Name on the Book!

N.A Knoll > mystery writer's name?

James Page-Martin.

No, that really is my name. Sigh.

Nora Moon--Very musical. I would think either literary fic with a touch of magical realism or romance, maybe soft fantasy. The moon gives it a little of a mystical touch

Belinda Rees--Mystery, maybe. I like it.

N.A. Knoll--action thriller or hard spec fic

James Page-Martin--kind of serious sounding, but could go with anything. I would expect it to be a thick book. It makes me think of some kind of detailed historical adventure. James Page has a nice ring to it. A little more cavalier.

Mine will be either M.K. Moore or Melissa Kaye Moore

N.M. Roach: Popular historical fiction
Niall Roach: General or historical fiction
Rachel Frank: Women's or highly-academic literature
Leah Car: Popular Mystery
Misty Cohen: Light Horror or Mystery
Belinda Rees: I like this name. Contemporary fiction maybe, or fantasy/sci-fi.
Nora Moon: realistic fantasy/magical realism.
Marian York: This is a good author name as well. Could be anything, which is a good thing I think.
N.A. Knoll: Realistic/contemporary fiction. Maybe realistic fantasy.
James Page-Martin: Epic fantasy.
M.K. Moore: I like this name too. Sounds very literary, maybe contemporary fiction as well.

My real name is Michael Gufler.

My first name is fine enough. I thought about using a different last name. Perhaps Michael Elliot Hayes, or Michael Hayes.

Ha - nice idea. And I actually need some feedback from a US audience on my name, so good timing too.

N.M. Roach: Neutral or historical
Niall Roach: Neutral or historical
Rachel Frank: Serious
Leah Car: Action
Misty Cohen: Thriller or mystery/horror
Belinda Rees: Neutral
Nora Moon: Fantasy
Marian York: Serious
N.A. Knoll: Neutral
James Page-Martin: Thriller
M.K. Moore: Serious
Michael Hayes: Good one. Could be serious or thriller. Something deep.

I'm Michael Kamp.

It works really well in Danish, since Kamp means "Battle" or "Fight". Also it has the added benefit of placing my books in the same shelf as Stephen King and Koonz.
Readers looking for horror is bound to start in the "K" part of the bookstore

Not sure how it is percieved in English.

Stephanie Kay reminds me of Stephen King.

folclor said:

My author name is the same as my real name. Marian York.

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Yay, another Marian.

N.M. Roach: General fiction, sci-fi, horror
Niall Roach: Sci-fi, fantasy
Rachel Frank: Historical
Leah Car: YA
Misty Cohen: Romance
Belinda Rees: Mystery, YA
Nora Moon: Fantasy, Romance, any intersection of the two
Marian York: General, political fiction
N.A. Knoll: Literary
James Page-Martin: General, thriller
M.K. Moore: General
Michael Hayes: General
Michael Kamp: Thriller

I'm thinking about going with my real name: Cheyenne Shaffer, Cheyenne Lynne Shaffer, or Cheyenne L. Shaffer.

Stephanie Kay sounds like a Stephen King genderbend, take that as you will.
N. A. Knoll sounds so much like a writer I can hardly stand it.
Marian York I would guess writes either literary or mystery.
Cheyenne Shaffer sounds like someone who writes children's books.

I'm thinking of using the same name I sign my artwork with: H. Cassel.

Ok, I'll bite.

My name is Chris(tian) Tucholske

I will pay you $100 if you can accurately pronounce that.

H. Cassel is kind of intriguing. I guess because it sounds intelligent & signing only a letter instead of a whole first name automatically makes you wonder.

MakanJuu, is it pronounced Too-harts-key?

N.A. Knoll - Fantasy
James Page-Martin: Thriller
M.K. Moore - Horror / thriller
Michael Hayes - Fantasy
Michael Kamp - Thriller / mystery
H. Cassel - Text book, biology or theoretical physics
Chris Tucholske - Fantasy / Sci-fi

This is fun!

Stephy/Stephanie Kay--literary
William Abel--contemporary
Maxx Borchovski--political thrillers
Lee Raven--I love that your real name sounds more like a pseudonym than your pseudonym! Mysteries.
Maggie Maxwell--you're branded as SSF forever to me.
Kia Wimbush-- historical/literary
Jill DeSear-- hmm. Contemporary?
Talia Liben Yarmush--literary
Thomas Lorcroft--Keep reading as 'Lovecraft.' SFF/Horror
SL Huang--you're branded forever as mathy fiction to me. Mwahaha.
Anna Spargo-Ryan-- contemporary/women's lit
Michelle Athy-- historicals
Kathleen Turner Overdrive-- thriiiiillers
Niall Roach-- SFF
Rachel Frank-- I liked your real name best. Contemporary.
Belinda Rees-- historical
Nora Moon-- paranormal romance
Marian York-- historical romance
N.A. Knoll-- I keep reading it as 'Not Applicable' Knoll. Magical realism.
James Page-Martin-- contemporary/literary
M.K. Moore-- urban fantasy
Michael Elliot Hayes-- vicious murder mysteries.
Michael Kamp--SFF
Cheyenne Shaffer--women's lit
H. Cassel-- thriller
Chris(tian) Tucholske-- I read it in my head as 'too-chol-ske.' Close? Magical realism.


I'm planning on going by Devon Karter.

Fun stuff!

I copied some names from the post above me and deleted all the comments - I didn't want to judge by the posts in case people said what they ARE writing I'll take a look afterwards.

Stephy/Stephanie Kay - Stephy Kay I'd go with Young Adult here, Stephanie version sounds like some real-life dramas
William Abel - Something existentialist, serious literature
Maxx Borchovski - Political fiction all the way
Lee Raven - Very neutral to me, could be anything
Maggie Maxwell - YA with much more action than romance
Kia Wimbush - Sounds like romance, but a more serious kind
Jill DeSear - Crime novels
Talia Liben Yarmush - I have no idea, name's so unique it doesn't bring any kind to mind
Thomas Lorcroft - Science Fiction or horror... ye, Lovecraft's impression is too strong to fight it
SL Huang - Very neutral to me
Michelle Athy - Romances
Niall Roach - Non-fiction
Rachel Frank- Frankly, anything (had to )
Belinda Rees - Romances, totally
Nora Moon - Also romances and very romancey ones!
Marian York - Thrillers
James Page-Martin - Anything really
M.K. Moore - Thrillers
Cheyenne Shaffer - Sci-fi
H. Cassel - Thrillers!
Devon Karter - this too sounds like some thrillery shooting-and-chasing-with-cars case
Chris(tian) Tucholske - Non-fiction goodies.

EDIT: My guess for your name, Chris, would be Too-hol-skeh ;>

~~

Me, I'm considering going with Ariane Vai (or Vhai, which is better? ;P)

~~

So far, Calliea has come the closest, but still, no.

Queen of Swords said:

Yay, another Marian.

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Score! High five!

SL Huang - Literary fiction.
Michelle Athy - Paranormal.
Niall Roach - Fantasy.
Rachel Frank- Literary fiction.
Belinda Rees - I must concur with the romance.
Nora Moon - Romance, urban fantasy, romantic suspense.
Marian York - I could see mystery with this name.
James Page-Martin - Almost anything, fiction or non.
M.K. Moore - Makes me think of Christopher Moore so I say quirky fiction.
Cheyenne Shaffer - Romance. American historical romance!
H. Cassel - Mystery.
Devon Karter - Thriller
Chris Tucholske - Political thriller.
My pronunciation guess: Two-cole-skey!

The name I would use is Nancy Burke. It's easier to spell.

I'd probably enjoy this more if the sounds of names were something that gives me impressions. The only impression I had of any of your names is that they are cool names. And I had that impression of all the names listed. So if your name is on this list, I think it's cool. I particularly liked the names "Raven" and "Cheyenne."

It's not that I think that all names are cool no matter what. I probably wouldn't be impressed with "Filbert Huckenheimer" or "Mildred Milhouse Miller." But since none of you have those names, it's all good.

But I'm curious if anyone has an impression of the name I picked for myself: Rand Lee Rich

Well, since it's not secret, and we already have two Marians, (and I do actually love it), I'll give y'all the name I use for my art. Which happens to be my real birth name. I am also Marian.

Marian Crane.

It's a damn good thing I adore Hitchcock and have a dark sense of humor. I am honored to share the name of a famous fictional murder victim and a kickass deathmetal band.

But at least two agents and three editors wouldn't believe me when they first saw my name. See why I have pseuds?

Randy Lee said:

It's not that I think that all names are cool no matter what. I probably wouldn't be impressed with "Filbert Huckenheimer" or "Mildred Milhouse Miller." But since none of you have those names, it's all good.

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Well how very dare you - I'll have you know my real name is Mildred Millhouse Miller! So offended...

Just kiddin. My grandmothers are both Millie tho - one Milicent, the other Mildred. Maybe I should be Millie Miller

(my last name's not Miller either)

Randy Lee said:

But I'm curious if anyone has an impression of the name I picked for myself: Rand Lee Rich

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I don't really like triple name authors. Too much to remember, too much to type in a search engine / Amazon. I'd dig Randy Lee, or Lee Rich. I think they both sound quite snappy. The former sounds more like Sci fi or fantasy, whereas the latter I'd say is more crime.

I'm not giving my pen name coz it's my real name, and for my own personal safety (from the hippo) I prefer to remain anonymous

Kallithrix said:

Well how very dare you - I'll have you know my real name is Mildred Millhouse Miller! So offended...

Just kiddin. My grandmothers are both Millie tho - one Milicent, the other Mildred. Maybe I should be Millie Miller

(my last name's not Miller either)





I don't really like triple name authors. Too much to remember, too much to type in a search engine / Amazon. I'd dig Randy Lee, or Lee Rich. I think they both sound quite snappy. The former sounds more like Sci fi or fantasy, whereas the latter I'd say is more crime.

I'm not giving my pen name coz it's my real name, and for my own personal safety (from the hippo) I prefer to remain anonymous

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Thanks for the feedback, and by the way, your grandmas' names are adorable.

So I tried to make a clean copy of the running list - if I missed anyone, post below and the next person can pick it up and add to it.

Here's a blank one for copy/pasting:
Stephy/Stephanie Kay -
William Abel -
Maxx Borchovski -
Lee Raven -
Maggie Maxwell -
Kia Wimbush -
Talia Liben Yarmush -
Thomas Lorcroft -
SL Huang -
Kassidy Silverman -
Michelle Athy -
Niall Roach -
Rachel Frank-
Belinda Rees -
Nora Moon -
Kia Stone -
Marian York -
James Page-Martin -
M.K. Moore -
Cheyenne Shaffer -
H. Cassel -
Devon Karter -
Chris(tian) Tucholske -
Ariane Vai -
Nancy Burke -
Rand Lee Rich -
Kira Silverman -
Marian Crane -
Kia Huntington -
N.A. Knoll -
Alexis Bright -
Emily Oliver -
Last updated 4/16, 8am CST.

And here's my copy, with just the folks I haven't pounced on yet:
Talia Liben Yarmush - Something foreign and a little confusing.. maybe a memoir? Sorry!
Thomas Lorcroft - Old English detective stories.
SL Huang - I can't get a read on this name - anything.
Michelle Athy - I can't get a read on this one either.
Niall Roach - Something dark.
Rachel Frank- Non-fiction or something... normal. General fiction.
Belinda Rees - Young adult or sci-fi, oddly enough.
Nora Moon - Ohh this begs sci-fi on it. Or mystery. But it has feeling to it.
Marian York - I don't know, but I know I like the author already. Something about Marian (yes, this is probably a deep-seated impression from forum Marians') says well written and worth reading.
James Page-Martin - General fiction, or possibly romance.
M.K. Moore - Mystery, maybe thriller. Something fun.
Cheyenne Shaffer - Ohhh. Can't tell, but I like it. Maybe romance or women's lit.
H. Cassel - I got nothing - sorry! I think I can't get a read on single initials.
Devon Karter - Crime or horror.
Chris(tian) Tucholske - Dude... I got nothing either, but I like how the last name sounds in my head.
Ariane Vai -Sci-fi or women's fiction of some sort. I like it, even if I have the genre completely wrong. It's got emotion.
Nancy Burke - Something serious. Crime, non-fiction or perhaps mystery.
Rand Lee Rich - I can't.. I knew someone named Rand Lee who was a bad bad guy, and that's totally clouding my perception. Sorry!
Marian Crane - Again, I'm loving Marian here. Marian Crane together says romance or women's lit... like she's writing to female readers.

This is where I confess to adding more than one name of my own on the master list for feedback.

Either of these seem fitting for a psych thriller?

- Kira Silverman
- Kia Huntington

thedark said:

So I tried to make a clean copy of the running list - if I missed anyone, post below and the next person can pick it up and add to it.

Here's a blank one for copy/pasting:
Stephy/Stephanie Kay -
William Abel -
Maxx Borchovski -
Lee Raven -
Maggie Maxwell -
Kia Wimbush -
Talia Liben Yarmush -
Thomas Lorcroft -
SL Huang -
Kassidy Silverman -
Michelle Athy -
Niall Roach -
Rachel Frank-
Belinda Rees -
Nora Moon -
Kia Stone -
Marian York -
James Page-Martin -
M.K. Moore -
Cheyenne Shaffer -
H. Cassel -
Devon Karter -
Chris(tian) Tucholske -
Ariane Vai -
Nancy Burke -
Rand Lee Rich -
Kira Silverman -
Marian Crane -
Kia Huntington -

And here's my copy, with just the folks I haven't pounced on yet:
Talia Liben Yarmush - Something foreign and a little confusing.. maybe a memoir? Sorry!
Thomas Lorcroft - Old English detective stories.
SL Huang - I can't get a read on this name - anything.
Michelle Athy - I can't get a read on this one either.
Niall Roach - Something dark.
Rachel Frank- Non-fiction or something... normal. General fiction.
Belinda Rees - Young adult or sci-fi, oddly enough.
Nora Moon - Ohh this begs sci-fi on it. Or mystery. But it has feeling to it.
Marian York - I don't know, but I know I like the author already. Something about Marian (yes, this is probably a deep-seated impression from forum Marians') says well written and worth reading.
James Page-Martin - General fiction, or possibly romance.
M.K. Moore - Mystery, maybe thriller. Something fun.
Cheyenne Shaffer - Ohhh. Can't tell, but I like it. Maybe romance or women's lit.
H. Cassel - I got nothing - sorry! I think I can't get a read on single initials.
Devon Karter - Crime or horror.
Chris(tian) Tucholske - Dude... I got nothing either, but I like how the last name sounds in my head.
Ariane Vai -Sci-fi or women's fiction of some sort. I like it, even if I have the genre completely wrong. It's got emotion.
Nancy Burke - Something serious. Crime, non-fiction or perhaps mystery.
Rand Lee Rich - I can't.. I knew someone named Rand Lee who was a bad bad guy, and that's totally clouding my perception. Sorry!
Marian Crane - Again, I'm loving Marian here. Marian Crane together says romance or women's lit... like she's writing to female readers.

This is where I confess to adding more than one name of my own on the master list for feedback.

Either of these seem fitting for a psych thriller?

- Kira Silverman
- Kia Huntington

Click to expand...

Awww, you guys have been skipping mine...
It was N.A. Knoll

As for Kira Silverman and Kia Huntington, I don't really see them as psych thrillers. Something about those first names are too...happy and sweet. Makes me think romance of fantasy

phantasy said:

Awww, you guys have been skipping mine...
It was N.A. Knoll

As for Kira Silverman and Kia Huntington, I don't really see them as psych thrillers. Something about those first names are too...happy and sweet. Makes me think romance of fantasy

Click to expand...

As someone who watched Death Note, whenever I hear "Kira" i think psychopatic killer instead

This seems fun! I did some from thedark's list.

thedark said:

So I tried to make a clean copy of the running list - if I missed anyone, post below and the next person can pick it up and add to it.

Here's a blank one for copy/pasting:
Stephy/Stephanie Kay - Agree that "Stephy" sounds young. Don't know if Stephanie is your real name, but as a Stephanie, I've always hated being called Stephy. Stephanie Kay is nice, though. Makes me think cutesy YA contemp romance.
Maxx Borchovski - I like this! Crime thriller, maybe?
Maggie Maxwell - Mystery. It's also seems kind of self-aware, ala pen names like Rainbow Rowell or Ransom Riggs, but not trying so hard. I like it.
Kia Wimbush - Odd without being exotic. It doesn't feel like a real name to me.
Talia Liben Yarmush - See comments above. Doesn't feel like a real name.
Rachel Frank- YA contemp, dealing with more serious issues. Haha, maybe I got that because of the "Frank"? Name associations are funny.
Belinda Rees - Women's fic
Nora Moon - Urban Fantasy
Kia Stone - Fantasy
Marian York - Sounds like a journalist.
Chris(tian) Tucholske - I like this one, I'd say contemp thriller.
Ariane Vai -
Nancy Burke - Thriller, mystery.
N.A. Knoll - High fantasy, most definitely.

Click to expand...

I've been bouncing around on a pen name for awhile. My two contenders right now are
Alexis Bright, or
Emily Oliver.

Oh, I *like* Alexis Bright. That could do well in several genders from whimsical MG and YA to grittier adult fare.

Here's something a good cover designer taught me years ago: see how your pen name candidates look in various fonts, esp. the ones that are often used in specific genres. It helps you narrow down what a pen name might look like on a cover.

Stephy/Stephanie Kay - Romantic/YA
William Abel - Historical fiction
Maxx Borchovski - Foreign fiction/Historical fiction
Lee Raven - Thriller/Mystery
Maggie Maxwell - MG
Kia Wimbush - No idea!
Talia Liben Yarmush - No idea!
Thomas Lorcroft - Contemporary
SL Huang - Fantasy
Kassidy Silverman - Romance
Michelle Athy - Romance
Niall Roach - Contemporary
Rachel Frank- YA
Belinda Rees - Contemporary
Nora Moon - YA Fantasy
Kia Stone - YA
Marian York - Contemporary
James Page-Martin - Literary
M.K. Moore - Literary
Cheyenne Shaffer - No idea
H. Cassel - No idea
Devon Karter - No idea
Chris(tian) Tucholske - Historical
Ariane Vai - Nope
Nancy Burke - YA
Rand Lee Rich - Fantasy
Kira Silverman - YA
Marian Crane - YA
Kia Huntington - YA

Ok, now for mine. Ready to laugh at my surname? Here's a few I'm toying with:
Jack Samuel Fairey
Jack S Fairey
J S Fairey
Jack Fairey
Samuel Fairey

So many names! I'll consider the last several.

Chris(tian) Tucholske (I read Too-kohl-skee, but I have a feeling I'm not even close) - Non-fiction, Educational, or Historical Fiction
Ariane Vai - Romance
Nancy Burke - Cozy mystery
Rand Lee Rich - Torn on this one...either thriller or erotic...how about erotic thriller?
Kira Silverman - YA
Marian Crane - Literary
Kia Huntington - YA
Jack Samuel Fairey,J S Fairey, Jack Fairey, Of these, I like the latter. They all make me think of British literary fiction.
Jack S Fairey - I read this as jackass fairy. Not good.
Samuel Fairey. Too fru fru, makes me think of a guy writing women's fiction (not that there's anything wrong with that).

Me: Deborah Linney, play on my given name.