Cash isn't something your grandmother stuffs in her mattress any longer.

If you're a writer and you're creating a story with characters that you might want to name at some point ((cough/hint-Cormac McCarthy-hint/cough)), there's a chance you might stumble over what to actually name them.

Bob? Mike? Tom? All are as exciting as as a paper clip.

Mary? Susan? Kathy? Crackling with as much energy as monastic chanting.

Maybe you just want a name that fits with the future, something that won't be as dated as naming a character Sinclair or Bertha. Well, you're in luck. Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosencrantz have a lot of time on their hands, and they like predicting which names will be popular ten years from now.

Do you have a female character? Do you want her to have a snappy name that shows you have your fingers on the pulse of the year 2020? Well, no need to call Miss Cleo and pay $3.99 a minute. Here are the top female names for a decade from now:

1.) Ava
2.) Amelia
3.) Ella

4.) Violet

5.) Lila

6.) Grace

7.) Ruby

8.) Matilda

9.) Harper

10.) Evelyn

When I think Ava, I think Ava Gardner. (Google her if you're under the age of 80.) Amelia? Amelia Earhart. Ella? Ella Fitzgerald. Those names are too entrenched with someone famous, for good or bad, that a fictional character will get lost being named that. It's like naming a character Adolf.

As for male names of the future, according to this report:
1.) Ethan
2.) Aiden
3.) Milo
4.) Charlie
5.) Oscar
6.) Ryder
7.) Cash
8.) River
9.) Kai
10.) Maximus

According to the site, "Parents like the upbeat, energetic, O-ending" of the name Milo. Ri-i-ight. My grandmother once named her dog Hobo. Would parents like that energetic, O-ending then, too? Milo isn't happening as a character's name unless that character is a kid in a school yard getting beaten up for his lunch money. I grew up watching the children's movie Milo & Otis, which was about an orange cat, named Milo, and a pug, named Otis, who are a sassy duo that get lost in the great outdoors. I can't name a character after an orange cat with bad directional issues.

As for the name Cash, the site says "The failed credit economy has lasting impact on baby names." Damn, I was just going to name a character of mine Visa, and now this happens.

When it comes to the name Kai, the site says it is a "winning combination of the gentle and exotic," with roots in everything from the Japanese to Nordic culture. Well, if you have a character who has Japanese parents who is currently a private investigator in Oslo, it sounds to me like you've got a winner.

Lastly there is River. The site says male names influenced by the environment are spiking and could be all the rage a decade from now. This includes Ocean, Birch, Cedar, Pine, Oak, Sage, Sky, Hawk, Trout, Wolf, and Fox. That's right, ladies. Ten years from now the main character of your romance novel is going to be named Trout. And, let me tell you, he's going to be dreamy with a name like that.