Name Game

Fiorella admits it--she likes to play with her characters' names.  For instance, all three of her Bosque Bend heroes (Jase, Rafe, Bram) have single-syllable names  spelled with an "a."  And, in Where the Heart Leads, she named one character "Marcy Ann," then gave her the nickname of "Rocky,"  which Fio's father, a boxing fan, would have appreciated. Fiorella also listed all of her paternal cousins, aunt and uncle in a crowd scene in that book, and the crazy horse was named "Bella" after a crazy dog Fio and Husband had to have put down.  And in What the Heart Wants, Fio named the pound dog "Hugo" after her own sweet, dear-departed pound dog.

Sometimes Fio pulls names from classical mythology, although she had to  change one character's name from "Isis" to "Astrid" when the political scene heated up.  And did you notice that Vashti's musical daughters were named "Carmen" and "Micaela" after the leads in Bizet's opera?

Yes, name-wise, Fio is shamelessly derivative--enjoy!

+ opera?

Otherwise, Fio gets her names from baby lists according to year of birth, obituaries, and remembrances of classmates from her elementary-school days. And, for no particular reason, her lawyers are always named Charles.