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I don't know very much about the names taken by those in service to the church, but if the character is known to all as Father Calebrese, that's his name. It's not necessary to know that his first name is Bill and his family (mom,dad, sibs cousins, etc.) calls him Junior, because he only appears briefly and the POV character will never get to know him that well.

Just as I remember my fifth grade teacher as Mr. Fiorito, our small-town preacher as Mr. Landsrs, the school bus driver as Shorty and Grandma's brother as Uncle Steven, that's all your main character needs to know.

I like to play with character names. Using smart names can reveal much about the character. Is he a redneck? A Frenchman? Is she a stripper? Extreme examples, I know, but it does help to define the character without extensive descriptions. And they do need names. It might feel like you can get away with 'the cop' or 'the shortstop,' or 'the conductor,' but as CJ says, you don't want to have to describe them time after time. That's tedious, and you don't want to bore your readers, right?

I'm currently working on a seven-part serial in which the names have foreign language meaning that describes the characters. For example, the murder victim was Luz Apagada, which is an approximation in Spanish for 'lights out.' Next month's issue features a gluttonous character whose name in Malaysian means 'fat man.' while his female assistant bears the name Chichu, which is my phonetic spelling of the Mandarin word for 'spider.'

Be that as it may, I would say to use logic in naming characters. Simply consider how well your main character knows each one, and that will clue you in to how deeply you need to go into naming them. Enjoy the journey!  JP

P.S. If your POV character never meets them, but only sees them from afar, they won't need names. Your POV character can think of them as 'the cop' who directs traffic, 'the shortstop' at the game, or 'the conductor' on the train.

Yes, it's true that some short stories pack a great punch, and they can yield a great novel (or series), I suppose. But sometimes you just want to tell a story in a few words, especially if the essence of the story is a surprise. And sometimes, you just have a small story, and that's all the attention you want to give it. If the author wants later to make more of it, it's the author's decision.

When I write a short story, it's because that's the format I think is most effective for that story. The short story is an art form, not to be denigrated by those who think it will be more important, or better, as a book. JP

Hey, Marilyn--

Thanks to you for all the good info about horses and ponies. That's another thing about tnbw--writers helping other writers.

And Kdot--can't wait to read about your quirky pony. What a great idea for a character!

Now, just out of curiosity--what's a cow pony? Is it a kind of horse, or just a cowboy's nickname for his favorite animal?

Keep up the good work.  JP

You may be talking about the 'featured' postings. There is room for you to 'feature' only two at a time (another reason to consider consolidation).  All other postings are still active, and reviewers can access them by going to your public portfolio. You can change any two you want to feature, at any time. Go to your portfolio, and 'drag' the ones you want to feature to the top two slots. This will render them visible (featured) on your home page.

Nothing ever goes away, in my experience, unless you choose to delete it. I have deleted stuff, in times past, to my chagrin. If, later on, you want to hide something, you can do that by switching it to 'inactive.' That's what I do when something is published, out of consideration for the publisher. (More about that when you're ready.)

It does take some getting used to, and some practice. Anytime you need help, just ask. We're all ready and willing--that's how we all started. JP

This topic comes up periodically. It's always good to have the latest information. After a similar discussion, I used the titles of country and rockabilly songs as chapter titles in the Adventures of a Young Girl. Nobody even noticed, much less complained.

As a reader, I don't know what's worse--reading through somebody else's (already familiar) lyrics because an author thought they were needed, or wading through (usually bad) 'lyrics' written by the author. Go with the titles (and names, if you must). Lyrics don't advance your story. It's as simple as that.  JP

PS--I just thought of something. It's possible to set the scene by saying something like "The girls were screaming for Frank Sinatra (or Elvis Presley, or Michael Jackson, or Justin Bieber)."

I just finished reading part three of your first chapter. It was all very easy reading, not at all ponderous or intimidating. If your writing continues in this caliber, I think you could post a chapter this size with no ill effects.

The possible negatives I see: first, there were three very definite structural parts to this beginning, each of which could function as a chapter on its own. Lumping them all together might cause them to lose some of their impact.

Second, the sheer size of a 6000-word chapter is enough to deter some of us, myself included. When it comes time to publish, will prospective readers be scared away, too?

It's a great story, so far. I encourage others to read and review.  JP

P. S. Randall Krzak recently published a book that required several chapters to set up. You might ask his opinion.