Byline: Your thoughts on using initials or not

Came to say go with the initials, but with a gender-neutral first name I think you're safe using what pleases you.

Fo your query/contracts, I'm pretty sure you'll use your whole name regardless. And I've seen books written under pen names use the author's real name in the copyright notice (not sure of the legal necessity of that, though, but your publisher will know).

If you go with initials, you will likely have to correct people sometimes in correspondence. If they pay attention, though, you shouldn't have to do it more than once or twice. (I go by Liz, and generally signing a reply that way when someone's addressed me as Elizabeth is enough for them to catch on.)

Unless romance, I'd be as gender neutral as possible. Even gender neutral names I would not want men to potentially interpret a name as female. The bias is real, why earn less money if you can avoid it.

I prefer writers with full names, but purely for selfish reasons - I always find it tricky when googling or searching for authors with initials. Do I add a space between the letters or not? Does it have periods/full stops after each initial or not?

Just make sure your name is unique enough. I had to add my middle initial because googling "Dennis Taylor" produced a lot of hits, including someone in the p0rn industry.

Then I discovered that there are a few books on Amazon by a (now deceased) Dennis Erskine Taylor.

Harlequin said:

Even gender neutral names I would not want men to potentially interpret a name as female.

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Eh, I don't know that this is as important. Kameron Hurley does OK (and I've seen people on Twitter surprised to learn she isn't male). AFAIK Nicky Drayden's managing as well.

And it's not like readers don't know N.K. Jemisin is female. Nor do they seem put off by Emma Newman, Becky Chambers, and Cat Valente. There's a bias among readers, yes; but I don't think it's quite as pronounced as it's made out to be. (About half of SFF readers are women - not that women can't be biased, but it's worth noting that the barking in SFF fandom doesn't represent anything like the majority, even among men.)

Now, marketing is another issue, and one about which I have only one data point; but from that perspective, if you can remove "oh look a girl writer" from the toolbox, I'd absolutely do that (except in a genre where it works in your favor).

My argument would be that you are targeting people who walk into a bookstore and browse without any frame of reference. So they see, oh hey some sff book by some person called NK Jemisin. Cool. As opposed to someone who has read then, decided they are fans and then seek out the rest (irrespective of gender).

Kameron Hurley is scraping by and took a lot of hard graft to get there. Her name is certainly unisex though. But her name is also Caucasian sounding. I guess I tend to feel if you are going to double whammy sounding foreign and sounding feminine, better to eliminate at least one of those.

Maybe I'm too cynical, or too paranoid.

Laurasaurus said:

I prefer writers with full names, but purely for selfish reasons - I always find it tricky when googling or searching for authors with initials. Do I add a space between the letters or not? Does it have periods/full stops after each initial or not?

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Same issue. Often library search engines come up with no results when I search by author name for this reason, even for like J.R. Ward, who is hardly an unknown quantity. If the book has an unusual title, I can usually find it that way. If not, tricky. Still, I understand the issue others are raising with obviously female names being an issue in many genres. Which is sad.

Harlequin said:

My argument would be that you are targeting people who walk into a bookstore and browse without any frame of reference. So they see, oh hey some sff book by some person called NK Jemisin. Cool. As opposed to someone who has read then, decided they are fans and then seek out the rest (irrespective of gender).

Kameron Hurley is scraping by and took a lot of hard graft to get there. Her name is certainly unisex though. But her name is also Caucasian sounding. I guess I tend to feel if you are going to double whammy sounding foreign and sounding feminine, better to eliminate at least one of those.

Maybe I'm too cynical, or too paranoid.

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I don't think it's possible to be too cynical or too paranoid about publishing.

But what bookstore browsers see is determined by what the buyers buy, and all of that comes from pre-release marketing. Where the book is placed on the shelves, whether it's on a "new books" table, an endcap, an "up-and-coming writers" shelf - even if it's shelved face- or spine-out - is paid placement. Individual stores have some discretion, and of course they don't have to stock your work at all. But you need your marketing people on your side before you even start worrying about the implicit bias of Reader-Off-The-Street.

This is why it's important not to grab an agent without researching them first, and why you talk to the acquiring editor about their vision for your work before you take a pub offer, even if it's the only one you've got.

I'm aware of Hurley's history, by the way. She hit a lot of bad luck out of the gate, and is an example of the power of persistence. I admire her work greatly. But I can't say with any confidence she'd have done better going out with initials. There are too many variables out there to blame every frustration on "boys don't buy books written by girls."

I'm actually dealing with this issue right now. I'm finally at a point where I want to start building a platform, and for a while I was set on initials to avoid the gender bias that comes with writing fantasy. As of yesterday I decided to use a female first name (not my own). For me, going with initials because of my paranoia felt like a cop out. How will I see change in the industry if I do nothing to fight for it? It wouldn't sit right with me, even if I do make less money (if I make any money at all, lol).

But ultimately, it comes down to what you are comfortable with!

This is really interesting. I'm actually coming at this from the opposite perspective, as a guy. The fantasy novel I'm writing features a female protagonist and her female sidekick. The book deals mainly with emotions and bonding, and contains no fighting or battles. I found myself much more comfortable writing the female characters than the male characters.

I've never heard of a bias among women readers against male authors, but to me, wouldn't this type of book seem a bit "off" if written by a male author? In no way does it attempt to present a female perspective or anything like that, but I feel like it reads more like it was written by a female author. I've been strongly considering using initials to not overtly state my gender.

I've barely dipped my toes in the water as far as beta readers, but I would predict without hesitation that in my own social circle, women will like the story, and the dudes I know will scratch their heads, not understanding it and wondering why I would write something like this.

It just seems to make more sense if the cover would read "by A.B. Smith" rather than "by Hector Machoman". But who knows?

Don't you want to see your full name in print? Wouldn't that be fun?

It's all up to you and I suggest that, if you've come this far, you should do what makes you happy.

Hector Machoman would be a pseudonym unparalleled

Yep - I vote for Hector Machoman too.

THE FIRST FRONTIER

Driven out of the clan for falling asleep on too many hunts, Gru the Neanderthal warrior is determined to earn his return to the tribe. His plan: steal the secrets of fire from the rival Hooman tribes across the river, and elevate his people out of a subsistence existence. Of course, if he gets caught, he risks destroying the uneasy truce between their two peoples, and causing a war neither side can win.

Conan meets James Bond in this stunning prehistoric thriller by debut author Hector Machoman.

Toto Too said:

I've never heard of a bias among women readers against male authors, but to me, wouldn't this type of book seem a bit "off" if written by a male author? In no way does it attempt to present a female perspective or anything like that, but I feel like it reads more like it was written by a female author. I've been strongly considering using initials to not overtly state my gender.

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TBF, men have been writing books about emotions and bonding - and women - for centuries. (Some of them have even done it well. ) And I think the main reason women don't tend to have such strong biases against male authors is because male authors have never been held up as cultural oddities.

(Also, I agree with the others: go with Hector Machoman. You will be unforgettable. )

DanielSTJ said:

Don't you want to see your full name in print? Wouldn't that be fun?

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Just as a counterpoint: I felt quite strongly about this, and in retrospect it was one of a number of mistakes (not all of which were within my control). At this point, with my last name being so distinctive, using initials won't really solve anything. It's likely I'll have to use a pseudonym. If I'd known, I'd have been satisfied seeing my last name in print, and going with E. H.

It sucks, but it's a real issue, and one that deserves serious consideration.

Toto Too said:

This is really interesting. I'm actually coming at this from the opposite perspective, as a guy. The fantasy novel I'm writing features a female protagonist and her female sidekick. The book deals mainly with emotions and bonding, and contains no fighting or battles. I found myself much more comfortable writing the female characters than the male characters.

I've never heard of a bias among women readers against male authors, but to me, wouldn't this type of book seem a bit "off" if written by a male author? In no way does it attempt to present a female perspective or anything like that, but I feel like it reads more like it was written by a female author. I've been strongly considering using initials to not overtly state my gender.

I've barely dipped my toes in the water as far as beta readers, but I would predict without hesitation that in my own social circle, women will like the story, and the dudes I know will scratch their heads, not understanding it and wondering why I would write something like this.

It just seems to make more sense if the cover would read "by A.B. Smith" rather than "by Hector Machoman". But who knows?

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You actually wouldn't be the first man to do that S.J Watson who wrote Before I Go To Sleep mentioned in an interview that he decided to use his initials instead of his first name as he was worried how women reader would react with the man writing a woman in such a close POV.

Personally I would say just do whatever feels right for you being initials or full name.

Harlequin said:

THE FIRST FRONTIER

Driven out of the clan for falling asleep on too many hunts, Gru the Neanderthal warrior is determined to earn his return to the tribe. His plan: steal the secrets of fire from the rival Hooman tribes across the river, and elevate his people out of a subsistence existence. Of course, if he gets caught, he risks destroying the uneasy truce between their two peoples, and causing a war neither side can win.

Conan meets James Bond in this stunning prehistoric thriller by debut author Hector Machoman.

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I am intrigued. Please attach the full manuscript in .doc format. I will reply within 12-968 months.

@lizmonster to both your comments - yeah, *hopefully* things are moving the right way in that regard, even if very slowly.

@Elle thank you for that example! I will check it out


It looks like Hector Machoman is a winner. Harlequin, hey, I think you've got something there, and if you want the pseudonym, consider it yours.

Harlequin said:

Hector Machoman would be a pseudonym unparalleled

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MACHO MACHO, MACHO MAN- YEAH! I WANT TO BE A MACHO MAN!

When the cover is pink and there are hearts and flowers on it, I won't pick the book up – not even when the author's first name has been replaced by the initial.

Maybe I'm weird, but the only time I've ever look at an author's name when buying a book is to see if an author I already like has a new book out.

Did the subject/genre interest me? Yep, that's how I wound up in this section of the bookstore/library
Did the cover grab me? Yep. I'm a sucker for action scenes, whimsical covers, and/or wolves.
Did the back cover write-up catch my attention? Hmm, this is about X, and I love the blurb's writing ... let's look inside.
Did the first couple of pages get my attention? Yep ... off to the check out.

Return trip:

Hmm, I wonder if (author) has anything new out. Yes/No,

If no, then repeat phase one again.


Honestly, I don't give a damn whether it's a male author, female author, white author, black author, 4 fingered Lithuanian author, (although I admit, a Venusian author MIGHT catch my attention).

Write a good book in a subject I'm interested in and I'll buy it.