Concept and Creation

The premise for both the character of Bella Swan and for the Twilight series originated in a dream Meyer had in which an "average girl" and a "fantastically beautiful, sparkly [...] vampire [...] were having an intense conversation in a meadow in the woods." In this dream, the pair "were discussing the difficulties inherent in the facts that [...] they were falling in love with each other while [...] the vampire was particularly attracted to the scent of her blood, and was having a difficult time restraining himself from killing her."

Meyer's original characters were unnamed; she took to calling the characters, who would later become Edward Cullen and Bella, 'he' and 'she' for the purpose of convenience as she "didn't want to lose the dream." The name 'Isabella' was decided upon, Meyer explains, because "after spending so much time with [the character], I loved her like a daughter. [...] Inspired by that love, I gave her the name I was saving for my daughter, [...] Isabella."

Bella's positive reception at her new school in Forks, particularly her popularity with male characters, was modelled after Meyer's real life move from high school to college. Comparing her transitional experience to Bella's, Meyer noted that after her own move to college her "stock went through the roof," commenting that "beauty is a lot more subjective than you might think."