Make Me a Character--I'll Pay

Terry Pratchett? Really? All of his character names seem to be puns - I can't imagine that he'd take names from real people for any amount of money. Much of the humor would be lost.

Personally, if my name weren't so god-aweful mundane, I'd prefer to be a minor nasty to a hero or a good guy. But if I'm going to give a charitable donation to something, I'd really rather it just be a charitable donation. I've never really seen the purpose of give $x to get a plaque or put your name on a brick or something. This is just an overglorified version of the same thing.

I remember this children's book though, which had no words, just pictures, and it was about this black dog named Carl that kept getting into trouble. I seem to remember that at some point there was a puppy in the story, which didn't have a name, and there was a card at the back of the book for you to suggest a name and send it to some address and they were going to draw to determine its name. I thought that was a pretty cool thing to do, but it was going to be a drawing or something, without any money involved.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/1535218.stm

Literary immortality open to bidders


Discworld author Pratchett is the UK's best-selling writer

A group of Britain's top authors is offering a shot at literary immortality - in return for a contribution to charity.
For the second time the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture is auctioning the chance to be a fictional character in a novel.



Atwood won the 2000 Booker prize

Writers Margaret Atwood, Pat Barker, Ken Follett, Robert Harris, David Lodge, Ian McEwan, Terry Pratchett and Zadie Smith have all agreed to name a character in their forthcoming books after those prepared to pay most for the privilege.

The auction takes place on 16 October at Bafta in London.

Last year's event raised almost £25,000 when authors Sebastian Faulks, Nick Hornby, Kathy Lette, Louis de Bernières, Hanif Kureshi and Jim Crace sold the names of characters in books they were about to write.

Bidding

A spokesman for the charity told BBC News Online: "Last year we were slightly concerned about the auction as only a couple of thousand people turned up.

"But when bidding started we knew we'd get a good result.

"Hopefully this year, with more authors, we'll do even better."



Smith: A runaway success with White Teeth

Two of last year's bidders have already appeared in print.

Janet Walder, appeared in Nick Hornby's How To Be Good in return for a contribution of £2,050 - and Sheila Milward appeared in Sebastian Faulks' On Green Dolphin Street after a £2,800 bid.

This year's line-up includes three Booker Prize winners.

Best-seller

Atwood won the Booker Prize in 2000 with her novel The Blind Assassin, and is joined by other Booker Prize winners Barker (The Ghost Road) and McEwan (Amsterdam).

Lodge has been listed twice for the prize and his novels often inhabit the upper reaches of the British bestseller list.

The Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture is a charity which provides medical treatment and psychotherapy to survivors of torture.

It has treated more than 25,000 clients in the 16 years since it began work.

When I still lived in Detroit and Joyce Carol Oates was teaching first at the University of Detroit and then across the river at the University of Windsor (Ontario), the warning was put out by a much less successful novelist (Esther Broner) who taught at Wayne State, should one meet Oates at a party, be very careful what one said to her, lest one ended up in one of Oates' novels or stories. Broner called Oates a witch.

To the best of my knowledge, Oates did not use real names.

That'd be cool!! I'd love to be in a Pratchett book (one of my number 1 authors!!) but like rufio said, he doesn't tend to go for "normal" names so i'd be a bit stuck
80% of what i read is fantasy / sci-fi - but the general trend isn't for English names I'm afraid i'd have to be a bad girl

I have a substantial first draft of a novel (sigh! abandoned for many years) set in a certain East Coast town famous for its university. Some of the characters are based on certain professors who either formerly taught there or still do. I named them after the famous streets of the town next door, the come out from the common in alphabetical order. My daughter read the draft and figured out who the people are.

Using "real" names is a major no-no unless the original owner of the name has signed a release. Even if they have paid money for the cameo appearance, they must sign a release.

Several people have tried to sue authors because the nanes used in works of fiction duplicated their names. To win your suit you must prove that the Amorosa Begonia mentioned in Chapter X is you; that the author knew you; and that your reputation has been damaged.

Usually such efforts are dismissed by the judge.

Drats, Noddy! I was hoping you were really asking for someone to write a story based on you/your A2K persona / your avatar.

I was anxious to see who would write it, who would illustrate it and was ready to fork over some bucks for it.

Joe Nation would write you well. He could do a whole childrens series based on your character / avatar/ Hold Your Dominion slogan. Maybe I need to fetch him.

Squinney--

When I finish my memoirs, you--and the rest of A2K--will be the first to know. I specialize in articulate folly.

Squinney, Noddy! Great to see you two again.

Why pay to read about Noddy or anyone here, when we do it everytime we sign onto A2K?

I love Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. However, I can't see paying to have my name used in a book. Besides, Sam and I can't afford to try outbidding others to get notority. So, I'll do what I can, when I can without my being in someone else's book.

I'm still working on my own autobiography, but I'm fighting it. I may finish eventually, but there are always changes in my life, so I doubt if I'll get it down in print.

I don't think JCO is unique in using what they overhear in their fiction, plainoldme. Heck, I'll be many (most?) writers get their best material that way. Writers have no conscience in this regard. Nor should they!

Write what you know....

Noddy, I agree. One can either do that or do what some, like Pratchett or have done and create your own worlds, cultures, species and environvents. Somehow, it seems to be a bit too much work for me. Guess I'll just keep writing about myself and those I know, If I ever publish anything, it will be with their permission of course.