Using a pen name when you already have a blog, a twitter, etc. . .

eward · Apr 21, 2011

A little background: I'd only use the pen name for stuff I'm putting on Kindle (a novella and eventually the short story collection in my signature). At least for now. Who knows, if I become an internet sensation, I will take my pen name with me agents when I query, but I doubt that will happen. I just want the pen name to protect me if this novella really ends up sucking and I somehow miss that very important fact before putting it up. . .

I searched around for "pen names" and found a few helpful threads, but my problem is I already have a blog, website, and a twitter that lead to my full name:

Website: emilyannward.com
blog: wordsofeward.blogspot.com
twitter: therealemilyw!
plus I signed up here at AW and the kindleboards under "eward"

(This is not a self-promo post I swear lol)

It's not like I have huge followings on any of these. I don't even care too much about the website and twitter, but I've been steadily updating my blog for about a year. . .so do I just start over? Social networking is ~so important~ in the internet age. . .right?

So, any tips? Should I just go with my real name or should I make some new accounts? Or just forget about the accounts?

defyalllogic · Apr 21, 2011

Just create a twitter for your pen name. And don't link your stories back to your other sites. You'll have to promote from scratch...

Jamesaritchie · Apr 22, 2011

A couple of my pasudonyms have websites and blogs all their own.

Ms Hollands · Apr 24, 2011

Yeah, start again if you want to use a pen name for writing. I was able to change my pen name back from April Hollands to Wendy Hollands (my real first name but not my real surname) after it became very tricky to keep my real first name hidden the very first time I met some people who had been reading my blog and wanted to meet me.

Nathan Bransford gave me the top advice to only bother changing a surname so that ilfe is much less complicated, although he suggests a pen name is really not ncecessary (I just prefer one though: maybe you do too).

It won't take long to build up a new following, and if you have subscribers, you can shift their subscriptions to the new website and explain you've just changed the name of the website and the content is the same. Keep both running for a while perhaps while you're building up the following on the new one.

veinglory · Apr 24, 2011

If real you is not acknowledging the pen name works you need to duplicate you effort and set things up just for that name.

If it is just a paper wall you can use the existing sites with 'real name writing as pen name'.

Using a pen name when you already have a blog, a twitter, etc. . .

eward

defyalllogic

i'm a girl. (i have tendonitis)

Jamesaritchie

Ms Hollands

Cow lover

veinglory

volitare nequeo