Updates: Autumn Babies, Troublemakers, and more!

Some of you may have noticed that I've begun to blog on Laura Wattenberg's site Baby Name Wizard. I've been freelancing for her for a couple of years now, but I'm still floored that my writing will be featured next to hers. It's really an honor, and it's so exciting for me. One of my concerns was making sure her readers know I'm a different Laura, and I think we accomplished that. But my column will get its own sparkly new section on BNW eventually.

One of the things I love about blogging there so far is that it's challenged me to take my name lists up a notch. I revived my post that I originally wrote for nameisms on Troublemaker Names, which we called "The Troublemaker Trend: Boy Names with a Hint of Mischief". This time I took a harder look at the names I'd originally included, deleted some, and added some more names that are on the verge of sparking a trend. It's all around a better article, and I love the collection of names that came together for it. It doesn't get more fun than names like Rebel, Brazen, Rowdy, and Riot. It was also interesting to me to see how the names morphed in my mind from the beginning of the process to the end—at first some of them, Riot in particular, struck me as harsh and borderline ridiculous. But then making the connection with the sounds of the names, and focusing less on the word, gave me a whole new outlook. Riot sounds cute and completely light-hearted to me, like your hilarious buddy from college who was alway such a riot. I do prefer the alternative spellings like Ryett, though, which removes it just a little bit from the word and links it to Wyatt. (Or even Rhett! Now there is an unlikely pairing.)

My most recent post is completely fresh content! 20 Names Perfect For Autumn Babies includes a few names that are classic for Fall, as well as LOTS of lovely names that have surprising Fall connections. It's absolutely one of my all-time favorite posts. My intention was to create a list of names that capture something we love about fall, whether it's in the meaning or other associations. I wanted it to be easy to discover beautiful, seasonal names, so these are truly hand-picked, "top" choices. I didn't want to create a huge list that takes lots of time to sort through, or a hodgepodge of some seasonal names, mixed in with names that don't really have any fall connections. And I hope I did it well! Here's a little sneak peak of some of the featured Fall names: Aurelia, Jack, Oakley, and Hunter. Are you swooning yet?

While I'm keeping busy elsewhere, I do think I'll keep posting to nameisms on occasion. This is where my public love affair with names all started, and it's important to me. I'll continue with name features and makeovers in the future, but in the meantime bear with me, and please visit Baby Name Wizard whenever you're craving some baby name inspiration.