A question about pen names

UntoldStoryteller

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I may be jumping the gun a bit on this one (says the hopeful author with a freshly minted manuscript dreaming of queries) .... but.

I'm a caucasian female about to embark on my first round of queries. My married name is Perez, but I don't come from Latinx descent (I like to think I cook a mean ropa vieja these days, though). My maiden name is Kimmel, which has given me a lifetime's worth of comedy material between the mispronunciations and misspellings (Kimball, Campbell, Kimmee, Kimeel). Not to mention the connection with Jimmy Kimmel Live.

I've always considered writing under a pen name to downplay my oh-so-girly first name, but feeling torn about my last name options, too. I don't want to get stuck in the Jimmy Kimmel vortex, but I also don't want to (mis)appropriate a heritage that isn't my native voice. I'm one click away from making up a name for myself and calling it a day. Yes, I realize I'm probably overthinking this, but it feels like everything from title to author's name can impact success at all stages of the journey these days.

Anyone out there who has chosen a pen name, overthought this as much as I have, or have some insight on all things name-related?


Thanks in advance,

___(Name TBD)___
 

ironmikezero

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Overthinking will tend to stall your work progress. Try initials for first/middle names (thereby leaving gender an open question). Pick a surname you like, and search for the tentative combination to be certain it hasn't been used. Even pseudonyms can be works in progress right up until the last minute before publishing. Just don't get bogged down with it; pick something and focus on your story.
 

Chris P

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Do you plan on self publishing? If so, even if you are overthinking things it's still an important consideration. Pseudonyms are marketing, as you already know, so consider this as carefully and with the same criteria as you would if you were going to open a business.

If you are going to work with an agent and publisher, then you can have this discussion with them at that time. They know the marketing tricks, and can provide excellent guidance.

I've so far published only under my real name, which is totally forgettable and there are a couple others with very similar names, so for my childrens' books I am considering using a folksy "grandpa" type name, and I'm evaluating a different, "old-timey macho" one for historicals. I haven't published under either yet, so all that might change.
 
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UntoldStoryteller

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That’s a great, point Chris P. There’s probably a whole marketing department out there for this when the time comes. Sounds like it doesn’t really matter when querying, so I think that was the first mental hurdle for me. Thanks, both!
 

LStein

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This is what I thought I would do, worry about it if and when I get an agent, but I'm also seeing advice that you should have an author website before querying. I'm not sure what to do. I'm thinking of using a pen name to keep my work and writing separate but if I create an author website with my name during the query process, then there's no real point in creating a pen name afterwards.
 

insolentlad

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My late mother (who was an artist, not a writer) chose to use both her birth and married names as her public persona, signing her work as K. Page Brooke. It seemed a good solution to me, not that I could see anything wrong with calling herself 'Kay.' Everyone else did!
 

redstick

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I use a pen name and always have. Not sure it made much of a difference. My sales have risen as my writing improved. No one bought bad books regardless of the name.
 

Paul Lamb

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I use a pen name when writing fiction. (I use my real name for magazine articles and such.)

My pen name is close to my real name, but I want a little bit of a barrier to protect my private life. (I've known writers who have been besieged by fans who literally show up at their door assuming they can chat.)

One suggestion I can offer is that you pick a name that could be a man or a women, especially if you're writing in a genre that has an overload of one or the other (speculative: men, romance: women -- and a lot of that is probably pen names hiding genders). Pat, Chris, Kelly, and the like. As for a last name, Latin names are going mainstream pretty fast these days, and I don't think they carry any cultural expectations (or at least the lack of a cultural voice/subject matter is quickly dismissed) any more. Perez is a fine name: it's short and everyone knows how to pronounce it. The only reason I can think why you might not want to use it (since you're inventing your writer persona) is because it occurs late in the alphabet. I think there is something helpful to being at the start of the shelf (at least for browsers).
 

Melicious

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I am going to use a pen name since because my last name would be difficult to pronounce. I will go with the English translation of my mother's maiden name and just put the initial down for the "first name".
 

Brigid Barry

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I'm querying but use a pseudonym. I live and work in very small and conservaive communities and would like to pretend to have some level of anonymity. My pen name is also easy to spell and pronounce and would put me at the beginning of the shelf, plus people apparently like a double pneumonic.

FWIW, a friend has published several novels under a pseudonym and now that she's switching to a completely different genre (whose readership may or may not be offended by said previously published works) she was asked to change her pen name.