Fried Oreos: Welcome Charlotte O'Shay

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Welcome Charlotte O'Shay

A rose by any other name….

Thanks, Jennifer for the invitation to appear on your fun blog to talk
about the choice and significance of character names. For me naming
my characters is one of the most significant parts of my story
planning. Most times after I name my characters, a lot more of the
plot and their character arcs falls into place.

In my latest contemporary release, Their No-Strings Affair,there’s a “meet-cute” of
my enemies to lovers hero and heroine that revolves around her name.

“Yeah, right. Full name, H. Hill.”

“You want my full name?” Now she was playing for time in part because she noticed the tiny device in his ear. Was he a cop? Security? So what if he was? There was no law against taking a waitress gig for a sick friend.

“That’s what I said,” came the irritating rejoinder.

Cocky. Obnoxious. And definitely the boss.

“Honey. It’s Honey Hill.” She braced for the inevitable.

“Honey Hill. You’re telling me your name is Honey Hill?” His gaze slid over her body in a way she was ashamed to admit didn’t bother her nearly enough. “I don’t want your exotic star alias. Give me the one that’s on your driver’s license.”

And there it was. Nope, he didn’t disappoint.And she hadn’t even given him her full name.Her blood boiled just the same as it had the first time that joke was made. The way it boiled every time.

“In your dreams. Here’s what I’ll give you.”
She let go and sent the tray crashing onto his shoes. “Oops,” she said.

In reality, Honey’s full name is Honeysuckle Hill and I had a very specific reason for choosing her name.

Aside from the comedic/sexy aspect of her name that led to the exchange she has with Jake at the beginning of the story and lots of teasing when Honey was a kid, I chose her name to show an aspect of her personality. My heroine Honey comes into Jake’s life at a time when he’s wounded emotionally and resigned to a life he wants no part of.

Honey, full name Honeysuckle, is a soothing, vibrant yet relaxed, nurturing person who embodies the healing Jake needs in his life.

Both honey and honeysuckle have natural, calming, anti-inflammatory properties, both are good for you substances. Both are much more than simply sweet smelling and tasting. Like Honey Hill, there’s much more to honey and honeysuckle than meets the eye.

Jake Ricco, my hero is ex-military, but his psychic wounds stem from his childhood. He goes so far as to change his long, unwieldy Italian name in an effort to distance himself from his past and his future. Jake Ricco is who he wants to be but he has to deal with his past to claim his future.

“I hear you. My full name is Giancarlo Teodoro Silvio Boniface Riccobono. Man, that name was rough. Soon after I started school here in the states, I decided I was gonna be Jake Ricco.”

At first, he was tormented mercilessly at the Connecticut prep school where he landed after Francesco died, after his parents split. Though broad and tall compared to other twelve-year-olds, he was no match for the seniors who ruled the campus. He’d quickly renamed himself Jake Ricco and ditched the refined cadences of his Anglo-European English into something more All-American. Very quickly during his six years there, he became the protector. Every kid he met—even the nasty ones—was a stand-in for Cesco, and he never failed to help anyone smaller or weaker. He earned a reputation as a defender, and even the older, bigger guys respected his physical prowess and the way he, as he grew tougher and stronger, never used his size against them.

Honey and Jake bond and share a lot of their childhood struggles in the conversation about their names.

Are you more fully invested when you like a character’s name? Are you turned off when you don’t like a character’s name? I confess it’s a big irritant for me if I find a name too difficult to pronounce in my head when I’m reading.

Bio

Author Charlotte O’Shay was born in New York City into big family and then married into another big family.

Negotiating skills honed at the dinner table led her to a career in the law.

But after four beautiful children joined the crowded family tree, Charlotte traded her legal career to write about happily ever afters in the City of Dreams.

Charlotte loves to challenge her heroines and heroes with a crisis and watch them figure out who they are while they fall in love.

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Blurb:

Honey packs everything she owns and heads to NYC to jumpstart her art career. Her cheating boyfriend is history, and she finally acknowledges the truth of her mother's mantra: Careers are forever and happily ever after isn't in their DNA.

All she needs is a job and a place to live. What she doesn't need is a taciturn, sexy, ballbuster but she's woman enough to know the difference between need and want. Isn't she?

Jake's childhood was marred by tragedy and his future hijacked to a promise born of guilt. His failure drove him to a career as a SEAL and a security expert.
But it's not enough. Now he'll give up his freedom in reparation for the life he lost. Honey may be the last sweet stop on the road to a joyless future. If it's what they both want, where's the harm in a no-strings affair?

Buy links:

Their No-Strings Affair