Musings of a Lonely Writer! -----Insta Love or Insta Don’t?

I don’t know if I’ve gone over this topic before, I thought I had but I couldn’t find any posts for it so maybe I didn’t. Of course if I did my apologies for repeating myself. Also this may dip into a Musings of a Lonely Reader Post a bit so bear with me.

So I am a tad tired of reading a novel, mostly YA Novels, sorry to YA novel writers as I write them myself but the theme of Insta Love is a tad annoying and over done. I mean to have two characters meet and the sparks fly instantly and be like I will die for you five minutes after meeting is a tad much. Though often entertaining and it brings a dangerous adventure to the story it brings nothing to the real belief of a relationship. Though as I’ve said before in other posts readers, me included, want to escape reality for a couple of hours, so the regular rules don’t apply but I often wish that they did, even just a tiny bit.

So I could buy the Insta Love at first sight if it was maybe presented differently. Like I could buy the I love you even though I just met you if I was given more in-depth love building later. Often times we as readers are supposed to buy the I love you and that’s it. I want to know how they would progress, do they butt heads and are fiery lovers or are they sweet every day is sunshine and bunnies kind of lovers. I want to know how they progress and learn about each other. What did they come to know and like or love about each other? I hate the he’s hot / she’s hot and they kiss two seconds later. Why do they love each other, beyond the physical attributes? I want more for goodness sakes! :~)

I’ve had Insta Attraction in my novels and that has grown into something more and then finally love but I have never had boom bang Insta Love! Lol! I mean it’s cool if anyone likes to read or write that as some famous authors have presented it that way but I often wonder why the characters love each other. What I get makes me feel I missed something but I apparently didn’t, it just was never there or I didn’t catch it.

There are some stories where I read the book and watch the movie and at the end of both I had no clue why the two clueless main characters loved each other, beyond they were two hot people who saw each other and they were ready to battle monsters, parents disapproval, other conflicts to finally be in each others arms for all eternity, or until they undoubtedly die.

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I literally read a story once where all the character could do was be in love when a naked boy wound up on her stoop, sounds more like hormones kicked in, she nursed him back to health and had to find a way to save him from transforming into a monster. By the time they were sexually intimate (well more like a fad to black scene where you basically are told they had sex the next day) I was completely lost as to why they were in love and becoming intimate, they were dry emotionless figures to me. They were silhouettes of characters that I wish had given me more and in essence became full blown colorful all encompassing figures.

Another time I watched a movie based off of a book (I never read the book) and I couldn’t figure out how the human female character became the alien male characters one true only love. They were attracted and talked a few times but it seriously could have been left out of the story and it wouldn’t have mattered. It felt thrown in for the sake of having someone the good alien male could save when the bad aliens showed up. He seemed weak at first and then finally had something worth saving, no forethought it seemed to his own neck on the line as he was the true target, and so he rose above it and with the help of another good alien woman they defeated the bad aliens. Love prevailed and the good alien boy said he would return for the human female character once he went off to find the other good aliens like him and defeated the other bad aliens. He said he finally had something worth returning for. I was like why? She was ok but not OMG you have got to come back kind of thing. There wasn’t much to their relationship to make me think ok I get it and swoon.

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So I guess my conflict is what is the point of a love story or any love element within another story if I get no back story or progressing story as to why the characters love each other. So I guess I would like Insta Love more if I was given more later in the story but if I’m not given more then I say Insta Don’t! I am sure I sound like I am being overly critical and probably annoying but I thought what the heck I might as well put this into one of my Musings of a Lonely Writer segment posts and see how others may feel about this subject.  

Care to weigh in? Then please leave a comment in the comment section of this post!

Happy Writing! Happy Reading!

And Happy Insta Love or maybe Insta Don’t! Your choice, LOL! ;~)

Edit April 20, 2016:

Another blogger had mentioned on another post about Romeo and Juliet some time ago and I have now come back to edit this post as I had totally forgotten about Romeo and Juliet. They are an infamous example of Insta Love and as the other blogger mentioned had they have gotten to know each other who is to say they wouldn’t have come to hate each other. But Romeo and Juliet is an infamous couple that no matter how illogical the Insta Love is they are a couple many a girl has wanted to duplicate in her relationship, example when someone says so have you found your Romeo yet.

I mean I have always loved William Shakespeare’s Works Romeo and Juliet among them. I do think it is a story of Insta Love but showing the tragedy of so many misunderstands that can occur not just because of a feud in my opinion but by being consumed by Insta Love which is more like Insta Lust, and not stopping to really think it through properly but that happens a lot in novels, plays and unfortunately real life. But it's true in any love people hardly think clearly as it is, lol!

 

But I often want to think about what would have happened if their families had gotten over their feud and Romeo and Juliet could be together openly, would the story have been so much different or would they really have loved each other for all time and till death or would they have hated each other and regretted their youthful misadventure in Insta Love?

Olivine

Meaning: (Olive Tree, form of Olivia. An olive-green, gray-green, or brown mineral occurring widely in basalt, peridotite, and other basic igneous rocks. It is a silicate containing varying proportions of magnesium, iron, and other elements. Olivine gemstones are called Peridot and Chrysolite. Translucent olivine is sometimes used as a gemstone called peridot (péridot, the French word for olivine). It is also called chrysolite (or chrysolithe, from the Greek words for gold and stone). Some of the finest gem-quality olivine has been obtained from a body of mantle rocks on Zabargad Island in the Red Sea.)

Origin: (Latin)

Pronunciation: (AALAHVIYN)

Gender: Female

I was looking up green gem names and this was one of them that I thought was a really cool pretty gem and would be a divine character name. If you don’t like it then Peridot *see on list of posts* is the French word for Olivine so they can be interchanged for each other if you care to.

This is a pretty name that would be a great alternative to Olivia *see on list of posts* or Olive if you want. It is a pretty mineral. The name looks like a grander fancier form of names like Olivia and Olive. I can see a cute country girl being named this or a grand duchess being named this.

I love that Olivine and Peridot are rare gem names as I think the over used gem names are boring. I’ve even added Carnelian / Cornelian *see on list of posts* lately and love it as it’s a gem name not most have heard of or seen before either.

Nickname Options: Oli (like Ollie or Olly), Vine, Vinny (VIYN-ee or VEN-ee), Olive, Liv, Livi (LIV-ee rhymes with Libby), and Vin (VEN or VIYN).

Peridot

Meaning:  (A Green Gemstone, Peridot is gem-quality olivine. Olivine is a silicate mineral. Péridot the French word for olivine. Derived from the Greek word "peridona", which means stone that gives plenty. Birthstone for the month of August. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests an alteration of Anglo–Norman pedoretés (classical Latin pæderot-), a kind of opal, rather than the Arabic word faridat, meaning "gem".

The Middle English Dictionary's entry on peridot includes several variations: peridod, peritot, pelidod and pilidod – other variants substitute y for the i's seen here.

The earliest use in England is in the register of the St Albans Abbey, in Latin, and its translation in 1705 is possibly the first use of "peridot" in English. It records that on his death in 1245 Bishop John bequeathed various items including peridot to the Abbey.)

Origin: (Arabic, French)

Pronunciation: (PEH-ree-doe, PEHR-ee-doh, PARE-ih-doe)

Gender: Female

I was looking up green gem names and this was one of them that I thought was a really cool pretty gem and would be an epic character name as well. If you don’t like it, it is the French word for Olivine *see on list of posts* so they can be interchanged for each other if you care to. There are also variants of the word you might use for your characters name if this spelling doesn’t please you.

The meaning behind the word is pretty and the stone is pretty as well. It is one of the birthstone gems for the month of August, so if that fits you character or someway August plays into a significant part of your characters life or characters parent’s lives then this would be a good name to use.

Because it is a long standing gem name it could be used in a Historical Fiction Novel but it would be odd in a way to have a character named this in a Historical Fiction Novel because gem names especially rare gem names were rarely used in certain countries and in certain time periods, so do research if you care to use it in a Historical Fiction Novel.

Milorada

Meaning: (Milo "Gracious, Dear" and Rad "Work, Care, Joy, Happy, Willing".)

Origin: (Serbian, Slavic, Croatian)

Pronunciation: (MihLAOerAHDAH)

Gender: Female

This is the name of an outfit or commenter on I think either Pearson Renaissance Shoppe or Arm Street websites. This is a great feminine form for names like Milo and Miles. So if you love those names but want a female character this would be great. It seems a pretty cool name for a very ethereal divine character of outstanding grace and beauty. Also does seem like a name for an ancient race or something, so would be cool if used for that or maybe the name of an alien world or Medieval Kingdom or something.

Nickname Options: Milly, Millie, Milo, Rada (RAH-DAH not like RAD-ah), Radie (RAHD-ee), Lora, and Miles.

Edit January 24, 2016:

I forgot to add that I have used this as the name of the Kingdom in my Cinderella Retelling Long Short Story "Everly After" which is Retelling Book One in my Fairy Tales with a Twist Series (well maybe a Trilogy or well I'll see as I go). I am retelling Fairy Tales and giving them a delightful or often infuriating twist. I am also incorporating my own Fairy Tales. Milorada fit perfect as the name of the Kingdom in my Cinderella Retelling!

Jacek

Meaning: (Alas, Modern form of Jacenty (yah-TSEN-ti) Polish form of Hyacinthus. Saint Jacenty was a 13^th Century Dominican monk from Krakow who was said to have taken missionary journeys throughout Europe and Asia. Hyacinthus is Latinized form of the Greek name ‘Υακινθος (Hyakinthos), which was derived from the name of the hyacinth flower. In Greek legend Hyakinthos was accidentally killed by Apollo, who caused a lily to arise from his blood. The name was also borne by several early saints, notably a 3rd-century martyr who was killed with his brother Protus.)

Origin: (Polish, Old Greek, Latin, Greek Mythology)

Pronunciation: (YAH-tsek, YAA-SeyK, JAY-sek)

Gender: Male, Possibly Uni-Sex

This was the name of a Lockup Raw World Tour inmate. I like watching Lockup Raw sometimes and there was a World Edition showing prisons in different countries and I was watching it. The guy was obviously not such a great citizen but his name was cool. A good alternative to Jacek or vice versa could be Jace *see on list of posts*.

It has a great history of use and the look and meaning is decent. It has an interesting mythology to the meaning of its forms as well. I think I see a strong determined character being named this.

Alondra

Meaning: (Defender of Mankind, Defender, Helper of Mankind, Lark Bird, Short form of Alejandra which is Spanish version of the Greek Alexandra.)

Origin: (Spanish, Latin, English, Old Greek)

Pronunciation: (ah-LAHN-drə, ah-LOHN- drə, ah-LON-drah, aa-LAO-NDRah)

Gender: Female

This name has great meanings. It is a short form of Alejandra which is the Spanish version of the Greek Alexandra and Alexandra is the feminine form of Alexander *see on list of posts*. Alondra is a great alternative with the same meaning to Alexandra and Alejandra.

It does look like Calandra *see on list of posts* in a way and the meanings are similar to that name as well. Alondra is a beautiful name and I would love to see this used more often.

Catriona

Meaning: (Pure, Clear, is the French form of the Latin 'Katharina', from the Greek 'Aikaterina'. Famous bearer: the heroine of 19th century author Robert Louis Stevenson's novel 'Catriona'. )

Origin: (Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic, Irish, Scottish, Literature, Greek)

Pronunciation: (ka-TREE-na, ka-TREE-oh-na)

Gender: Female

I heard this name someplace but I don’t remember where but then a while later I saw this as the name of a woman that died, she committed suicide and I think she was the girlfriend of actor Jim Carrey. It was really sad.

The meanings are lovely and beautiful and the name overall is gorgeous. It is a great alternative to its variants Catherine *see on list of posts*, Katherine *see on list of posts*, Katrina, Katharina, Catha *see on list of posts* Katya *see on list of posts* and Aikaterina.

As for the pronunciation I prefer ka-TREE-oh-na but that is an English speaker’s flaw apparently. It is pronounced ka-TREE-na by most in Ireland and Scotland where this name is popular.

Good Nicknames: Cat, Riona (REE-oh-na or REE-na), Tri (TREE or Try), and Triona (TREE-oh-na or TREE-na).

Goku

Meaning: (From the Sky, Air)

Origin: (Japanese)

Pronunciation: (GOWKUW)

Gender: Male

I was watching TV and saw a movie on and decided to watch it and the movie I watched was based off of the Dragon Ball Manga Series. It was a pretty good movie. I can’t speak about the Manga as I have never been into Mangas but I am sure it may be pretty cool as well. The main character is named Goku and I thought that was a really cool name.

I am obsessed with Japanese names whether used in the real world or just for Manga’s ect. I have even used a few before like Sawa *see on list of posts*, Sakura *see on list of posts*, and Shika *see on list of posts*.

The meaning of the name is strong and nature related. The name is very cool over all. I would love to find a character this name would fit on. I would also like to see this name used more often but I am afraid most people that look at the Manga Series will know this name and see it only as belonging to the Dragon Ball Manga Series.

Edit January 31, 2016:

Okay so last night I realized when re-reading the above post that I put to see the list of posts for Sawa and I realized I haven't put Sawa on here yet. It will be going on with the February posts. So if you noticed you couldn't find it you are not lost I simply forgot to tell everyone it will not be on yet, sorry. But do come back and check it out in February!

Anima / Animas

Meaning: (Infinite Smallness, Minuteness, Soul, Spirit, Hindi name derived from writings on yoga. In yoga texts, this is the name of the ability to make oneself infinitely small so to be invisible. Also refers to a petite and especially feminine physique. In Jungian psychology the anima is an individual's true inner self, or soul.)

Origin: (Sanskrit, Spanish, Latin, Hindi, English (Rare))

Pronunciation: (AN-i-mə, AENihMAH, Animas: ON-ee-mas)

Gender: Female, Possibly Uni-Sex

A few months back a river in Colorado went yellow after contamination of waste from an old gold mine and the river was named this. The contamination was an awful accident and probably will leave lasting effects to the area but it was kind of interesting looking but a sad state of affairs for the EPA.

The name is pretty and the meanings are interesting and lovely. The name does look like you are trying to spell Animal but left off the L at the end or for Animas left off L and added an S.

I have used Anima as the name of some woods in one of my stories I am currently writing. My character finds something in the woods that no one thought could exist for someone twice and so it seemed to be about the heart or soul so I thought this name fit that quite well. I know my description is odd and lacking but I am not getting into the long story that I am writing as I am tweaking it as I am writing so ideas may change but I am keeping Anima as the name of the woods in the story.

Aethelmaer

Meaning: (Noble, Famous, Nobly Famous, Aethelmaer (Old English) is an old form of Aylmer. Aethelmaer was a popular name prior to the Norman Conquest, but it gave way to other forms thereafter, of which the most modern is Aylmer. Aylmer saw a decline after the Middle Ages before enjoying a revival in the 19th century during the vogue for medieval names. In addition, Aylmer is an English variant transcription of Elmer (English and Scandinavian).  

Origin: (English, Old English, Anglo-Saxon)

Pronunciation: (EYTHEL-mehr)

Gender- Male, Possibly Uni-Sex

I forget where I first saw this name. I love the meanings as I love royal and noble meaning names and this would be great in a historical fiction novel. It of course has easier variants Aylmer and Elmer if you don’t care for the look of this name. It seems a name like many from medieval era that looks hard to pronounce now and it is. As for this pronunciation EYTHEL-mehr I made that up from how I think it is pronounced as I couldn’t find another pronunciation at all. I looked up the different parts of the name and made the pronunciation off of those pronunciations of the variant parts.  

So again if you know of another pronunciation please leave a comment in the comment section of this post and let me know, I would be very grateful!

Catalapa / Catalape / Catalpa

Meaning: (Winged Head, The name derives from the Muscogee name for the tree, "kutuhlpa" meaning "winged head" and is unrelated to the name of the Catawba people. The spellings "Catalpa" and Catalpah" were used by Mark Catesby between 1729 and 1732, and Carl Linnaeus published the tree's name as Bignonia catalpa in 1753.Giovanni Antonio Scopoli established the genus Catalpa in 1777.

The bean-like seed pod is the origin of the alternative vernacular names Indian bean tree and cigar tree for Catalpa bignonioides and Catalpa speciosa, respectively. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalpa )

Origin: (Native American, English)

Pronunciation: (Catalpa: ka-TAL-pa, ca-TAL-pa, ka-TALL-pa Catalape: ka-TAL-uh-pee, ka-TAL-uh-peh, ka-TALL-uh-pee, ka-TALL-uh-peh Catalapa: ka-TAL-uh-pa, ka-TALL-uh-pa

If you want to hear how this name is said then go to this link and run your cursor over the word to hear how it is pronounced:  http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=catalpa )

Gender: Uni-Sex

This is the name of another street I saw last summer when going to a religious convention. Meadowmere *see on list of posts* was about one or two streets away from Catalapa. I thought oh wow that’s kind of interesting and Native American like. So I put it on my list and as my list is always backed up for months and months I am just now getting to this name.

Now the street name was Catalapa but I could find no meaning for it spelled that way but I found it spelled Catalpa so I reason both probably mean the same but don’t quote me on that. It has an interesting meaning and long history of use so that is really nice. This name does seem Native American like to me but it could of course fit in a Fantasy or Sci-fi novel.

Now the pronunciation I found was for Catalpa so I tweaked it when putting together the pronunciation options for Catalapa and Catalape. Even with these pronunciations this name could throw some readers or even writers off so I think it would take a special kind of character and author to pull this off effectively.

Meadowmere

Meaning: (Meadow: Grassy Field, Field of Grass of Vegetation Mere: Maori form of Mary. Sea of Bitterness, Rebelliousness, Wished for Child, To Swell, Lake, Pond)

Origin: (English, Maori, Hebrew, French)

Pronunciation: (Meadow: MEH-doh Mere: MIHR, Meh-reh, merr-eh Meadowmere: MEH-doh-MIHR, MEH-do-Meh-reh, MEH-doh-merr-eh)

Gender: Female

This is the name of a street I saw last summer when going to a religious convention. I thought oh wow that’s kind of cool and a tad pretty. So I put it on my list and as my list is always backed up for months and months I am just now getting to this name.

Ok so this name when I looked it up had no known meaning so I had to break up the two parts of the name, Meadow and Mere, and get meanings for them and then you can get a sense of what the name means when put together as a whole, Meadowmere. The meanings are generally good and pretty. My preferred pronunciation is MEH-doh-MIHR for some reason. Though often I still pronounce it MEH-doh-meer.

Know I think this is an interesting way to lengthen the name Meadow *see on list of posts*. Though Meadow is sweet and cute Meadowmere gives it a fantasy foreign beauty.