Obviously it depends on setting, but I find this site really useful for fantasy sorts of names: https://s-gabriel.org/names/index.shtml
I'm trying to write a story I've had in my head for a while but every time I read the names out loud it doesn't sound right. I've tried a few different ones and I'm stuck on what to name my characters.
What's your process for naming characters?
Usually I think of what kind of origin* i want the name to have, then just google those types of names. i go through several websites, look through the name lists, and record any names i like in a txt file. once i feel like i've shopped around enough, i'll go through the list and start eliminating names from the list based on how much i like them. once i have the list narrowed down to just a few names, i kind of just look at the character and see what i feel like fits them most. (i also have a txt file of names i've collected over time that i like but don't have a character for, so when im naming someone new i usually review it to see if any will work LOL)
when youre doing this, you can also take meaning into account and use that to help you narrow it down. i personally usually ignore the meaning just cuz like... most people aren't given names that perfectly match their personality? we're given names our parents like LOL but at times it can make sense, like if your character is a god/goddess that was clearly named for their role/powers, or if your character had a religious parent that gave them a virtue name. depends on the background
*and by "origin" i mean like... your base idea for the name. like if the character is japanes, you'd look up japanese names. if your character is a european based witch, you might look up old 17th century names. if you're character is a forest spirit, you might try looking up "nature themed names" or something like that. find the base you want your name to come from, then go from there to build your list
I'm horrible with names so most of the time I use this site: https://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/
mostly at random
mostly most characters don't even have a name until well into the story when at some point I just suddenly feel like /ah of course [name] would be this character's name/ :'D
It depends on the character, but most of the time, it's honestly just what I like the most. Or think fits them the most.
It's mainly based on the design tbh. And the colors /pattern/ accessories etc. Let's say you have a green little frog character with a flower on its head. the first thing that comes to my mind would either be Rainy or Blossom. ^^
Im absolutely terrible at names, I just totally blank and either end up trawling a name list until something sticks out or use a name generator until it rolls a name I like.
I take into consideration the character's birthplace, culture, and family. Even if you only have one of those down, it can lead you in the right direction, especially for more realistic stories where someone's parents wouldn't know their personality at birth. Of course, this doesn't really matter depending on the type of story you're writing ("Candy," for example, might be fitting in a more cute cartoony type story, not so much in something meant to believable unless it's either a nickname, real name in the place, or some other explanation like culture or tradition)
I just like naming my characters after words and objects and such like that. I find it fun to name them that and it's fun to collect words I can use for names later.
Only my Hollow Knight and TF2 ocs and very few exceptions for my other ocs get named with actual names/made-up words (that aren't compound words I made up so it could be one word because that is a part of my naming theme as well. Like Beachside, Seastorm, Dreamcatcher, Lovestruck, Heartbreak, Heartthrob, etc. I try to avoid using two words so I slam them together and it becomes a new word to me, even if they are already compounds, they fit in this category).
Note that my TF2 ocs and like two other characters are humans/humanoids. I like making stories about ferals and anthros in fantasy most of the time. Therefore, it makes a slight bit more sense to use word names and it's my work. I can do what I want lol.
I overhear/see a name IRL or in a game or anywhere and I go : wow that'd be a cool name for a character
then i put it in the Name File
If i need a name I'll look through it and go "yeah this sounds cool"
I'm very bad with names, though only very rarely do I make names for the characters (IE give them real "meaning"). Unless I'm going for a certain aesthetic or the character chose their own name in-story (or it was chosen for them based on events etc), then I see no reason to give a meaning to a name. That's not how it is in real life. I knwo that sounds hilarious since I usually work in fantastical fiction ANYWAY so something not sounding "realistic" shouldn't be an issue, but that's just how it is for me