Laura Wattenberg wrote a baby name book called The Baby Name Wizard: A Magical Method for Finding the Perfect Name for your Baby. This book is not as occult as it might seem: in reality, it is a guide for choosing a baby name that is right for your child. Wattenberg also has an online baby name wizard, nymbler, that can help you choose a baby name.

Here are some of the tips that we can learn from Wattenberg’s The Baby Name Wizard:

How popular is the name that you’re choosing? It might be difficult to understand that the names that were popular when you were a child are rapidly changing. Wattenberg asks, “why is Brianna now a more popular name for girls than Mary, Karen, and Margaret—combined?”

How do you match a first name and a last name? Consider also how your child’s name will sound with their older brothers and sisters (if they have any). Odds are you’ll be using the names of brothers and sisters in the same breath pretty frequently.

What is the style of the name you chose? Some names, according to Wattenberg, are “Brisk and Breezy” or hold “Antique Charm.” Are you attracted to a name with an “Old Testament” feel, or would rather choose a name with a different feel?

What will your child be nicknamed? Some names, Wattenberg asserts, are nick-name proof. This might be a good thing or a bad thing for you, but you should still be aware of the nickname potential of any baby name that you choose.

Consider international variations and different spellings. You might dislike the name Gwynhyfar, but love the name Guinevere. You might find Monica boring, but Monika lights your interest. This webpage offers lots of information to help you find international names as well as international variations on your name. (You might want to explore the pages on Italian Names, African Names, Indian names, and more.)

Discover what names you find appealing, and then use those names to research further names. If you are attracted to one Hawaiian name, why not look up further Hawaiian names?

These six hints will help you be your own Baby Name Wizard. If you want to try search engines that invent baby names on the internet, you might find some inspiration, but be warned: after trying a few wizards online, some results were names like Lanabrado, Wngaral, and Vateyofi. Wattenberg’s online baby name wizard helps you by using real names, giving you facts about these names, and allowing you to pick names that you like that are used as “inspirations” for the names that are suggested. Wattenberg looks at the national origin of names (such as French inspired names like Dominique) as well as the demographic with which names have been most popular (Solange, for instance, while having a French origin has been primarily popular with African Americans). Wattenberg lets you know if the name you are considering has been popular in the past hundred years, and how popular your potential baby name is right now.