Well, none of the options applied to me. When I need an original character name, I just sit back, let my mind drift for a moment, and invariably the right name pops into my head.
I have to say though that over the years, I've learned never to trust this <g>. I've had a few occasions in the past where I've realised weeks or months later that the original character name that popped up from my subconscious was actually very well known indeed.
The one that still fascinates me was when I realised that a character name I'd used in a fanfic was used in a Woody Allen movie. It was mentioned briefly in passing by another character - for all of two seconds in the movie - and I'd only seen the movie once and that had been several years before I went looking for a character name - yet there it was lurking in my subconscious all that time apparently.
So, these days, in order to avoid any embarrassment, when the perfect character name pops into view I deliberately break it up, assigning it another surname or first name to make sure it truly is original. Or...as close to as possible. <g>
Interesting question, Anne.
LabRat
