a Bastien Touissant that went by a million names. it drove me crazy! I guess that’s what you get for being a spy.

- I love your name, Dorothy, my favorite aunt was a Dottie!!

dear reader you crack me up.  I never associated Angus with anus I but will now. 

Janga I agree with you about Rupert, not a name you would immediately equate with a hero until it was done well.  However, I don’t think that there is any author who could make me fall in love with a hero named Reuben.  I can’t hear that name without thinking of corned beef. 

I like the sweeping romantic names.  Wulfric...sigh.  And what’s wrong with Rod?

In my reading career I have noticed that I have never come across a hero named Paul.  Paul is always the best friend or the dead husband, but never the hero.  Am I wrong?

Teresa, I love THE SHADOW OF THE LYNX!  It’s been years--won’t say how many--since I’ve read it!

I’m usually not too picky about names, as long as they fit the character.  Like, AnnRene, I never would have thought of Sebastian as a sexy hero before DEVIL IN WINTER.

I must jump in with the Royce and Clayton fans--love those heroes!

TERRY
LOVE THIS BLOG

MY FAVORITE HERO HAS ALLWAYS BEEN RUARK DEVERELL BEAUCHAMP WANTED TO NAME MY SON RUARK BUT HAD A GIRL NAMED HER BIANCA

SARAH

Oh Sarah,

I loved Ruark too!  He is my favorite, all time favorite, although I did like Gage in Lisa Kleypas’ Sugar Daddy!

I tend to like simpler names because somehow they seem truer and not so contrived, but I love Marcus and Nathaniel whereas Mark and Nathan seem merely ordinary to me and I don’t know why.  My oldest son is Jeremy and I love that name too, but for some reason all the characters with that name in romance novels are either the best friend who has an unrequited crush on the heroine or the villain.  My own Jeremy is definitely hero material; I’m just waiting for the Squawkers or other authors to awaken to the possibilities of a hero named Jeremy.

Not too many Michaels out there, either.  Even if it happens to be one of the top three most popular names out there, for several decades now. 

Harumph.

Then again, Julia Quinn did wonders with a memorable Michael in WHEN HE WAS WICKED.  My kinda book.

Mike

{Actual 1998 Daily News Headline regarding “Mike"-popularity: YIKES! LOTS OF TYKES ARE MIKES! }

Mike,
My husband is a Michael and he’s a hero!

My friend dated a Mike.  He turned out to be gay. She will not allow any of us to name a hero Mike.  But we can name a secondary character that as long as we do something horrible to him...LOL!

Like everyone else, I am a reader who is impacted by hero names. How do we have this discussion without mentioning the Black Dagger Brotherhood? I mean, a sillier set of names I’ve never seen, and yet, JR Ward TOTALLY works it. Every name is perfect for the brother, and by the end of the book, the name is perfect for each of them.

Wow - that was totally redundant!

That’s what happens when you pause in typing a comment to answer the phone at work.

Duh.

I love the name Gabriel, as well as Luke.

I like strong names such as Julian, John, Robert, Derek, Michael. That sort of thing.
Names do matter for me.

MaryKate, That’s what happens when you think about the brothers!!

-Mike, there is a great leading man in the TV show “La Femme Nikita” named Michael, and he is all that!!    Definitely hero worthy!

I like the classically sexy British-sounding names.

Callum
Simon
Dominic
Alec
Niall
Christian
Philip
Garrick
Gareth
Graham
William/Will
Jared
Julian
Rhys

My favorite names from my favorite books:

Robert Carroway
Jack Devlin

My favorite names, that my own characters in my stories have:  Sinjin, James, Tristan

I don’t think I have a favorite. My only criteria for names is that I know how to pronounce it. I absolutely hate it when I’m not sure how to say it and it stops the flow every time i hear it - I’ll keep switching and it drives me crazy. I sure wish books that have strange names and places would tell us how to pronounce them.

Terry, I love that cover and I have that plaid mini skirt also. Too bad it didn’t come with the Highlander in it.

Lorenzo “Ren” Gage from Breathing Room by SEP even though I kept thinking of Ren and Stimpy and him saying, “Isabelle, you eeediot!”
and just like the characters in Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie I never would have thought Finnius Tucker would be such a hot guy but Finn Tucker sure was fine.
Other favorite hero names are Roark(from the In Death series and Roarke’s Prisoner by Angela Knight),Liam, Marcus, Magnus, Kane, Seth, Bjorn, Hakon, Royce,Wulfar, and of course Morgan MacDonnell.
janga said…
The server just ate my post. I hate it when that happens because the retyped version is never as scintillating as what was lost.

- what you have to do is either compose your comment on word or yahoo notepad first then copy and paste. Then if you are long-winded (like I am) you can split it up without having to re-write.

I’d have to say that Sebastian is one of my favorite hero names.  I also like Jake, Mark and Gabriel (bet you thought I was going to say Stephen - hah!). 

Names that don’t work for me are Ralph and Terrance.  I don’t know!

And Terri, nice tease.  Simon is it?  That’s the first time you’ve shared a tidbit here.  I’m so proud of you!

Thanks Santa!  Simon is growing bolder and so am I!  He’s kind of a man-whore but I love him

Thanks Georgia Peach!  Since I’m rapidly running out of romance archetype names, I’ll save your list

How about Wilbury? 

Anyone?  Anyone?

Gebriel become my all-time favorite name after reading Julie Garwood’s hero of that name. And I do like Stephen, too.

GeorgiaPeach: I really liked your list.

How about Thorpe or Thornton? Just not, Throckmorton.

Teresa, great post. I’ve copied the names for use in my next projects.

I too love the Sebastion, Gabriel, Tristan I adore. My favorite all time name, book and hero is Raine from Keeper of the Dream by Peneolpe Willliamson!! I swear I am still wishing there was a book with their grandaughter, at the end of the first it looked soooo promising…

I love Gabriel & Sebastian. Have to say I don’t think I could read Angus with thinking of anus now.

I challenge anyone to use the name Purvis. Doubt he could be a hero, but maybe a secondary character or possibly a mama’s boy/villian.

Love all the Cynsters names. Sebastian/Devil is my all time favorite.

Oh Tal, Wasn’t KEEPER OF THE DREAM a fabulous book?  That one and ONCE IN A BLUE MOON are my favorite Penelope Williamson historicals.  Loved her mainstream western HEART OF THE WEST too. 

And J Perry, how could we have forgotten about our darling Wilbury?  (Does he even HAVE a first name?)

Teachers have a thing about names too.  There are just some names that make us shudder when we hear them!  Bubba, Cody, and Dusty are 3 that come to mind. 
As a reader, I like one or two syllable names - can you imagine moaning “Sebastian” when you’re having a good time?  Doesn’t quite work for me.  And I always want a name without “spelling weirdness” that I can pronounce!  When names are spelled oddly it dispels the magic of the story for me.  Maybe I’m just a spellchecker at heart?
Hah!  Just reread my post and it dawned on me that my favorite hero name is Nicholas - just about as long as Sebastian.  Never mind.....

I agree with Catslady, I want to be able to pronounce the name. There have been some characters that I have given a nickname because I can’t pronounce their given name.

I have a question on nicknames; why is Jack the nickname for John? It is not any shorter.

Unfortunately, my son is named Simon so I just can’t enjoy any of the really great books with heroes of that name.  I’ve tried..just creeps me out.  I think it would help if I actually knew more than one Simon but I don’t. 

Ahh yes Morgan MacDonnell...(sigh). I, too, love the name Tristan for a hero. Reminds me of Tristan & Isolde and the gorgeous face of James Franco.

But what about heroine names? Or maybe that should be saved for another blog

i can’t believe your next book is coming out SPRING 2008, that’s a ridiculously long time and i don’t know how I’m supposed to wait that long. hahahha.

Great Blog Teresa!  I was thinking about this very topic a couple of weeks ago.  I started reading a book and the hero’s name was Guy and I thought to myself - this is going to be a good book.  I really liked that name and couldn’t wait to read more about him.

I also agree with whoever stated they like when their title is shortened.  I think that’s cool.  I guess I like the unusual names:

Bey (Beowulf)
Wulf (Wulfric)
Guy
Luce (Lucien)
Nicholas (Nick)
Will
Phin
Marcus
Grayson (Gray)
Aidan
Roark

I like when they have a long name and their intimates shorten it.  It shows a definite relationship with just one word.

Nicholas if it’s historical, and Nick if it’s contemporary. 

Phillip is another good one

Sandy Smith
Beaverton, Oregon

Hi again. Ok, this is off topic but it depressed me that no one knew my SNL “Colonel Angus” reference, so here is the video because it is just too funny.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYoM481QE4A

*warning! not for the faint of heart!!!

Oh, I’m so sorry I’m late coming into this one.  lol I love rare sweeping romance archetypes.  A strong, exotic name definitely adds so much to the character for me.  Normal, plain names are boring.  A dramatic love scene in which the heroine cries out, “Oh Earl!” would just crack me up.

My all time favorite name for a hero is Gavrael.  In fact, I would probably name my son that...were I to have one. 

A rare name just adds to the fantasy of that rare, special guy that is so hard to come by.

Although, I have to admit that I dreamed of a perfect guy named Justin after I read “Once an Angel,” so normal names aren’t always boring.  lol

With a name like Wilbury, would you need a first name?  It’s like Cher or Blondie.

Wilbury! (shakes head)

I absolutely love LOVE swoon-worthy names like Cole, Zack. But even if the name isn’t “swoon-worthy” and it’s just “ordinary” it doesn’t really affect my liking of the character. Like you said Teresa, there are some great heroes with ordinary names like John or Pete.

My absolute favorite name has to be either Jordan, Tristan or Valentine...total THUD worthy…

You are right there Teresa! Names are very important for characters. For example, how can you take a character named “Huey” seriously? Or “Lewey”? Or “Dewey”? Okay, whatever, you get my point. I like my heroes to have strong sexy names that I can visualize in my head. ;P

Like you, Teresa, my characters “speak” to me, long before the story is revealed in my mind.

My guys have names like David, Ben, Rafael (Rafe for short) and Gilbert “Call me Gil”. LOL! I even have a bad guy named Mike who I think is capable of redemption.

So no over the top uber alpha macho names for my men. 

That’s not to say I don’t enjoy the stories about Dominicks or Damians or Sebastians.

I’m just very accepting of the hero’s name. I figure he told his creator what he wanted to be called and thus, it was so!

BTW, Eloisa, if you read this...just finished PFP and really enjoyed it.

Had to giggle over my verification word “You42” Lordy, I WISH I was 42 again!!

Oh my darling Linh, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your patience!  Every few years I have to take a couple of extra months off between books to refill my creative well.  But I’ll try to make it worth your wait

George converted to Gio by his friends.  Floats my gondola. Oh, also for the English Celtic names list add Craig.  Think rocks, mountains,crags.
I love the name Tristan. Tris,just a yummy guy name, and probably every guy ever named Tristan wanted to take revenge upon his parents.

Wow - what a lot of great names!

I’ll add Jonathan, Charles, Adam and Adrian.....to the ‘trad’ list…

And Lochlan to the Celtic lot.....plus Brynn, Dylan, Colm....

Sigh.  So many wonderful names.... and I’m not even touching medievals.....

And I LOVED Wulfric.  And I also love the names of those Cynsters. And… and...too many people to agree with.....

Since my name is “strange” (yes just like in Lisa’s book) I tend to like “normal”.  But I like it to be normal for the time period.  Wulfric in a contemp is odd but in a medieval it could work.

Alexander is my favorite. If I ever have a boy that will be his name. I tend to like the more normal names.
PS- Alex is from The Bronze Horseman.

Love the the angelic name Malachi.
Plus…
Julian
Christian Masters(my own thought)
Alexander(not alex,notlex naot xander.Just full Alexander)
Erik
Aiden
Bain
Phillipe
And Terrance
Some may be Alittle strange but ya thoughs are my picks.