Exploring the Pen Name
With Guest Blogger and Author Brent Bowen
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

Down the drain with BM Bowen
Unlike many of the authors who have written to this point, I've yet to actually decide to use a pen name. But I'm seriously contemplating it and need help. I can’t use my initials: BM Bowen. No way (for obvious reasons)! And I can’t do my middle name and the street I grew up on (well I could if I were writing westerns): Introducing Matthew Stagecoach! Um. No.

But I need one. They're everywhere.

Just last week I received an email blast from Audible.com entitled, "Your Favorite Author's Pen Name." Then, I'm listening to one of my favorite podcasts, Adventures in Scifi Publishing, and it featured two great episodes last year that had well-established paranormal-romance authors talking about their pen names, episode 26-Tate Hallaway and episode 30-Jacqueline Carey.
Jacqueline Carey explains she will be taking on a pen name so, in part, she could market something in a different genre without disrupting the readership of her Kushiel's series.

In Tate's case, Tate is her pen name. And it gave her a new life in publishing. She wrote for several years as scifi writer Lyda Morehouse. And while she's received critical acclaim for her scifi books, several went out of print and she says that "she kinda had to change her name so Barnes & Noble would stock her next book." Interestingly, she also offers that while it's a good idea to have a pen name ready, be flexible. Because she writes paranormal romances, her publisher asked her to change the last name of her chosen pseudonym to start with "Ha" so she could be shelved next to Charlaine Harris and Kim Harrison.

Now, why would I consider taking a pseudonym? First, there are too many of me. Need proof? Conduct the domain-name test. As Sandy mentioned in a prior blog post of mine, search http://www.brentbowen.com/ and you'll be greeted with “Do you need to speak with an experienced civil law attorney in Texas?" Yikes. Now, the Internet Movie Database (IMDB.com, if you don't know) test. I can't even use my middle initial to help distinguish me: Brent M. Bowen has had a very nice career in visual effects. There's even a Brent Bowen author. Though he's a PHD in aviation, writes non-fiction, and teaches at the University of Nebraska Omaha. Yawn.

So, what am I going to do about all of this? Naturally, hold a contest. Several week's ago, people offered pen-name suggestions on my post, "Play the name game."

My esteemed panel of judges (my wife, brother and mom) picked their six favorite. Vote now for your favorite on my poll. Or, visit to see the paths not traveled. Indeed, sometimes those are the most fun.

But, ultimately, like Tate, I may have to keep it backpocket because a publisher wants me to fit in the "Sa" group on the shelf. Nice problem to have if you ask me. Then we'll line it up and do it all over again.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Brent Bowen, pseudonym, pen names

Exploring the Pen Name
Another Pseudonym Birthday...This Time George Michael
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm a child of the '80s. I loved the hair bands, the pop bands, the easy music bands, the metal bands, the teen movies, the Bond movies (Roger Moore is my fave), the teeny-bopper magazines with their ludicrous headlines (What Can You Do To Get Scott Bao To Like You? What Hairstyle Makes The Greatest American Hero Swoon?), the cheesy TV shows with the cheesy music beds. So, of course, I must celebrate one more pen name out of the '80s...that Wham! UK singer himself...George Michael.

His real name? I couldn't begin to spell it correctly. Thus the genius behind changing it when he went into show biz. (or music biz, as the case may be) It's Greek. Like a god from the pantheon, yes?

Anyway. I'm a fan. I adored Wham and still get that "oooo yay!" feeling when one of their songs filters across the radio waves. And I followed George's career right up to present day. Let me tell you something. The first time I heard Waltz Away Dreaming by Toby Bourke and George Michael, I cried. Tears, people. Tears. It's just lovely. And George's An Easier Affair is just to die for. Yum.

George Michael is still an amazing artist in this decade. He's not just that lovely Greek Adonis from the '80s. That pen name worked out well, I'd say. Happy Birthday, George!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: George Michael, pseudonym, pen names, Wham, Birthday, dragon

Exploring the Pen Name

With Guest Blogger and Erotica Author Will Belegon

(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

One Ya Can't Use on the Bench

Discussions about pen names usually start with one of two questions: Why use one and how did you chose it? Now, as an author of erotic romance and erotica with two children, I hopefully don't need to explain my answer to question one. The last thing I need is someone talking about how the little league coach writes "dirty stories". This is not to say that I don't have friends in that area who do know what I write. But a pen name allows me to choose who knows, which is much safer. I would love it if every parent read my baseball blog or other freelance writing under my real name, but the sexy stuff is more sensitive. This is especially true given the extra scrutiny I receive in youth sports.

As to the how, I find it fun how many different stories we all have. Many of us took great care in choosing our pseudonym, particularly if writing has been something we always dreamed about growing up. But I also know authors who have chosen a name in a hurry or even taken forum polls.

My dreams of what I could do with my life did indeed contribute to my pen name, but it wasn't the dream of being a novelist. My dreams involved writing in one way: poetry, specifically song lyrics. Rock and roll immortality was at war with my athletic ambitions during my teen years. Obviously, pretending to be announced in the bottom of the ninth in the World Series was a dream in which the name my parents gave me echoed through the ballpark.

But when I dreamed about screaming guitars and even louder screaming girls, I thought about a rock star name.

So I combined another obsession with my rock god dreams. I've been a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien's world ever since my father put a copy of The Hobbit in my hands as a boy. So I took my first name, broke it into the Anglo-Saxon root words and then took the meaning of those and translated them into Tolkien's Sindarin Elvish language.

Thus did I emerge with the unique last name of Belegon. I paired that up with my first name and thought I had something that sounded suitable for being announced in between Nikki Sixx and Rikki Rocket.

Flash forward twenty years or so. I'm stuck in a rut, with the greatest outlet for my creative side being new ways to give business meetings. I had read a few short stories online, fan fiction mostly. I began to look at some of them and think, I can do better than that.

So I tried it. And when I needed a name to register under, I used my old rock star name, which had always remained attached to my occasional forays into poetry. My early efforts appeared online at story sites under the tag of Belegon. I dropped the first name. It was only when Alessia Brio decided that she was submitting our recent work to a real publisher that I needed a first name again. Most of my new online friends just called me "Bel."

So now I have become a man of multiple identities. My given name in its various forms, Bel, Will, Coach. I'd turn if any of them were yelled out in a mall. Of course, the one that would turn me around the fastest is also the main reason I have a pen name at all. That one is "Dad."

Get more info about Bel, his political and social views, little league, and his writing (of course!) at his blog.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Will Belegon, Tolkien, pseudonym, pen names

Exploring the Pen Name
With Guest Blogger and Romance Author Jamieson Wolf
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

What’s In a Name?

Once upon a time, I wanted to be an actor.

I had taken dramatic arts all through high school and university and wanted nothing more than to grace the stage and screen with my presence. Acting was in my blood; it was the air I breathed. Looking back on it, I suppose it had a lot to do with the fact that I enjoyed being someone else, pretending to be someone I wasn’t. Like most people with a creative bent, I had a lot of self esteem issues that I didn’t want to deal with. Acting gave me the outlet I needed. I could pretend to be someone else, someone other than me.

There was one thing standing in my way, however. My name. My name was boring, boring, boring. I knew that if I was going to be an actor, I would have to reinvent myself. I would need a new name.

There was another reason for changing my name, a far more personal one. I had grown up in a difficult home where I was the victim of physical abuse. I suppose my father didn’t know any other way to discipline his children. Thus, I was the victim of many beatings and altercations.

I was also graced with his names. William, my middle name, was his first name. Harsh, my last name, was his family name. When I left home, I wanted to leave that life behind. I wanted nothing to do with the man who used his fists instead of his words to express his feelings.

I saw this as the perfect opportunity to leave my old self that I was so unhappy with behind and embrace a new me, a better me. A me I could be proud of, a me I could live with. A me that wasn’t unpopular, gangly and awkward. A me that wasn’t a victim but a survivor.

I was fine with my first name, which has always been Jamieson. But I wanted to change my middle and last names to something that would have a spark, something that would give me the new life I was so desperate for. A name that would help me heal.

All through out my first year of university, my mother and I tried to think of different names. I wanted to take her married name, that of Villeneuve, as my last name. Thankfully my stepfather at the time consented and welcomed me into his family. But I needed a middle name, something that would be different.

We tried all kinds of W names. I was already signing things with my initials of JWV, Villeneuve, so it needed to be a W name. We went through all kinds of names: Willhelem, Watkins, Wilbur, Wilkes, Wade, Walden, Waldo, Wallace, Walsh, Walt, Ward. I didn’t like any of those names. Finally my mother suggested Wolfgang and I thought about it for a moment.

I didn’t like Wolfgang, too old sounding. But Wolf…

There was something there, a spark, a tingle. I loved the sound of it, of the three names rolling off of my tongue: Jamieson Wolf Villeneuve…

I had always loved Wolves, loved the sleekness of them, their allure. I loved the idea that they hunted during the night, that they hunted in a pack or alone. They were hunters, strong and brave; things I always wished I had been.

Thus, a new name was born. But I would have to go through one final change before my name was complete.

After university, however, I realized that I loved the craft but not the people. For those of you not familiar with the world of theatre, it’s a cutthroat business. Though I had developed a thick skin, I didn’t have the patience to deal with the fake people, the backstabbing, and the competitiveness. I just wanted to act.

I left the theatre then. It was heartbreaking to do, as I had loved pretending, loved being on stage, the centre of attention. Something was different now, though. With my new name, I was a new person. The ability to be someone else didn’t hold as much allure or mystery as it once had. I didn’t need to pretend anymore.

Without the creative outlet of acting, I turned to writing, something I had always done on the side. I had always written poems and jottings, stories and what not. I began to submit stories to online venues and magazines under the name of Jamieson Wolf Villeneuve, but it felt slightly wrong. The name, perfect for acting, felt like a mouthful with my new creative outlet.

As I began to write more seriously, I knew that I would have to go through one final change as far as my name was concerned. Again I was looking for a name that would stand out, one that would roll off the tongue and be easy to remember.

So, I decided to drop my last name and have my pen name be made up of my first and middle names. It worked for me, separating my regular life from my writing life and giving me the name I never knew I wanted.

Though it took many years, I finally have a name I cherish and I have finally found myself inside the pages of my work and inside my words.

I no longer have to run from myself because I finally know who I am.

Anyone who's been to The Dragon before knows I am a fan of Jamieson's work. You can find links to it from his main blog. This month, he's the featured author at The Romance Studio, promoting his novella Valentine from Cobblestone Press, so that's something phat to check out. Also come back by The Dragon Thursday to see his interview here and check out one of his characters' interviews over at Nigel's blog on Friday. It's a full week for Jamieson.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Jamieson Wolf, Valentine, romance author, pseudonym, pen names, Romance Studio

Exploring the Pen Name
With Guest Blogger and Author J'linn Kramer
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

When You Can't Write Under the Nickname "Spitz"

If procreation required more creativity than my parents mustered in naming me I’d have been a lost seed. My siblings didn’t fare much better: Daryld (who died as an infant), Karen and Don, II (twins), and Gary.

I went from being Linda Kramer to being Linda Hutchinson. Not an improvement, common-name-wise. Then each of my brothers married a woman named Linda. I had traded in my birth name and been replaced by two others.

Using a nickname might have been an option if my dad had ever called me anything but Spitz (I hated strained beets), Linny (I still hate that one), or Fluffo (which caused much consternation throughout my teen years). He finally settled in on “Linn” and I was grateful.

When buying a home several years ago we went to the bank to retrieve the down payment from our savings account. We were told we were overdrawn. How can one be overdrawn on their savings account? The clerk had pulled up another Linda J. Hutchinson’s account information. Her husband and mine shared the same common first name.

Being Linda Hutchinson isn’t so bad. I didn’t change it when I re-married because of professional credentials held in that name. But it is so very ordinary. When googling myself I find a host of other writers, a few Realtors, an artist or two, a doctor, a teacher, and a pseudo-hooker. Using my middle initial to differentiate myself doesn’t help. Why couldn’t my middle name have started with an X or a Z? It’s all my parents’ fault.

For a period of several miserable months, a teenage girl called half a dozen times a day accusing me of hiding her dead-beat father. Seems his last known girlfriend’s name was Linda Hutchinson – and she wasn’t highly regarded by his children. This child was angry. She would cry, scream, yell, and threaten until I’d repeat for the tenth time “I do not know your father” and hang up on her. A few minutes later she’d call again. I didn’t know her father but vowed to pop him in the mouth if I ever met him.

I thought the angry teenager’s verbal assaults were as bad as it could get. I was wrong. Her attacks were nothing compared to the bill collectors skip-chasing a woman who seemed to have scammed and conned her way through several states.

But it’s my name and I’m comfortable with it. I use it when writing non-fiction and it’s always a thrill to see that byline. It’s also convenient when depositing checks.

Fortunately, as a writer of fiction, I have the option – and near-duty – to come up with a pen name that is different from anyone else’s. I get to be someone else, one who lives in another world of my own making.

Being J’linn Kramer, knowing I’m the only one in the world – until someone with little creativity sees it and names their kid after me – is something I treasure.

Bio: Linda J. Hutchinson is frequently published in print and online media. She writes about construction, travel, food, volunteerism, writing, living with chronic illness, and parenting. She often spends too much time with hard-hat hair but has been told she cleans up real good. J’linn Kramer’s work has been published online. A novel is in process. http://www.lindajhutchinson.com/

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Linda Hutchinson, J'Linn Kramer, pseudonym, pen names, dragon

Exploring the Pen Name
It's Another Pseudonym Birthday Person...
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

Today I must pause in our guest posting to honor another birthday boy. This is the 48th birthday of John Taylor, the bass guitarist for Duran Duran. Anyone who's even heard my name must know I'm an obsessed fan. Notice the enormous cheesy grin on my face in the picture above. Yes, put me in between John Taylor and Nick Rhodes and I suddenly become "giddy with joy". That was just a month ago...and I've not quite recovered yet.

What does this have to do with our pen name discussion here at The Dragon? Why, guess what Mr. Taylor uses! Now, to be very truthful, he just uses a portion of his name, not his full birth name, so perhaps calling that a pseudonym isn't totally accurate. You decide. But I think he chose wisely given his profession.

Any Duranies out there want to weigh in on the debate? Which sounds better for a bass player rockin' out in the '80s, '90s and today: Nigel Taylor or John Taylor? Oh, yes, and everyone who has any familiarity with my fantasy trilogy just did a double-take.

Let me post the disclaimer here: Choices Meant for Gods is entirely a work of fiction. The NAMES, characters, places, and incidents depicted therein are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual event or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Having said that, I should explain that Joshua Nigel Taiman of the Choices fantasy trilogy encompasses many characteristics of not just a celebrity rock star, but of a certain Mr. Edward Rochester of Jane Eyre fame, and of himself. Nigel is Nigel...not anyone else. If you'd like to be the judge of that, you can pick up a copy of the novel anywhere fine books are sold (you probably have to order it by now) or on Amazon. You can get the electronic version for less than $4 at my publisher's site.

But John Taylor is celebrating a birthday under his pen name today, so I'd like to use this blog to say "Happy Birthday from one of your many crazed and adoring fans!"

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: John Taylor, Duran Duran, birthday, Jane Eyre, Edward Rochester, pseudonym, pen name, Nigel, dragon

Exploring the Pen Name
With Guest Blogger and Author Lisa Haselton
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

When Someone Already Uses Your Name...

In my younger days, I may have toyed with a pseudonym, but when I started writing and submitting early on, I didn’t use one. I didn’t have any fiction published, but I did receive my first rejections. My first actual publications were clips for local papers, and I used my real name without any hesitation. I still do. Any non-fiction work has my real name.

However, using my real name for fiction would cause chaos since it is already on the New York Times bestseller’s list. Yep, there’s someone out there using my real name, in the genres I write in. She already has somewhere around 60 novels released, too, so I think she gets to keep using it.

It could be fun to try publishing fiction with my real name and see what kind of confusion it would bring, though. Hhhm. Using my real name may even get me in a door or two, to start, too. It would be fun to see our books mixed together on the shelves. Maybe I’d even get to be a celebrity for a little while. Would a publisher actually publish a novel by two people with the same name? Doubtful.
I’ve always wanted to make a name for myself in the fiction world, and since I can’t do it with my given name, I’ve had to come up with a fake one. I came up with one, but it didn’t feel right once I was ready to put it down. My original pseudonym was simply a first name I really liked along with my maternal grandparents’ last name. Then I decided I’d be more comfortable keeping my real first name and using that last name, however, I had a cousin-in-law with that name, and it seemed wrong to have two of us in the same family. She isn’t a writer, and I certainly wouldn’t introduce myself to any family with that name, but it just seemed awkward.

So then, there I was, knowing I wanted my same first name, but a last name I felt comfortable with and that meant something to me. So, I dug back into family history and chose ‘Haselton’. It has a special meaning and the spelling is uncommon. Oh, and it isn’t on any book shelves. Yet!

To learn more about Lisa Haselton's work, check out her Web site and be sure to visit her blog!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Lisa Haselton, fiction world, pseudonym, pen names, dragon

Exploring the Pen Name
With Guest Blogger and Paranormal Romance Author Charlotte Boyett-Compo
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

What's in a Name?

We are defined by our names. If you’re a Horatio, you most likely have red hair, wear hideous sunglasses, and use ironic speech while repeatedly repeating your subordinates’ names. On the other hand, if you’re a Declan, you’re a buff Irish brigand with a head full of curly black hair that also pelts nicely between your manly pecs and you have a to-die-for brogue.

We’ve all seen those little games like: What’s your vampire name (mine is Serenula Lonesomhel)? Pirate name (Black Charity Rackham)? Superhero name (The Purple Phantom)? And my personal favorite…Viking name (Kaðlín Leafslayer). We can’t resist plugging in the information, giggling or groaning or snorting depending on how much we agree with the name. While each of the ones assigned to me are perfectly acceptable nom de plumes, no one I know would recognize me and recognition is vital. They must ALL be assimilated into my world. Resistance is futile! Bow down and…

But I digress.

I use my legal name. The reason why is simple: I decided when I wrote my first book back in 1986 that if I was going to put my heart and soul, blood, sweat and tears into writing it, I was damned sure gonna get the recognition I craved. I wasn’t worried about the neighbors, the folks at church, the PTA, whomever seeing my name on a book and coming after me with torches, pitchforks and a giant red P for pornographer in their eager hands. I thought: “Screw ‘em if they can’t take a joke!”

Since I was knee-high to a Georgia blue tick coon dog, I had wanted to write. I penned my first book…a western titled Western Flame…when I was the ripe old age of twelve. (It was in homage to Michael Landon of Bonanza fame. Even back then I loved looking at that boy’s rear end in those tight buff-colored pants!)

I told everyone who would listen that one day I would have my name on a book.

“Yeah, right, Four-Eyes!” they scoffed. “In your dreams!”

Jump forward forty-two years, and you’ll see why my full name on my books was a must.

I graduated from Albany High School on 6/6/66. Those girls I went to school with…like Paula from the Food Network…used to look down on me because I wasn’t part of their in-crowd. I didn’t fit. I was the one who was always scribbling in a notebook and even though I wore contacts, Four-Eyes was still my pet name. When the invitation from the Chix of ’66 arrived in my mailbox…touting a cruise those ladies had set up…I informed them I couldn’t go because I would be on a book tour during that weekend.

BOOK TOUR??? VOUS????

Yes, moi.

Well, now……..

Then I was asked to provide paperbacks to those attending the cruise: 40 of them. I didn’t, but I did provide a postcard for a free download of one of my books for whoever has the ballettes to email me.
Ain’t life grand?

You can read all about Charlotte and her incredible collection of Windlegends titles at her official webpage. And you can join her reading group and visit her blogs on Facebook and MySpace. Don't forget there's a fabulous micro-blogging phenomenon called Twitter where Charlotte and Sandy can be "followed" as well. Get on board, folks!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Charlotte Boyette-Compo, paranormal romance, windlegends, micro-blogging, twitter, pseudonym, pen names, dragon

Exploring the Pen Name
Birthday Examples Include the Fabulous Barry Manilow...and ME!
(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

I get the fabulous honor of sharing a birthday (June 17) with one of my idols: the incomparable Barry Manilow. If you've read this blog before, you may have stumbled across my obsession with the man. I think he's just grand. I've adored him since I was about five years old when I first heard Mandy. It's been my favorite song for...oh...33 years now. (I'll pause while you do the math.) How do you think my main character in Choices Meant for Gods got her nickname? I can't believe it was by accident that she whispered "Amanda" in my ear and one day Nigel started calling her "Mandy."

How does this fit into the pseudonym discussion we've been holding during the month of June? Well, let's just say that Mr. Manilow adopted a pseudonym of his own. Does anyone out there know his given name? I do. Bwuahahahaha. But, because I have an evil streak in me, I'm not going to post it here. I'm going to let one of his other fans weigh in on that. I mean, it's only fair to keep the discussion part of the pseudonym game going, right?

Personally, I think Barry Manilow has done quite well with his moniker. It flows nicely. It's well-known now because he's built that name into an empire. He OWNS Las Vegas. His Music and Passion show at the Hilton, which I had the good fortune to experience back in March, is exquisite. The man will be an outstanding performer forever. He's just got it in his blood.

I'd like to have that kind of success for my characters with my name, even if I've elected not to use a pen name. I'm going with what I got: Sandy Lender. I stick the words Fantasy Author in front of it as often as I can and then hope for the best. What I find fabulous is that you can also stick the words "Barry Manilow Fan" in front of my name. If you're also a fan, you might find today's Word of the Day (in the next post) fun. Play along!

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Barry Manilow, birthday, pseudonym, pen names, Music and Passion, fantasy author, Sandy Lender, Choices Meant for Gods

Exploring the Pen Name

With Guest Blogger and Paranormal Romance Author Sharon Ashwood

(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

The Power Behind a Pen Name

I write contemporary paranormal romances with an urban fantasy flavour. My characters—dark, edgy, sexy, and of course modest creatures—are frequently non-humans trying to fit into a human society. It’s that collision (train wreck?) of magic and the mundane that interests me as a storyteller.

Now, I’m supposed to be writing about choosing a pen name. That’s a good example of magic bumping into the everyday world. In every mythology, names have power. They invoke certain qualities, whether mystically or psychologically or both. As an author, our name is one of the very first messages we send to the world around us. It’s in bright bold letters on the cover of our books. We want to choose that opening fanfare carefully.

“Ashwood” came to me when I was walking through the park near my home. It was early spring, bright with that new rush of energy that comes just as the earth is starting to wake. Birds were everywhere, warming up their lungs for the nesting season. All the flowerbeds were newly dug, the black earth smelled rich and spicy, and the trees were leafing out in brilliant green.

Then and there, I knew I wanted a name that would invoke that feeling of vitality and connectedness, because that is what I want to create for my readers.

For me, a name recalling the natural world provides that. In the Welsh language, the word for wood (gwydd) is very similar to wisdom (gwyddon). That made me start thinking about trees. In the end, I chose Ashwood for my name because I love the imagery connected the ash tree myth.

The Ash is the World Tree, called Yggdrasil in Norse Mythology. In Celtic myth, it is Nuin. The roots of this mythological tree extend deep into the underworld and the topmost branches support the heavens. The trunk is Earth. In short, the World Ash is a unifying force, connecting the reality of the here and now with the wisdom of the past and future. Through its power, the realms of seen and unseen converge. What better symbol for a paranormal writer?

Also, the wood of the ash has always been valued for its strength and straight grain. The shafts of spears and arrows were often made of ash wood because their flight would be true. What author doesn’t want her books to hit the mark?

When I began Ravenous, the first book of the Dark Forgotten series, I hadn’t chosen my pen name yet. It’s interesting that one of its main themes is the interconnectedness of human and immortal worlds, and the bonds that the past has on our present and future. I guess those ideas were already at work in my imagination.

Sharon's novel Ravenous will be out from Signet Eclipse in early 2009. You can check out her writing and info about her at her Web site and blogs here and here.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Sharon Ashwood, Ravenous, Signet Eclipse, pseudonym, pen name, dragon

Exploring the Pen Name

Or...using a moniker for safety

(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook versions of Choices Meant for Gods and Apparitions. Details were posted June 1.)

Back in high school or junior high, I read a short story about a teacher (who was really a hermit-like wizard) who lived on the outskirts of a small village. A traveler came to the village, asked a few too many questions about a wizard, and went to confront the teacher. When the teacher refused to come out of her cave-like home, the traveler warned her, "I can use your real name to control you—I know your real name." Shock and horror!

Turns out the joke was on the traveler. Using a person's true name not only forces the confrontation, it forces the person into their true form. In this case, the hermit-like wizard pretending to be a teacher popped out of her cave and assume the form of a dragon, and promptly ate the vexing traveler.

I wish I could remember the name of the story and author (and anyone who recognizes it is more than welcome to leave a comment here!) but that was at least 20 to 25 years ago. I have since read variations on that "true name" theme. I've seen the idea morphed to include mind control, slavery and instant "attraction" (if you know what I mean there).

Obviously, the concept intrigued me as a writer of fantasy fiction. I even have Hrazon and Chariss allude to it in my Choices fantasy trilogy. Chariss mentions to The Master Rothahn that she doesn't want to say his true name aloud for fear of the wind carrying it to an enemy. Now, in my mythos, the person who wishes to exert influence over you must use your true name in a spell. It's not as easy as just "speak friend and enter."

This relates to pen names rather loosely, I know, but entertained me, nonetheless. For some authors, writing under a pseudonym is synonymous with taking on an alter-ego or hiding the true name and true form from the world. (For some authors, taking on a pen name is a marketing necessity.) For those hiding in cave-like dwellings on the outskirts of small villages, I wish you much success in avoiding nosy travelers. But let me know if I can send you a nice jar of bar-b-que sauce for the few that find you.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: pseudonym, pen name, dragon, wizard, teacher, Choices trilogy, fantasy trilogy, Chariss

Exploring the Pen Name

With Guest Blogger and Author Lisa Logan

(During the month of June, here at Today the Dragon Wins we explore the use of pseudonyms. Don't forget to participate in the discussion in the comment field to enter the contest for a copy of the eBook version of Choices Meant for Gods. Details were posted June 1.)

What's in a (Pen) Name?

There are writers born with endless talent, the ability to schmooze the most dour publisher with grace, and a commanding name that begs to be set in raised lettering on the cover of a bestseller. An author's name. Stephen King...and so he is.

As a child I wasn't wild about my name...any of them. Mother had the fun idea of giving me her first name (a stage name, incidentally), but calling me by my middle name to avoid confusion. Teachers were confused, scowling in disapproval when corrected. Classmates snickered. My first name became a point of immediate, annoying contention.

My middle name fared little better. Kids devised synonyms, generally involving the word “smell.” Worse, I could never find personalized drink mugs or jewelry with my name on them. My last name? Short and easy to pronounce—often in a mocking singsong involving underpants. Add that to “smell” and...you get the idea. Stephen King it wasn't.

When writing grew from an idea to full-blown passion, the question of name came about. By then I'd married, and my last name was no longer short and easy to turn into an underpants ditty. It contained over ten letters and was impossible to pronounce. How could folks ask for my book if they couldn't spit out the name? Besides, nothing short of a coffee table book could fit the name, anyway. Not the stuff author dreams are made of.

With a twinge of guilt that my husband's name was such a bone of career contention, I sought an answer close to home. His nickname was “Logan,” which he credits from time to time in stage use. Short, simple to remember, and smack in the middle of the alphabet. I'd heard this was advantageous, as fiction is shelved by last name and shoppers tend to wander to the middle of a row to browse.

Then came that pesky middle name. Oh, I'd come to like it well enough...and there's a well-known author by the same name. But Janell Logan just didn't strike like Stephen King, where the syllables roll in a pleasing, “I Need This Author's Book Now” manner. Several variations followed, employing kids' names, my nickname (Jade), etc. None had the It factor I sought.

But wait...what about that other name? The thorn in a teacher's side that I'd stopped correcting, thus answered to in college? Lisa Logan. Ah. Now that rolled.

Whether awkward names matter I've no idea...after all, Theodore Geisel turned his middle name, Seuss, into literary gold. Still, I'm certain readers won't miss the loss of seven letters. I'd rather spend my time writing a title, not signing my name in it...and my books easily fit both my name and overhead storage compartments. That's the stuff author dreams are made of.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lisa Logan is the author of two novels and the editor of MysteryAuthors.com and for Eternal Press. Visit her at http://lisalogan.net.

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."

Tags: Lisa Logan, MysteryAuthors, Stephen King, Seuss, pseudonym, pen name, dragon

Famous Pseudonyms
Or…The Dragon explores the use of pen names for the month of June

The amazing Bronte sisters wrote with pen names, striving to keep their literary identities secret from the community. Mary Ann Evans wrote as George Elliot. Theodore Geisel wrote as Dr. Seuss. Samuel Langhorne Clemens wrote as Mark Twain, Sieur Louis de Conte and Thomas Jefferson Snodgrass. Even Nathaniel Hathorne added a "w" to his name when he got out of school and picked up the pen. In recent years, Ann Rice of vampiric fame used her erotica nom de plume of A.N. Roquelaure to break new ground with her novel Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt.

On a personal level, I write under the name Abigail Farrier for the silly flights of fancy that I don't want my own name on and under the name Nigel Taiman for the marketing materials usually meant to poke fun at me.

Typically, when an author takes on a pseudonym, it's for a reason. Maybe his real name is such a conglomeration of consonants that no one could hope to pronounce it. Maybe a celebrity already sports the author's real name. Maybe she wishes to give an air of romance for the specific genre in which she's writing—it's all about marketing, you know.

Back in the Brontes' day, women authors still had to overcome their share of built-in prejudice. The three sisters, Charlotte Bronte, Emily Bronte and Anne Bronte, not only knew authoresses were looked upon with prejudice, but knew the established convention, for both men and women, of using pseudonyms that was common in the first half of the 19th century. As children, the girls read voraciously. And, as children, they wrote stories and plays that they signed with pen names. Charlotte's early names included the names of characters she'd created: Captain Andrew Tree, Arthur Wellesley (The Marquis of Douro), Lord Charles Albert Florian Wellesley, Charles Townshend. Even their brother, Branwell Bronte, published in periodicals under his favored pen name of Northangerland.

It was when the girls grew up and published their poems that they took on their famous pseudonyms Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell. (Note that Charlotte first refused and then eventually married the curate named Arthur Bell Nichols who may or may not have influenced that name choice.) Charlotte once wrote to her publisher explaining that she would be "intolerably" fettered in her writing if she knew that her common acquaintances would read and know her writing. Because "Acton" and "Ellis" had a less-than-scrupulous publisher, the ladies needed to prove they were, indeed, separate individuals, so Charlotte and Anne traveled to visit Charlotte's publisher, but the ladies continued to strive for secrecy. They signed their correspondence with their male pseudonyms and Anne and Emily maintained the ruse until their untimely deaths.

In the case of Mary Ann Evans, she wrote her novels under the name of George Elliot, reportedly because her adulterous affair with George Henry Lewes could have prejudiced peoples' opinions of her work. Theodore Seuss Geisel began contributing to the Dartmouth humor magazine Jack-O-Lantern under the pseudonym "Seuss" after being "removed" as editor. The pen name stuck.

As you see, there are a variety of reasons behind the use of a pseudonym. I have elected to make my name a force in the fantasy genre without any changes. Sandy Lender is the name I've had throughout my magazine editing and publishing career, and it's the name so many of my writing and publishing contacts know me by. At the end of my blessed divorce, I'll regain my maiden name for legal and daily purposes, but my "career" name will go unchanged. It's how everybody knows me. And, as King Stephan Lenora tells Chariss in my upcoming fantasy novel, Choices Meant for Kings, "Names are meaningless. Meaningless. I picked the name after I became king. But I’m betting you know far more about the meanings of names than I. Amanda Chariss Derdriu."

Throughout the month of June, we'll feature guest articles here from authors who share their pseudonyms and the stories behind them. Bookmark this site or use the Technorati widget below the archives (at left) to make it easy to find again. And leave a comment during the pen name discussions to be entered in a drawing for an eBook of my first fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods. Details below…

"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: pen name, pseudonym, Bronte sisters, Mary Anne Evans, George Elliot, Theodore Geisel, Dr. Seuss, Samuel Clemens, Mark Twain, Nathaniel Hathorne, Ann Rice, A.N. Roquelaure, Christ the Lord, Out of Egypt, Nigel Taiman, Charlotte Bronte, Emily Bronte, Anne Bronte, Branwell Bronte, Sandy Lender, fantasy novel, Choices Meant for Kings, Technorati widget, eBook, Choices Meant for Gods, dragon

Win an eBook of Choices Meant for Gods in the Pseudonym Discussions This Month
Or...all you have to do is read cool stuff and comment

During the month of June, authors from around the globe will share their anecdotes of how they derived their pen names here at Today the Dragon Wins. When you share your comments about their names (and yours!) in the comment field, you'll automatically be entered in the contest to win the eBook version of Choices Meant for Gods.

The drawing will be held July 1 and Sandy Lender will contact the winner by e-mail. This means you need to include your e-mail address in your comment! To avoid some spam-bot from capturing it, be creative. (For instance, firstname last name at yahoo dot com is a great way to spell it out for me.)

Enjoy the discussions this month and good luck in the contest!
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: contest, Choices Meant for Gods, eBook