Naming System - Japanese style vs English style

[AllegroDiRossi]

Just wanted to get a quick feel for how people felt about this.

How do you feel about an OELVN that uses Japanese names for characters and locations?

I used to do this a lot when I first started out writing and drawing. All my characters and locations had Japanese-sounding names. Now, as the years have passed, I have reverted to naming all my characters and locations with English-style names, occasionally branching into German, French or Italian for that exotic flavor.

Roaming around the boards, I've noticed that some people use Japanese naming styles while others use English naming styles. So, I have three questions:

1. How do you represent your characters and locations in your work, in a Japanese style reminiscent of JVN's or in an English style that reflects the nature of the OELVN and/or your spoken language?

2. How do you feel about the use of Japanese naming styles in other people's VN's when used by amateurs and when used by accomplished writers respectively?

3. Can seeing that a VN follows one style (i.e. a Japanese style or an English style) turn you off from playing a VN? Why or why not?

[x__sinister (bleh)]

I think a lot of the ameteurs (see ameteur: one who says "I can make a videogame dattebayo~!") are just following the trends of japan!obsession. In my personal opinion, a person who uses japanese settings, names, words, etc. just for the sake of using it is another groupie. They think japanese things are 'cool', but it can get really annoying. It's a serious turn-off to have a game in development with all these hints towards japanese culture, then you read the synopsis and you realize that this person hasn't really done anything to make it 'japanese' besides throw in some names.

The motto I'm currently following is, "Write what you know". If you have no medical experience, writing a story about a doctor is going to be pretty damn hard. If you've never been to Boston, you're not really capturing the essence of Boston in your work. If you've never been to Japan, don't have relatives from Japan, never have experienced anything about Japanese culture other than vague webpages and anime or manga, then you don't appear to be anything besides another japan fan.

Seasoned writers (or at least semi-experienced) understand this 'write what you know' concept. If they decided to make a completely japanese-themed piece, they better pull it off well. Like I said, this whole japan!obsession is getting overrated. I'm tired of seeing Japan everywhere. It's really hard to get away from the overrated-ness of it, unfortunately.

[Wintermoon]

Write what you want to write. If you like the sound of Japanese names, use them. If you prefer English names, use them. Umineko no Naku Koro ni gave most of its (Japanese) characters Western names and made it work.

"Write what you know" is for cowards. Writing is a creative act. Use your imagination! Nobody wants to hear about your boring life anyway.

That said, do your research. If you have a Japanese character with a Japanese name, give them a real Japanese name, not just something that sounds vaguely Japanese to Western ears.

[Aleema]

It really, really bugs me when the characters have Japanese names and they're not in Japan (or if it just isn't important where they are). I don't want to name names here, but I was playing one game where all the characters had Japanese names, and there was no way they were anywhere remotely near Japan. Drove me up the f'ing wall.

If it's set in Japan, then go for it. I agree with researching actual names, though. There's nothing worse than accidentally throwing in a syllable simply not in the language if you make it up yourself. I wouldn't chastise people for being ... what's the word ... Weeaboo? Ren'Py is made for everyone to make games, and people should be allowed to make whatever type of game they want without a negative stigma. I mean, the title of the engine is based off a Japanese word -- expect Japanese stuff. But I agree with researching Japan and knowing what you're talking about. Research = very important.

I personally prefer English/Fantasy names because they're often more intelligently crafted, because they originate in our mother-tongue (if it indeed is English, that is). Although, the reverse could be true with some writers. I suppose they're just easier for me to remember and appreciate.

In conclusion, the only time a naming convention would put me off from a game is if it is completely inappropriate for their setting, or poorly researched.

[JinzouTamashii]

The motto I'm currently following is, "Write what you know". If you have no medical experience, writing a story about a doctor is going to be pretty damn hard. If you've never been to Boston, you're not really capturing the essence of Boston in your work. If you've never been to Japan, don't have relatives from Japan, never have experienced anything about Japanese culture other than vague webpages and anime or manga, then you don't appear to be anything besides another japan fan.

That is not how that works. It doesn't mean write only what you know. That means that you do your research, exhaustively, using every tool at your disposal and maybe a few trips to the library.

The autobiographies and journals of people, news accounts, and other factual information is great for this.

Besides, how does fantasy or science fiction get written? Would everyone have to be a magician or a physicist then or a rocket scientist then? Even some of Asimov's stories sucked because there was too much factual information and not enough plot.

"Write what you know" is for cowards. Writing is a creative act. Use your imagination! Nobody wants to hear about your boring life anyway.

That's not completely true, Wintertoon. There's a reason why modern and historical fiction is the most popular genre. It gives a very good base to walk on, using the modern world. Even those writers know that without a "hook," their story probably won't be found interesting, though. There are lots of good stories that I've read recently (Norwegian Wood by Murakami, The Housekeeper and the Professor by Ogawa) that would not have been half as touching or familiar when set in a fantastic landscape.

What I mean is, it's the story, not the setting. It still takes a great deal of imagination to write a modern story. If it's an export of your regular life, it will be obvious...

[Jake]

The motto I'm currently following is, "Write what you know". If you have no medical experience, writing a story about a doctor is going to be pretty damn hard. If you've never been to Boston, you're not really capturing the essence of Boston in your work.

One day I will write a VN set in the original Boston just to get the goat of New Englanders.

Seriously, though - I'm not specifically agreeing with Wintermoon or JT, but if everyone stuck to writing just about their own direct experiences, then we'd never have Sci-Fi, Fantasy or Historical fiction at all! The important thing when writing is to tell a decent story - anything else is just a bonus. It's better to tell a really good story in a London that feels more like Johannesburg than it is to tell a shoddy story in an accurate and authentic London; doing the research and making it the most accurate London your story will support is certainly a good thing, but hardly essential to make something people (even people from London!) enjoy reading.

It's more important to make your setting self-consistent than consistent with the real world - so if your London is a slum city with high crime, don't have the protagonist wandering around in broad daylight happily swinging his laptop case and listening to his iPod as he walks past the unguarded 10 Downing Street... and if your London is a glittering fantasy-kingdom perfect city, then cut out the street beggars and the muck in the gutters. Breaking from the real world isn't enough to break suspension of disbelief for most readers, but your own description breaking from itself is.

I mean - lots of scientists enjoy watching Star Trek.



So do I care if people have Japanese names? Sure, it makes me cringe a little if there's absolutely no reason for it other than to make everyone sound like they dropped out of an anime series, but fundamentally, if that's what you want for your story then there's no problem with it so long as it doesn't clash completely with the rest of your setting. Japanese schoolkids in a Japanese school is a bit clichéd and tired, but it's fine; Japanese schoolkids in St. Osyth Primary in Essex, UK is likely going to make me stop reading.

[dstarsboy]

Meh, I think you should name anyone anything you want. I typically name characters after friends or relatives to give them a mini-shout out.

If I make a VN and name one of my characters "Dog Ass" I would hate to be ridiculed because I didn't do enough research about dogs asses or the validity of my character not being a dog.. or an ass.. or even the fact that he doesn't live in dog land.

If you want to name your female lead John, do it!

If you want to name your French guy O'Reily McFlanneggan, go for it!

This is your chance to create something how you want it, you shouldn't be afraid of doing that.

EDIT:
I guess there's a big "but" here, as I would certainly not enjoy a novel I bought on Amazon who had a French guy named O'Reily McFlanneggan without some sort of explanation to the name. So I guess my advice only extends to people who don't get paid to write. (sheepish grin)

In hindsight, I think this subject could pertain to my game.

I have a character with a japanese-esque name of Yurichi, who's white and blond and lives in California. Two oddities of immediate note are:
#1) Yurichi is not the typical spelling of this Japanese particular name
#2) Her nickname is Yuri, which has a WHOLE different meaning in Japan.

But I went along with the naming anyways because I thought it would be fun and because only the hardest of hardcore Japan-fans would really care.

[blankd]

1. How do you represent your characters and locations in your work, in a Japanese style reminiscent of JVN's or in an English style that reflects the nature of the OELVN and/or your spoken language?

In terms of "style" the format is standard VN, but the locales, names and characters are closer to the US and European style. I also use some mythology in it as well, but those are distinctly western based most of the time. And as a bonus, visually I think it looks a little Japanese but nothing I'd think I'd get whacked with the Weeaboo stamp.

2. How do you feel about the use of Japanese naming styles in other people's VN's when used by amateurs and when used by accomplished writers respectively?

It honestly depends on the names used. For example, Ken and Erika are technically Japanese names but they are used in other languages as well.

Though it may be a stereotype, amateurs are the ones who splice the Japanese and their native language (usually English) in several....jarring ways. Sometimes they throw in inconsistent honorifics, vocabulary abuse ("You stupid baka!") as opposed to the actual lender-words that are kept (kimono, sushi, etc.) and culturally inaccurate practices. Accomplished writers on the other hand sometimes keep honorifics or they write without them in such a way that the meaning is not lost, they also do better research and as a result, write more accurate stories.

*In a "normal" school setting it's fine to have one or two people with average Japanese names but be sure to include other culturally diverse individuals!

3. Can seeing that a VN follows one style (i.e. a Japanese style or an English style) turn you off from playing a VN? Why or why not?

Typically if it's low quality I won't bother with it, usually it's pretty easy to determine that within the first screens of it. However, I must confess I have a certain visual standard that controls most of my interests, if the art leaves me on the fence about it, the synopsis is a good determinant.

[Voight-Kampff]

How do you feel about an OELVN that uses Japanese names for characters and locations?

You know what? I'm actually torn on the subject.

I firmly believe that one of the aspects of anime/manga/VNs that drew my attention (and I suspect the attention of most other Americans) was the uniqueness when compared with our own contemporary media.

Consequently, if someone is inspired to craft their own story based around that inspiration, it's very difficult to separate or distill the elements that inspired them from extraneous elements. And at this point, I consider Japanese names and settings to be extraneous. They aren't necessary to capture the essence, the "feel" of anime/manga/VNs. If it WERE necessary, then there wouldn't be any media from Japan that was set in other countries. I'm kinda blanking at the moment, but one good example that I can think of is Gunsmith Cats. It's set in Chicago and follows the gun-toting, muscle-car-driving exploits of Rally Vincent. It doesn't get much more "American" than that.

I can understand the appeal of using Japanese names and settings, especially when first starting out on one's creative endeavors. And yeah, it's fine to use them. But I can tell you one thing - People can smell weeaboo a mile away. If you don't know what you're doing - if you haven't done your research, people are going to pick up on that and will likely be repulsed by said choices.

[JinzouTamashii]

It also depends on circumstances. I guess I originally replied to the topic because it was personally relevant and hit a bit of a sore spot... My name is チェリル 伊藤 but I always give the romanization on forms. My parents are Japanese, but I have lived in America most of my life and I've been to Japan twice, once for family reunion and once for my education and career. I consider myself American but pigeonholers could call me Asian-American or Japanese-American. They call me 日系人 (Non-Japanese of Japanese descent) but not 外人 (intruder, outsider). And that's only because of my looks... and it's a snap judgement— racism in reverse.

So, one could imagine a tightly-knit group of Japanese at a non-Japanese school setting where everyone speaks English (Europe, America, Australia) but it would need a short explanation and everyone other than your main characters would probably have names that fit the region.

So if I wanted to write a game about me and my circle of friends, I would be offended if someone called me a weeaboo or Wapanese or something... Similarly, if someone does the research, there's no reason why this situation cannot exist. Well, not all my friends are Japanese and I would think such a circle of friends might be a little racist but it's not impossible...

[Voight-Kampff]

"Write what you know" is for cowards. Writing is a creative act. Use your imagination! Nobody wants to hear about your boring life anyway.

"Write what you know" means just that. It doesn't mean "write what you've experienced". If that were the case, we wouldn't have stories based in ancient Greece or during the Renaissance or in some far-flung future.

Audiences aren't stupid. They can pick up on inconsistencies and problems very easily based on contextual cues. Consequently, as a writer, one has to "know" what one is writing about. So it doesn't particularly matter if an American wants to write a story about a group of Japanese high schoolers and their romantic hijinks in the heart of Tokyo - so long as that author can convince the audience that s/he knows the subject matter.

[Jake]

Audiences aren't stupid. They can pick up on inconsistencies and problems very easily based on contextual cues. Consequently, as a writer, one has to "know" what one is writing about. So it doesn't particularly matter if an American wants to write a story about a group of Japanese high schoolers and their romantic hijinks in the heart of Tokyo - so long as that author can convince the audience that s/he knows the subject matter.

Or to sum it up succinctly: It's not "write what you know", but "write what you can bullshit". :3

[Voight-Kampff]

Or to sum it up succinctly: It's not "write what you know", but "write what you can bullshit". :3

*blinkblink*

Yes. That'll do nicely.

[Deji]

If you want to make your story happen in japan and/or have japanese characters there must be a reason. The reason could be as obvious as "I'm japanese" (the excuse on most of the japanese-made stories), or "I lived in japan or studied the japanese culture and I want to put that on paper" or a better "it's important to the plot".
If no reason like those are present, I'm very likely to twitch and walk away.


Fuinny thing, half of the people I knew irl when I was a teenager would name their characters with either japanese (oif they liked anime) or european names rather than having them have spanish names. Setting stories in our country was avoided too. It was like setting stories over here and having fellow countrymates as characters would be instant-lameness, haha.
All that changed as they grew up, though.

[Voight-Kampff]

If no reason like those are present, I'm very likely to twitch and walk away.

Yeah, I can easily relate.

Setting stories in our country was avoided too. It was like setting stories over here and having fellow countrymates as characters would be instant-lameness, haha.

Well, I can understand that mentality.

When one discovers the genre of "anime" or "manga", aside from the distinctive art style, what's the first thing most people are going to notice? The setting. Newbies see that and assume that having a contemporary Japanese setting and Japanese characters are a prerequisite.

I suspect that people get enamored with the media and (falsely) assume Japan has to play a part in completing the "feel". So they include those elements out of reflex. It's only later, when a person gets a better understanding of the elements that make up the genre that they decide to forego "Japaneseness" in favor of just making a good story.