Pen names

Allison Woodworth sounds great to me--all Englishy. The kind of name, actually, that someone might pick to write romance novels under, if his real name was, for instance, Patrick Shrinivashtar. If I were you, I'd keep it as is, unless you have some stronger motivation, such as being nearer to the front of the alphabet. (Gwendolyn Alisande, anyone?)

Your name sounds fine to me, but you may well have to use a different name for different genres, so it does no harm to think about it. I've used several pseudonyms, and I primarily just pick names I like. Nothing fancy or cure, just fairly common names that strike my fancy. One was the last name of my family way back before it changed to "Ritchie" some four hundred years ago.

oh I love that name - it's perfect!

Having said that, Bonita has a point about names near the start of the alphabet. My surname starts with C and it has really stood to me, being on top shelves etc.

Tracy said:

oh I love that name - it's perfect!

Having said that, Bonita has a point about names near the start of the alphabet. My surname starts with C and it has really stood to me, being on top shelves etc.

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That is something to consider. Marketing tells me the ideal location for your books is dead center, and just a bit below eye level.

But Isaac Asimov and Roger Zelazny did all right, and they were pretty much the, uh. "bookends" of writing.

Tracy said:

oh I love that name - it's perfect!

Having said that, Bonita has a point about names near the start of the alphabet. My surname starts with C and it has really stood to me, being on top shelves etc.

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I hadn't thought about that when I chose my pen name. You'd think I would seeing as I work in a bookshop but there you go. Hmm now to change or keep...

So ... does one just use their pen name from the very beginning when they start submitting it, or is it something that is only discussed once you know you're being published. I think I would rather use a fake name lol....

Lydia Sharp is the pen name I chose for my SF/F, and, once I am published in the other genres that I write, I'll likely use a different one for each. I already have one selected for my women's fiction. Coincidentally, the last name begins with M, right in the middle. Haha. But I'd honestly just chosen it because I liked it, not because of shelf placement. I haven't come up with one for my YA fiction yet.

Regarding how I selected the names... Lydia Sharp is very close to my real (married) name. That one was easy. For my women's fiction, I decided on a name that goes back to my Italian roots. Not my maiden name, though, since that one was pretty much unpronounceable by every teacher I had from Kindergarten through 12th grade. That wouldn't be good from a sales standpoint. The name I chose is authentic yet still easy on the tongue. For my YA stories, I'm looking for something that has a connection to me (as the other two do) but is more... snappy. Still searching, at the moment. I already use the screen name "Lexi" on another writers' forum, so I'll likely use that for the first name, just need a good surname to go with it.

Kelsey said:

So ... does one just use their pen name from the very beginning when they start submitting it, or is it something that is only discussed once you know you're being published. I think I would rather use a fake name lol....

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In my experience (which so far is only with short fiction publishing) an editor doesn't care what pen name you want to use until they've decided they're going to print your story, because it isn't until that time that they need to know what to put in the byline. You always sign your cover letters and query letters with your real name, and there is no need to mention a pen name unless/until they ask for it.

I am writing Suspense/Thriller but not yet publish but when I do should I keep my married last name: Blanchette or use my maiden name Davis? I was moving towards my maiden but i was unsure if my hubby's family would be upset or not my hubby said what ever helps you and makes you feel good i am here for you.

I looked into a pen name since I have such a lovely, different last name. But I decided I didn't want to compartmentalize my writing into different names and personalities. I wanted readers to be able to find me across genres. I write lesbian fiction, so the market is allegedly small enough that readers don't normally stick to just one genre (romance vs mystery, for example).

In the end, I decided to use my real name. One less thing for me to keep track of! I can barely remember my phone number, how could I keep track of different names?!

I have a sort of hard to pronounce last name, yet I use my real name 99.9% of the time. The other .1% is only when I'm trying to protect the not-so-innocent (like when I write about my sons and they ask me to go incognito).

I'd use Blanchette over Davis, just because it's less common. If they forget your first name, "Davis," isn't going to be all that much help.

I think the usual way is to put your real name and address on everything, and sign letters with your real name, but use your pen name after "By."

A Honkin' Big Story
by Pheromone Phantasy

bonitakale said:

Allison Woodworth sounds great to me--all Englishy. The kind of name, actually, that someone might pick to write romance novels under, if his real name was, for instance, Patrick Shrinivashtar. If I were you, I'd keep it as is, unless you have some stronger motivation, such as being nearer to the front of the alphabet. (Gwendolyn Alisande, anyone?)

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I totally agree with this. Very classy sounding name for Romance!

PaulaO said:

I l

In the end, I decided to use my real name. One less thing for me to keep track of! I can barely remember my phone number, how could I keep track of different names?!

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You're more likely to foget your real name than your pseudonym. Use one for a while, and pretty soon you are that person.

Thanks Bonitakale, i was thinking of keeping my real name but my mom and best friend thinks it not good idea for my books but when it comes to writing use my real name. My mom did say i could use her Maiden name Carter. I said if i do change it to something i would use it like this Linn L. Blanchette or what ever last name.

Midgedear, i only wish i could right Romance. I am just not that good. I love the action and well Mystery.

Wow. Allison Woodsworth was the name of one of my characters in my wip, but I ended up editing her out of the plot.

<-- Rhy Cordelle is my intended pen name, but I'm not published.

bonitakale said:

(Gwendolyn Alisande, anyone?)

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I was actually thinking of a pen name with GA initials and so far, a lot of people I've asked seem to prefer Gracelys Aisling over the other pen names I've come up with so far.

Edit: The only reason why I'd want to use a pen name if I do is if I want to use my name Abigail in a book and not have people think that I'm putting myself as a person in my writings instead of just using the name Abigail. I don't want to seem conceited or anything, so I figured go with a pen name that is a mixture of my middle names with an Irish name.

For some reason, the thought of using a pen name never, ever occurred to me before joining this site.

I don't think I will, idk.

Glorium said:

For some reason, the thought of using a pen name never, ever occurred to me before joining this site.

I don't think I will, idk.

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Unless you're very prolific, or write in more than one genre, you may never have reason to use a pseudonym.

If you are very prolific, and write in more than one genre, you may not have a choice.

Just a FYI: There's also a thread over in the FAQ on Pen names. http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=161601

my 2 cents: use your real name.

a few years ago when my stuff started appearing i picked one pen name. couple years ago i didn't like it any more so started using a different pen name. now when i send stuff out i have to figure out what type of work i can list for which pen name... it gets confusing and more tiresome than it's worth.

not to mention this can either confuse or aggravate publishers - 'Hi, I'm Jane Doe aka Lana Smith... erm, aka Fistula Boring...' meh.

unless you're destined to be The One in a million superstar author out there (in which case my hat off to you), i'd say stick with your real name.

I've done freelance work and related video work in the past and am trying to revive that part of my life. I always used my real name, or at least the nickname of my real first name.

Fast forward a few years to now ... I've added a married name to the end (to keep it simple with stepkids) and kept the former last name as my new middle name. So for freelance writing and video I have

FirstNameNickname MaidenName MarriedName

but I plan to use a pen name for fiction. So when I get rich and famous I won't be pestered at home. Pen name would be real first name (not nickname) and then a different last name.

It only gets tricky when I wonder what business card I should have made up. Having two would be cumbersome. I wonder if having a business card with both names on it would be too confusing?

Jamesaritchie has said before that he uses several different pen names, but I'll bet he's established enough with editors/publishers that he just uses his real name on his business card. Or maybe doesn't even have a card.

I'm also toying with the idea of using a penname, partly for one particular story I'd rather not have my family find if they google search me...Is building a new identity just to avoid the family finding out a bit excessive? Maybe, but knowing my family, I'm willing to take the risk.

What's making me hesitate is the fact that the setting of the story (a fantasy setting, so quite a bit has gone into it) will probably be used in the future for stories I'll want to publish under my real name. It would probably look weird for the same kingdom to appear in two 'different' authors' work...

I haven't even begun to consider business cards!