Post History

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/44025
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/44025
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

The problem about this is that most of the time we want to read something about _special_ people. Sure, we want to be able to sympathize with the character and for example superhero comics have a history of making it look like everyone could be Superman - or [Shazam](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_Marvel_(DC_Comics)) the 14-year-old-boy-transformed-into-a-superhero - but characters in books, comics, etc. tend to be _special_ in some regards. By giving your protagonist a name that seemingly every second person has they can appear quite boring.

What name do you think would be more memorable: "Shazam" or "Billy"?

Yes, the protagonist in the linked comic series is named "Billy", quite the typical name. But most people will likely find his superhero form more memorable. Maybe you could use this and give your "Juan" and "Maria" interesting and memorable nicknames. Especially if they have a name that seemingly everyone else around them had that could be a reason to try and stand out. How do your characters feel about their name? Do they like this typical name? Maybe they like the feeling of proudly representing the majority. Or maybe they want to be special. Different. Not just another "Juan" or "Maria".

A lot of this depends on the setting. In fantasy or sci-fi settings it's far easier to just come up with new names. In modern day settings like in a thriller you will more likely use "normal" names. But this also depends on a lot of factors. Are you in a rural area where older names are more present? Or a metropolitan city with influences from all around the globe? Is the social class of your characters focused on traditions or innovation?

As you mention that you have a setting with lots of people from all over the world you could use steretypical names a few times. Maybe one or two out of a group of five people would feel like something that can actually happen while still not feeling as if you were simply too lazy to look up other names. But you should think about other options to refer to these characters and you should think about how the characters feel about their own names.

Original score: 5