: Real names Real human names with counterintuitive pronunciation should be used for artistic integrity if nothing else. However, as a children's writer, educating children is your job, too. Provide

@Speyer920

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Real names

Real human names with counterintuitive pronunciation should be used for artistic integrity if nothing else.

However, as a children's writer, educating children is your job, too. Provide correct pronunciation straight away in the footnotes at the name's first appearance.

Don't use the International Phonetic Alphabet; instead, imitate the correct pronunciation using intuitive written English and italicize the stressed syllable, like so:

Sean [1] and Siobhán [2]


shawn
she-vahn

Unless you're writing a popsci book where the narrator going off on a tangent wouldn't be out of place, avoid clarifications, notes on origin, and complete sentences. Don't write "Siobhán is an Irish female given name. It is pronounced she-vahn", write

she-vahn

to avoid disrupting the story.

Invented names

It is also good to treat invented names the same way, because children are inquisitive and will want to know the "correct" pronunciation. Provide an authoritative source to help settle arguments and stage school plays:

Galadriel [1]


gah-lad-ree-ell

Do not use invented names which are also counterintuitively pronounced. Having come up with a new word, you're best poised to also come up with the optimal way to represent it in writing.

Raymond Luxury Yacht [1]


thro-at-warb-ler man-grove


WRONG!

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