What's in a "Pen" Name?

with Dee Scully

A fellow aspiring author recently asked whether she should use a pen name or her real name. This got me thinking… Why would you choose to use a pseudonym? What do you need to consider before choosing a pen name? And how do you ‘create’ that perfect name?

There are three main reasons to choose a pseudonym.

1. To rise above name limitations

Maybe you don’t like your name or perhaps you have an oddly spelled name that may get misconstrued by the general public (think Harold “Harry” Balls…can’t think of too many genres that name would fit into and a writer would willingly want to be known as). Or perhaps your name is the same as a well-known character, not in the genre in which you write (e.g. you write adult crime thrillers but your name is Harry Potter).

Romeo & Juliet--William Shakespeare

2. To keep your personal life separate from your professional life

Many writers assume pen names to separate fact from fiction, others to protect family and friends. Let’s face it; there are some ‘crazies’ out there and should you become bigger than Nora, you might well garner a few of these ‘fans’ yourself. Using a pen name may make it harder for personal information (like your home address) to be discovered. A good friend of mine decided to use a pseudonym after her son was bullied at school because his mother wrote romances (say, “romances” with a sneer). 

3. To separate the types of books you write

Branding is something many of us aspire to; but branding can pigeonhole us too. Readers know what they can expect from our books and they come to demand that with every new title, but who amongst us hasn’t wanted to branch out and try something new? Branding can sometimes make that difficult. In order not to disenfranchise our readers, it may be best when writing in a new genre to switch names. Well-known dark paranormal romance author JR Ward changed her historical romance author name from Jessica Byrd in order to reach new readers and broaden her writing horizons. Even Nora Roberts chose a pseudonym when she changed from writing romances to writing mainstream mysteries (actually she’s chosen a few of them!).

At this point you may be thinking that a pseudonym might be right for you, but before you settle on the 'perfect name', consider the following:

-Shelving space…when you’re published will you be forgotten and not seen at the bottom back of the Big W/Target/Barnes & Noble bookrack? Or will you be squeezed up tight against a well-known author who is readily seen and readers reach for?

-Domain names & #hashtags…readers visit websites, especially of authors they’ve only just discovered. If they go looking for a website under your name will they find it or will they find someone else? It’s similar with Twitter. Can you tweet with a recognizable hashtag or will you lose followers because they don’t know who you are? 

I don't believe a rose would be
as nice if it were called a thistle or
a skunk cabbage.
Anne of Green Gables--LM Montgomery

-Spelling…when readers want to order your book from The Book Depository or download your books from Kindle, will they be able to find you, or will the spelling of your name confound them? If you’re writing as Soairse Slitzenbackenfauber, your name might just be remembered as Sosy Schipendalerhausen or some variation.

-Gender…do you want readers to know your gender? Romance authors often overlook romances written by men, think ML Buchman (who uses gender neutral initials instead of Matthew Lieber). The esteemed Bronte sisters chose to write under pen names that were considered masculine (Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell) in order to be taken seriously by publishers and readers alike.

-Genre…what name will attract readers to your specific genre? If reading a romance, which sounds better to you Nora Roberts or JD Robb? How about if reading a historical romance, Jessica Byrd or JR Ward?

-Response…if your pen name is called out in a crowded theatre would you answer to it? If you won’t readily respond to your pen name at writing conferences or book signings then it might be a wise idea to reconsider or you just might find fans thinking you’re a prima donna since you didn’t stop to sign their book…and thus you may lose readers.

-Sound…what does the pen name sound like? Similar to naming your characters, you don’t want something too difficult to pronounce. People will skip over it. If they skip over your author name, they may easily forget it when it comes to making their next purchase.

-Double entendre…maybe you write erotic thrillers and Tawny Lust is the perfect name for you. Maybe you write sweet romances but your real name might make readers think otherwise (e.g. Daphne Tease). Maybe you’ve always wanted to use your grandmother's maiden name Itz but your initials are S. H.  Regardless, you’d do well to consider the many ways your possible pen name might be (mis)construed.

Last but not least, when creating the perfect pen name, consider: 

*choosing a name that sounds similar to your own e.g. Eleanor Robertson chose Nora Roberts

*keeping a portion of your real name e.g. Piers Anthony Dillingham Jacob chose Piers Anthony

*using a translation of your name such as Nicolas Kim Coppola (Nicholas Cage)

*using a family name e.g. Theodore Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss

*referencing a baby name book or online baby name register

*flipping through the phone book for names that catch your attention

*choosing a name based on its meaning or quality such as Hope or Constance

When you think your pen name is ready for the world…
Google it! Or use any search engine and/or social media. See if anyone else has that name. If another author (especially in your genre) has it then perhaps no matter how awesome it sounds and how much you really, really, really want it, it might be best to find another one. You do NOT want to be mistaken for someone else…losing a reader is never fun, especially when it could have been averted!

Finally, critique it! As with your writing, critique partners may pick up something you may have missed about the name that you’ve come to be closely attached to.

When all else fails, do NOT use the name of your street and the name of your dog or some variation, otherwise you might end up with a name like Route Four Bud or Happy Constitution. Instead try an online name generator like http://www.babynamegenie.com or http://www.randomnames.com.

Given the above, what pen name would you use and why?

I love to love the creativity of choosing a pseudonym!

I love to laugh at the sometimes wacky ways people choose pen names.

I love to learn how famous authors chose their writing names.