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Why Use a Pen Name?

Insolent Lad

Maester
Some of my 'fan mail' comes from students who mistake me for the British historian of the same name. I figured we were different enough that I didn't need to use a different name for publishing (even if I do have a history degree of my own). Other than that, mostly teenage girls who like my poetry.
 
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Deleted member 6067

Guest
I have it because I love it, I use characters for all of my endeavors. It's fun to have lots of different masks to put on given how the online world allows it.
 

A. E. Lowan

Forum Mom
Leadership
We use our pen name because we love it, but the simple fact of the matter is, as illustrated by my story of our younger partner, is that it can be dangerous to be a woman on the web.
 
When I publish, I will use a pen name. Definitely for some privacy and compartmentalization from my real life. I don't know what that name will be yet, but only initials for my first name.

There's also a teeny tiny part of me that is curious if readers would try to assume my gender and age from my writing style, and if they could guess correctly. It's sort of a privately gaged social experiment on my part. I'm objectively curious if total annonymity would help or hinder people's perception and enjoyment of my work.
 

Insolent Lad

Maester
Weighing in once again on this thread, one reason I do not use a pen name (for the most part) is that I do want my writing to tie into the rest of my life. My other endeavors, such as making music, help advertise my writing and vice versa. I suspect I would sell even fewer books if people didn't know my name from somewhere else.
 
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Ban

Troglodytic Trouvère
Article Team
I'm surprised so few people here have simple pride as a motivator for not using a pen name. Just imagining having my name, the real deal, on a book that I made after years of working on my craft in relative silence... yeah I'm not giving that massive ego-trip away to a pen name, despite the potential negatives. That trip will be all mine and I'll revel in it like a giddy kid on christmas.
 

Svrtnsse

Staff
Article Team
I'm surprised so few people here have simple pride as a motivator for not using a pen name.
How about plain old absentmindedness? The idea of using a pen name occurred to me, but I didn't put much though into it. When the time came that I had to make a decision I'd forgotten about it, and just went with my real name - almost. The only slight change is that on Amazon the author name is Odlund instead of Ödlund.

That's just to make it easier for people to type and search for though.
 

Chessie2

Staff
Article Team
If my real name were easier I'd probably have gone with it. But my first name is Hebrew and my last name is German (I am neither, go figure). It's long, difficult to pronounce and even harder to spell for the average person. My only regret in having chosen the pen name that I did is that there are two other romance authors (one who is an erotica writer) who have the same name with a variation thereof.

Could I do it over again I would have researched the name better to make sure it wouldn't be close to that of others in my genre.
 
I'm surprised so few people here have simple pride as a motivator for not using a pen name. Just imagining having my name, the real deal, on a book that I made after years of working on my craft in relative silence... yeah I'm not giving that massive ego-trip away to a pen name, despite the potential negatives. That trip will be all mine and I'll revel in it like a giddy kid on christmas.

But using a pen name hides the shame. For me, that is.
 

Chessie2

Staff
Article Team
It's not about shame or pride though.

Ban, I disagree with your point: no one really cares that you've written a book. To date, I have 9 titles published on Amazon and no one gives a shit. That's reality for the unknown author. It's not about trying to hide who we are or anything of the sort, but about being practical. Readers need names that they can spell, that they can easily remember. They don't necessarily care about your name just how well you please them when they read your book.
 

pmmg

Myth Weaver
I have 9 titles published on Amazon and no one gives a shit

Incorrect. I give a shit. You are an inspiration to us, we count ;) We are just not very large.

Well, I do get the sentiment. What have you done for me lately comes by really quick after we have accomplished something. I always look at it first I am writing just because I want to, if other approve, hey, that would really work out. But I do have a day job. Sometimes I wonder what would happen if I just walked away and gave a run at opening a studio. Creativity is much more personally rewarding than fixing the next computer problem. Just, I have kids in school and bills to pay. Bleh....
 

Ban

Troglodytic Trouvère
Article Team
Chessie that's not what I said (or meant to imply).

Now if I had approached it from the perspective of anyone besides me, you'd make a decent point, however I specifically wrote that post from the perspective of me, the writer, the person who invests time and effort and wants their name on the finished product as a personal point of pride. I want to have a book in hand with my own name printed right on top of it. Who cares about whether or not anyone else cares about your or my work? Another person's interest has squat to do with my own fulfillment, and I think the act of putting your name on a work is a way to show some much needed respect from the writer to themselves. So sorry, but I think your comment indicates a scary way of thinking.
 
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When I first hit the internet, discovering forums and blogs and starting my own blogs, I was very clear about one thing: I wanted to use my full name. On everything. This was very important to me. This was me.

But something changed, eventually. Having my name associated with my works, my thoughts, etc., lost its value for me. I don't know precisely why this is. I may be an accidental Buddha. Or maybe I realized I didn't like my ego so much.

I think there are good, practical reasons for choosing a pen name; others have outlined some of those already. But for me there's a desire to not be too attached to anything I write.

Which, incidentally, is probably why I don't write much lately, heh.
 

pmmg

Myth Weaver
When I first hit the internet, discovering forums and blogs and starting my own blogs, I was very clear about one thing: I wanted to use my full name. On everything. This was very important to me. This was me.

But something changed, eventually. Having my name associated with my works, my thoughts, etc., lost its value for me. I don't know precisely why this is. I may be an accidental Buddha. Or maybe I realized I didn't like my ego so much.

I think there are good, practical reasons for choosing a pen name; others have outlined some of those already. But for me there's a desire to not be too attached to anything I write.

Which, incidentally, is probably why I don't write much lately, heh.

Like your name is not really FifthView.
 

Chessie2

Staff
Article Team
Chessie that's not what I said (or meant to imply).

Now if I had approached it from the perspective of anyone besides me, you'd make a decent point, however I specifically wrote that post from the perspective of me, the writer, the person who invests time and effort and wants their name on the finished product as a personal point of pride. I want to have a book in hand with my own name printed right on top of it. Who cares about whether or not anyone else cares about your or my work? Another person's interest has squat to do with my own fulfillment, and I think the act of putting your name on a work is a way to show some much needed respect from the writer to themselves. So sorry, but I think your comment indicates a scary way of thinking.
I still have pride in my work though. That's why I disagree with your point. Just because my real name isn't on my book covers doesn't mean I don't stand by every word I write because I do.
 

Ban

Troglodytic Trouvère
Article Team
I still have pride in my work though. That's why I disagree with your point.

Sure, but you're established writer now. It's easier to look back and say "I didn't need my name on my work" than for an unestablished writer to look forward and say the same. I believe we who aren't there yet should grasp every motivating element available to us, and for some people including me, the value of our name is a key step towards that goal :)
 

pmmg

Myth Weaver
I suppose I might add that many authors use pen names, and people seem to know their real names anyway. I suppose that is not universally true, but when one become rich and famous, they get known pen name or not.
 

Chessie2

Staff
Article Team
Sure, but you're established writer now. It's easier to look back and say "I didn't need my name on my work" than for an unestablished writer to look forward and say the same. I believe we who aren't there yet should grasp every motivating element available to us, and for some people including me, the value of our name is a key step towards that goal :)
That's kind of an unfair statement. I'm barely starting out in all of this. My pen name still has my real face attached to it, and my real work, my real emotions, my real words. My pen name has value because it's still ME. I wrote all of those books, created all of those characters, and the name really has nothing to do with it. You're free to believe as you will but I don't think having a name different than my own means nothing else drives me forward because clearly, I get up at 5am to write daily because something bigger than a name pushes me. J/s.
 

Ban

Troglodytic Trouvère
Article Team
That's kind of an unfair statement. I'm barely starting out in all of this. My pen name still has my real face attached to it, and my real work, my real emotions, my real words. My pen name has value because it's still ME.

I'm sorry Chessie. I meant it as a positive, but I can see how it doesn't come across that way. What I meant to say is that looking forward to having a book to be paraded around as one's own trophy with one's own name on it can be a huge boost to gather that much needed motivation to actually getting a book out there. It's the romanticism behind it that keeps me going a lot of the time. Knowing that even in some small way, my name and all that entails to me will be out and about.

You're right of course that a writer doesn't need to have their birthname on it to achieve that goal and I shouldn't suggest that. A picture or even just word of mouth can get that done just fine, but I do think it helps, especially for the more prideful among us.
 
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