When I was about 15, I remember sneaking into a bookstore with my best friend and peeking around aisles to make sure no one was watching us. We would wind up in the baby book section to take a peek at naming books. We knew that we were only there for research, after all, both of us loved to write, but we worried what others would think. Finally, she got up the courage and the cash to buy one those naming books. We spent hours on her bedroom floor, huddled over this book learning about which names were recommended for boys and girls. It even had a nifty little section at the bottom that gave suggested sibling names that were cute with the one you selected. Naming characters and places has always been one of the most important parts of my process. A name informs what a character is going to be like. I usually start out with a personality sketch, who I want this character to be, what they are to the story and from there, I try to select a name. Since I write a lot of fantasy that is informed by history, I try to select names…