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Boarders writing a Novel Part 12.


Andrew Gilfellon

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Today I've discovered that name of one of main characters in my future novel is protected by trade law as it's part of name of some f***** chemical substance.

A chemical substance? If you're not going to use this name anymore, may ask what name is that?

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Why would you want to do that?

I, too, have come up with a name for a main character, which was used by Robert Jordan for a very minor character. But I came up with the name on my own by deriving it from a real world name. So would that be OK to use?

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I, too, have come up with a name for a main character, which was used by Robert Jordan for a very minor character. But I came up with the name on my own by deriving it from a real world name. So would that be OK to use?

Look, as long as you haven't inadvertently named your character Bilbo Baggins, Luke Skywalker, or Anasûrimbor Kellhus, chances are you're golden.

ETA: However, if you want to use the name of a very minor character from somebody else's work, a name that does not/would not exist in the real world, chances are you're a plagiarist, and I have no advice for you.

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A Liger?

Tigon is born when father is tiger and mother us lioness lyger is child of tigress and lion.

"[A Liger is] pretty much my favorite animal. It's like a lion and a tiger mixed... bred for its skills in magic." - Napoleon Dynamite

Liger (or Lyger) is an awesome name for any character. ;)

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Liger (or Lyger) is an awesome name for any character. ;)

I have a question for you: Which program do you use when you write ( Word? Writer? WordPerfect?) I tried to use Word but it's not perfect when you write long texts. Now I'm using traditional paper notebook , but that's unpractical ( mistakes, you don't know how much text do you exactly have, you can't share it with someone to revise).
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I have a question for you: Which program do you use when you write ( Word? Writer? WordPerfect?) I tried to use Word but it's not perfect when you write long texts. Now I'm using traditional paper notebook , but that's unpractical ( mistakes, you don't know how much text do you exactly have, you can't share it with someone to revise).

I write a lot in an old fashioned composition notebook...there's noting impractical about using a notebook. At all. That being said, I use MS Word most of the time because it is what I'm comfortable with. This past summer I worked a lot with Google Docs and liked it well enough, but I'm still far more used to Word. Use whatever's easiest for you, there's lots of different programs out there.

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Names -- if you came up with it on your own and it bears no relation to the other usage (obvious, a minor character from among Jordan's 1800+ names), then I don't think it's a problem. If it isn't, I'd advise changing it. I've had a couple occasions where names I came up with I later found to be used in other works (by RSB and GRRM) and I simply employed a letter change.


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Names -- if you came up with it on your own and it bears no relation to the other usage (obvious, a minor character from among Jordan's 1800+ names), then I don't think it's a problem. If it isn't, I'd advise changing it. I've had a couple occasions where names I came up with I later found to be used in other works (by RSB and GRRM) and I simply employed a letter change.

I've only used real names and few made by myself. I like using old English and nordic names. There are thousands cool names in hundreds of languages so there is much choice ;)

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To note - there's an Aemon in Wheel of Time. Presumably Jordan wasn't sued by GRRM (or Martin by Jordan). With so many different fantasy books out there, it's not surprising if you happen to think up the same name as someone else. So long as it's not the same as a major character, and there isn't a large resemblance I think you'll be fine.


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To note - there's an Aemon in Wheel of Time. Presumably Jordan wasn't sued by GRRM (or Martin by Jordan). With so many different fantasy books out there, it's not surprising if you happen to think up the same name as someone else. So long as it's not the same as a major character, and there isn't a large resemblance I think you'll be fine.

I remember noting a few years ago that I could think of three fictional Lyannas. I can't currently remember the others, but I remember remembering them, if you will.

I've said this in these threads before, but I'm another devotee of writing first drafts on paper. Keeping track of word count isn't too hard - on average I get around 250 words onto a side of A4 paper (anyone who's written exams for school or university on standard lined A4 paper will be aware of the importance of keeping track of one's word count by page counting: mine has been remarkably steady for fifteen or twenty years), so I'm aware that I currently have around 31,000 words down of The Book That Is Eating My Head (barely scratching the surface of the plot. For this one I won't care about word count for a few years yet).

I also type my drafts in Word, but I'm happy to use its style setting, formatting and hyperlinking functions. A typical master document of mine will have a hyperlinked chapter index at the beginning. I don't typically have to move too much text around after I start typing: this will be a side effect of typing at the edit stage rather than the first draft stage where chapters have a habit of moving position unexpectedly.

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