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Thursday, September 10, 2009

Molly Harper Guest Post

Characters with Quirky Names!

I've been known to pick some weird names for my characters in the Jane Jameson series. Jettie Belle, Dick Cheney, Jolene. And people have asked where the heck I come up with them. So I thought I'd provide a helpful key glossary of explanations.

Jane Jameson: I wanted Jane to be an everygirl. She's a plain Jane. She's a little shy and a lot neurotic. And I knew I wanted her to have an alliterative name like the comic book heroes: Peter Parker, Lois Lane, Clark Kent. And I used Jameson because it allowed Dick Cheney to make a joke on their first meeting that said a lot about his personality and sort of set the tone for their whole relationship. This is a family blog, I probably shouldn't go into it here.

Gabriel Nightingale: Gabriel is Jane's savior, so I wanted to name him after an archangel. And yes, I do realize I misspelled Nightingale. I just like it better that way. And Nightengale was a nice dark counterpoint to Adam Morrow, the boy that captured Jane's heart in high school. Get it, Nightengale vs. Morrow. Night vs. Day. I'm not one for subtlety.

Dick Cheney: For some reason, it just struck me as funny to have a vampire named Dick Cheney. He's been Dick Cheney for more than 100 years and all of the sudden this Republican politican comes along and the late-night hosts start making jokes about heart attacks and accidental shootings. Poor guy. Dick is my favorite character. I love all of my characters, but he's just so much fun to write for. He gets all the best lines.

Zeb Lavelle: Zeb is my sister's middle name. My sister, Manda, is one of my closest friends and I wanted to honor her. Also, it's a family name. Manda was named after our great-grandmother. And as much as we loved her, both Manda and I agreed that we weren't naming our kids, "Zeb." So this was a way to pass the name along without actually passing it along to another generation. And my favorite character on Buffy, Xander's, middle name was Lavelle.

Jolene McClaine: Jolene the werewolf comes sweeping into Jane's life and basically steals her best friend. So I got Jolene from the Dolly Parton song, "Jolene, Don't Take My Man Just Because You Can." Jane doesn't have romantic interest in Zeb, but she still feels threatened by Jolene. And McClaine is from Die Hard, my favorite action movie. Hey, I have layers.

Jettie Belle Early: Jettie Belle was a many-times great relative on my mom's side whom I'm said to resemble. Really, you put the pictures of us next to each other and it's uncanny. So there you have it, a little window into my rationale. I hope that helps!

mollyharper.com



Giveaway Alert !

To celebrate Vampire week I'm giving away a copy of Molly's latest release, Nice Girls Don't Date Dead Men. All you have to do is leave a comment on the blog this week & make sure you leave your email address. The more comments you leave... the more entries you have :]!

Good Luck!!!

Moody Countess
Visit Diane @ blog The Book Resort

38 comments:

Wendy said...

I love the name Jane. It's very simple and lovely.

Can't wait to read Nice Girls Don't Date Dead Men! I really enjoyed the first book. :)

JennJ said...

I have heard great things about this series and the more I hear the more I know I made a good choice in my recent trip to the bookstore in picking up the first novel! I saw the cover that caught my eye and then when I read the back blurb in the basket it went! I can't wait to get the second one to go with it!

Please count me in!

jennj28(at)yahoo.com

Ellz said...

Molly, I like the unusual names, it makes them more memorable. I especially like Zeb. Having one of my own, I am particular to unique names. Congrats on your books!

Ellz said...

I am a follower of your blog and I have posted your contest on my sidebar.
http://ellzreadz.blogspot.com/

Sara said...

I'm so excited for Vampire week! I've just started a blog about everything vampire; books, movies, TV series, you name it! Check it out if you want to! http://yavampirebooks.blogspot.com/

And thanks for the contest! :)

-sara
sosarora_11(AT)hotmail(DOT)com

Patti (@TheLoveJunkee) said...

I don't know how I stumbled across these books, but they are some of my favorite - definitely on my keeper/re-read shelf! Can't wait for the next one - I wonder if there will be more than 3 in the series?

No need to enter me, I already own both books - thanks!

K said...

Xander..xander was my favourite too.
And John McClaine..i think i've seen the die hard movies atleast 10 times.

killemall9 at gmail dot com

Anonymous said...

I would love to be entered in your draw. I loved your post!
Thanks.
wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

I follow your blog and also subscribe via Google Reader.
wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

ibeeeg said...

How fun. I love names and I find it very interesting when people tell me how they have chosen the name for their babies. Therefore, I love reading how authors choose the names for their characters.

throuthehaze said...

I would love to win a copy of Nice Girls Don't Date Dead Men
throuthehaze at gmail dot com

jeanette8042 said...

That was hilarious, especially Dick Cheney! I also love the story and cover of the book, very nice!

jeanette8042 said...

Also forgot my email addy

lilazncutie1215(at)yahoo.com

I just loving reading all the different names

Mandyfish said...

Enter me , please? Those names are awesome!

mandyfish@gmail.com

The Book Resort said...

I want to thank Molly for dropping by for the guest post. She is a real sweetheart.

Now she can get back to writing more Jane books ;)... Not that I'm rushing her or anything. Haha!

Wendy,
Nice Girls Don't Date Dead Men will just make me yearn for Nice Girls Don't Live Forever. Which will be released in December... hopefully Novemebr ;).

JennJ,
This was definitely one of my favorite picks of this year & one of my new favorite series.
I love how it grabbed your attention & in the basket it went.
You get addicted to such gr8 reads.

I ♥ Book Gossip said...

I like simple names that I can pronounce.

Please count me in.

cindyc725 at gmail dot com

The Book Resort said...

Elnice,
A unique name is memorable & makes you stand out. I mean how many more Michaels/Kaylas can there be? lol.

Sara, Vampire Week is such a gr8 idea & I want to thank the awesome Alaine, Annie & Sheree for this terrific theme.

Patti,
I believe there will be more than 3 in the series. I am keeping my fingers crossed but have a strong idea it has the "it" factor.


How cool to start a vamp blog. Will definitely check it out.

Good luck!

K,
Xander was terrific, too! Oh, Bruce in the Die Hard movies... Yeah, baby!

Good luck!

The Book Resort said...

Wanda,
Good luck!

Ibeeeg,
Love the unusual names Molly picked for this series. Dick Cheney is hilarious!

throuthehaze,
Welcome & consider yourself entered. Lotsa luck!

Jeanette,
Dick's appearance had me sputtering. Dick Cheney & the little joke @ the meet & greet was priceless!

Mandy,
You are in the running for the contest. Good luck to you.

Cindy,
Wishing you luck. It is a fantastic series.

Jo said...

What an interesting guestpost! I always wonder how authors come up with their characters' names! I've heard some about this series, it sounds awesome!

Email: joannestapley[at]googlemail[dot]com

Pam said...

I have to go pick up the series now just to read about all these characters!

melacan at hotmail dot com

Anonymous said...

Hey Y'all,

Right now, there are three books contracted for the Jane Jameson series. But who knows? There's always room for more Jane.

I just finished a werewolf romance set in Alaska. And I'm working on another vampire book, also set in the same universe as Jane's- with vampires living out in the open- focusing on different characters.

The Book Resort said...

Jo,
Wasn't this a great guest post? Molly is so charming.

Pam,
This series is so darn fun & I hope you enjoy it!

Molly,

Thank you for stopping by. I am looking forward to more Jane!

Am frothing @ the mouth for the werewolf book & to read the other vamp book set in Jane's world.
Again, thank you so much for popping in :)

Martha Lawson said...

I'd love to win this book! It sounds wonderful. Please enter me.

mlawson17 (at) hotmail dot com

J.T. Oldfield said...

What a great guest post. I am not familiar with this author or her work, but it was still really fun to read!

Anonymous said...

I do try to be charming. :)

donnas said...

Cool post. I have wondered before where authors get their names. Thanks for sharing the background on yours.

bacchus76 at myself dot com

Laura's Reviews said...

This sounds great! I'd love to be entered in the contest. My email is laarlt78 (at) hotmail (dot) com.

Thanks!

Debbie F said...

I've heard wonderful things about this series and so want to read it!
Count me in! Thanks
dcf_beth at verizon dot net

Cherie J said...

Those are such great names. The Dick Cheney one made me smile.

cherierj(at)yahoo(dot)com

Julie! said...

This looks good. I heard someone talking about it. I wanna read it now! lol


Julie102794@gmail.com

Bunny B said...

I would love to read this! Sounds good! Thanks!

bunnybx at gmail . com

Mishel (P.S. I Love Books) said...

I love quirky and unique names =) Dick Cheney is my favorite. It just makes me laugh even when just referring to the politician.

Thanks for the great post Molly!

mishtakes AT gmail DOT com

Virginia C said...

Dick Cheney is naturally creepy. Or is that "supernatural"? gcwhiskas at aol dot com

Ms. Asphyxia said...

Vampire Week... I love the idea! I am about to start a series of Halloween giveaways. I love themed weeks!

Valorie
morbidromantic@gmail.com

Unknown said...

I love vampire books:)

bjhopper(at)me(dot)com

Ruth (Book Focus) said...

Thanks for the insight, it was really interesting to hear how an author picks character names!

Could I enter the contest, please?

Email: kiwibooklover at gmail dot com

Thanks! :)

Gaby317 said...

Gabriel Nightingale is a great name!!

Though I might be a bit biased...

thanks so much for the entry. this sounds fun.

gaby317nyc at gmail dot com

Nicole said...

I've never read any of her books, but I really like paranormal fiction and would love to win.