Joyce Carol Oates writes under the nom de plumes Rae Jolene Smith and Fernandes and Rosamond Smith and Lauren Kelly. Stephen King has written under the name Richard Bachman. Rita Mae Brown writes as a cat named Sneak Pie Brown. By writing under an assumed name, you can hide yourself twice: Once as the character, and again as the fake writer. This allows for twice the eccentricies. Twice the distance between the real you and the page. What would be your dream nom de plume? Who would be that other you? Would you even be human? Let’s hear it.
The alt approach is “The Fernando Pessoa”, where you hide yourself in so many different heteronyms with their own separate backstories that you forget who you are completely.
Cursed item traveling through all the postal stops in the US. Leaving a wake of missing keys and stubbed toes as it is tossed into the next mail truck.
I've considered going with Carl Harrison. Carl is a frequently used middle name in my family tree. And Harrison is my son's name.
The only reason I would use a pen name is that I own and operate an indie bookstore that has a more wholesome feel than the content I like to create with words.
Honestly my pen name would be Paul Crane because decades ago I had a musical dream in which that was my name. I can still sing the tune to “la la la laaah, Paul Crane. Paul CRAAAANNE dee dee dah dah…”
Honestly, mine is Remy Lazarus. I am never confident in my writing but it helps me to sort of separate the “real” me from the “writer” me. If there is ever any comment on what I write, it’s not about me, it’s about some guy named Remy.
I’d go with Wayland Still Smoking. I worked in client services a long time ago and got a woman on the line whose legal last name was Still Smoking. I didn’t ask her if she changed it, but when I asked her if it was really her last name she gave a resounding “yes” with a sigh.
Have you ever written under another name Chuck? If so, what was the purpose? I know Stephen King did it to see what people would think of his work without having his celebrity attached to it.
Ha. If I hadn’t come across someone in real life who had it, I’d never have loved it so much. She of course had a raspy voice as well. And honestly I’ll never use a pen name. So, kinda a hard question for me to answer. Interesting you’ve never used an alt name!
I write under the pen name Charlotte Dune, because I've directed and produced non-related films under my real name, and because as Charlotte Dune I write novels with sex and psychedelics and I don't want my daughter's middle school teacher googling my real name and finding my Ex-rated books! Haha
I have the urge to write edgy non-fiction under the pen name Zrien Kersh, which is my real name with the letters rearranged. I like it because you can't really tell its ethnicity or gender, but three identities seems like a lot... so I probably won't do that. Two is enough for me! Love this question too!
We were at an American Library Association conference and, naturally, they give out hundreds of free books so even though we try to be choosy we needed to ship some home. My husband decided on the spot to send the box to our dog, Maximus. He also made up a last name that is part mine (Shoemaker) and part his (McCurdy). So our package went to Maximus McMaker. I'd use that.
Im stating the obvious, but Occam S Raisor, or Hanlon S Raisor.
Now Im wondering what John's Razor would be? The simplest, most obvious answer is the funniest answer.
I just learned about Rage, a book that King wrote under Bachman about an abused teenager holding a class at gunpoint. He had the publishers stop printing it after columbine.
I see that you caught on to my act. I must admit I am surprised how long it took you. My name is not Strepatitis and I don’t always wear green thongs to the beach. I wonder what Chuck Palahnuik uses for his alias? Maybe he will inform the masses one day. And maybe one day I will do the same. Not today tho.
That's a good idea. A comic shop franchised in prisons.
Last week I joked that my only viable retirement plan was to go to prison in old age. People gave me that kind of sick laugh that suggests they have the same resignation and long-term plan.
I thought about using my initials but that would be "CAJones" which is too close to "cojones" and would probably result in a totally different response to my writing than I would hope for.
That said, I've thought about it and may use Alan Richards or Mike Taylor. The first one because is my middle name and the americanizing of my mother's maiden name and the second one because it just sounds like an aggressively average name which would be better for darker work or skating to close to using real people/events in my work.
I would totally write as my dog—- Sassy. She would have a lot to say and could be the gossip columnists to end all gossip columns. Maybe, a “Dear Sassy” section—- I have a feeling sleeping, going for rides and chewing on her new avocado toast toy (thank you, Chuck!) might be some great go-to answers for her readers. Lol. Going outside for a walk and naps seem to be the answer to everything!
It was perfect for her!!! You find the best squeakers, too!!! Hahaa. Thank you for the birthday kindness!!!! She’s napping now! ♥️🥰🐾👍🏽 The hide a treat hot dog—- she had that apart in seconds!! She’s like Groucho Marks with the hot dog in her mouth. Heheee.
Inspired by this Substack and the creative tasks, I have started a beginners writing course and I’m planning to do more! Though I do think a pen name would be much harder to think of than a plot. In a similar vein, I was always one to get stuck on the opening paragraph of an essay -
I’d always have to come back to that. At 34+ years old (and a surname swap from marriage) I feel like I’m finally comfortable with my own name so I’d be tempted to be dull and stick with that.
Also interesting that you could hide yourself as a character if you had a different name - I like the references in Lunar Park and J-Pod to the authors.
Sometimes, I think it's better to treat pennames like a very strong password; something complicated, hard to correlate. But then, it's no fun if people can't figure it out. If it were up to me, I'd probably just go with two initials and a cool-sounding surname. (Note: I have written under pseudonyms before, but not for original fiction.)
Paul Eszterhaz - that's my writing name, hopefully obscure enough that no one where I work will ever discover my fiction. I have this fear that if management were ever to discover my work and what I do for a hobby, I'd get a tap on the shoulder and asked to come into the conference room for a 'chat'...
Jay McShady. I’ve been told by friends that I have face that people shouldn’t trust. Figure I’ll lean into it now. If ever I was asked by a reader, “ is that your real name?” My response would be “No. I was born Derrick McShady, but who would ever read shit by that name. Derrick sounds like a guy who does your taxes. Jay McShady spills your secrets. Thanks for reading!”
Seriously though, maybe not change the name but the spelling of name. Then I'd start a war with the other Carrie Ann about using my name even tho it's spelled differently just cuz I know the controversy will sell books. Winner winner chicken dinner for everyone.........
Lol I actually love that more.......maybe I'll write under 2 fake names and one is friend one for until the friend stabs me in the back cuz I get to be the most famous of the 3......
My middle name is Jay and the surname on my mother’s side of the family is Baird. My nom de plume was thus -- Jay Baird; a crumb trail of a nom de plume.
Barry King. A Parisian world traveler, in his late 50s. He studied in Europe and moved to the states to learn under the tutelage of the best American writers
I’ve always loved the sound of Virgil West. A combination of a long-dead familial patriarch, and my mother’s maiden name. With a name like that I’d have to leave behind a few westerns though. Yeehaw.
hilarious.
My real name is already my porn name :)
uh - yeah!
If you do that little 'first street you lived on and first pet' thing - my porn name is
Ivy Railroad
My first pet/Street name gave me Totty Hilton 🤭
Ah “rail” road
keepin' it classy.
Wendy King
Mine’s Speedball Layla, using the porn name formula. Seems like a decent pseudonym as well, now that I’m thinking about it.
😆
gold
I’m claiming H.P. Loveshaft
Oh my gosh I just thought of one - 'Big Bush Buck'. Is that too much?
There’s no such thing as “too much” in this context.
😂😆
See above.
By the way, Peter D, the Casket of Secrets went out to you today via UPS. Be very afraid.
The alt approach is “The Fernando Pessoa”, where you hide yourself in so many different heteronyms with their own separate backstories that you forget who you are completely.
Cursed item traveling through all the postal stops in the US. Leaving a wake of missing keys and stubbed toes as it is tossed into the next mail truck.
And workplace violence.
So what's your other name you write under??????
I've considered going with Carl Harrison. Carl is a frequently used middle name in my family tree. And Harrison is my son's name.
The only reason I would use a pen name is that I own and operate an indie bookstore that has a more wholesome feel than the content I like to create with words.
First thought was Carl Hiaasen, one of my favorite authors.
Good name, good logic.
Honestly my pen name would be Paul Crane because decades ago I had a musical dream in which that was my name. I can still sing the tune to “la la la laaah, Paul Crane. Paul CRAAAANNE dee dee dah dah…”
I really like that!!!
Thank you!
Honestly, mine is Remy Lazarus. I am never confident in my writing but it helps me to sort of separate the “real” me from the “writer” me. If there is ever any comment on what I write, it’s not about me, it’s about some guy named Remy.
Love this. I do the same and it makes me able to be more bold.
Funny thing is, I read your comment and I’m ALSO a filmmaker haha
Ahh so cool! Filmmakers who secretly write unite!
Exactly. A writing identity takes the burden off of you. It allows you to be bold. It makes the writing not-about-you. It's freedom.
Lazarus is a cool name. Good choice.
I’d go with Wayland Still Smoking. I worked in client services a long time ago and got a woman on the line whose legal last name was Still Smoking. I didn’t ask her if she changed it, but when I asked her if it was really her last name she gave a resounding “yes” with a sigh.
Have you ever written under another name Chuck? If so, what was the purpose? I know Stephen King did it to see what people would think of his work without having his celebrity attached to it.
That sounds a little aboriginal. Like John Kicking Bear.
And, nope, have never written under a false name... yet.
Ha. If I hadn’t come across someone in real life who had it, I’d never have loved it so much. She of course had a raspy voice as well. And honestly I’ll never use a pen name. So, kinda a hard question for me to answer. Interesting you’ve never used an alt name!
I was just about to ask if this post was the preparation for a reveal that you’re also a successful romance writer that utilizes maximalism techniques
I write under the pen name Charlotte Dune, because I've directed and produced non-related films under my real name, and because as Charlotte Dune I write novels with sex and psychedelics and I don't want my daughter's middle school teacher googling my real name and finding my Ex-rated books! Haha
I have the urge to write edgy non-fiction under the pen name Zrien Kersh, which is my real name with the letters rearranged. I like it because you can't really tell its ethnicity or gender, but three identities seems like a lot... so I probably won't do that. Two is enough for me! Love this question too!
We were at an American Library Association conference and, naturally, they give out hundreds of free books so even though we try to be choosy we needed to ship some home. My husband decided on the spot to send the box to our dog, Maximus. He also made up a last name that is part mine (Shoemaker) and part his (McCurdy). So our package went to Maximus McMaker. I'd use that.
Again love the logic behind all of these!! Not my strength. 😆
Not all that glitters is logical. Or something. I'm for a lot more heart and gut feelings here...
Not the same but i love when authors
has middle name letter like Philip K Dick, but i got three middle names including one that has two.
It'd be David JYCS Humbert
That might be cumbersome...
Thanks for teaching me a new english word :)
Wait, is this a riddle? If we figure out your other name by the clues we get a prize?????
Already got it. My real name is as conventional as Larry Suburban another nom de plume.
Im stating the obvious, but Occam S Raisor, or Hanlon S Raisor.
Now Im wondering what John's Razor would be? The simplest, most obvious answer is the funniest answer.
I just learned about Rage, a book that King wrote under Bachman about an abused teenager holding a class at gunpoint. He had the publishers stop printing it after columbine.
I vote that you should be Hell Raisor.
“Rage” was also the story behind Pearl Jam’s, “Jeremy.”
Well— I must be daft, because I have no idea what you’re talking about.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CcjXBhTuzM0/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
Idiot Spit
My favorite punk band!
The Iggy Pop of Short Storying
I see that you caught on to my act. I must admit I am surprised how long it took you. My name is not Strepatitis and I don’t always wear green thongs to the beach. I wonder what Chuck Palahnuik uses for his alias? Maybe he will inform the masses one day. And maybe one day I will do the same. Not today tho.
My alias will be Blush Gentry, and I'll write the romance novels my grandmother read by the carton load.
I’ll lookout for Blush Gentry.
There's a Blush Gentry romance novel used as a splash page in Fight Club III.
Fight Club III? Didn’t even know there was a second one. Do they sell them in any prisons?
That's a good idea. A comic shop franchised in prisons.
Last week I joked that my only viable retirement plan was to go to prison in old age. People gave me that kind of sick laugh that suggests they have the same resignation and long-term plan.
Look out for Oscarpocalypse Now
I thought about using my initials but that would be "CAJones" which is too close to "cojones" and would probably result in a totally different response to my writing than I would hope for.
That said, I've thought about it and may use Alan Richards or Mike Taylor. The first one because is my middle name and the americanizing of my mother's maiden name and the second one because it just sounds like an aggressively average name which would be better for darker work or skating to close to using real people/events in my work.
Love the logic.
If I could use Marianne Faithfull, as legend has she was the person that the song I was named after was about, I would tho.......
I hadn't considered that I could write as a cat - I'd be down for that. Or maybe an extraterrestrial from Pluto - a Plutonian, if you will.
Name wise, I've considered using the name Rayne somehow - always liked it. 😊
Oooo! Rayne Petrichor 😎
As a ghost writer I am many people, many voices and many guises. Sometimes I want to be me.
I would totally write as my dog—- Sassy. She would have a lot to say and could be the gossip columnists to end all gossip columns. Maybe, a “Dear Sassy” section—- I have a feeling sleeping, going for rides and chewing on her new avocado toast toy (thank you, Chuck!) might be some great go-to answers for her readers. Lol. Going outside for a walk and naps seem to be the answer to everything!
Isn't the toast the best toy toy? Happy belated birthday to Sassy.
It was perfect for her!!! You find the best squeakers, too!!! Hahaa. Thank you for the birthday kindness!!!! She’s napping now! ♥️🥰🐾👍🏽 The hide a treat hot dog—- she had that apart in seconds!! She’s like Groucho Marks with the hot dog in her mouth. Heheee.
I love this Dear Sassy idea.
Sassy eagerly awaits her first letter through “our” Substack. ♥️🫣😁
Inspired by this Substack and the creative tasks, I have started a beginners writing course and I’m planning to do more! Though I do think a pen name would be much harder to think of than a plot. In a similar vein, I was always one to get stuck on the opening paragraph of an essay -
I’d always have to come back to that. At 34+ years old (and a surname swap from marriage) I feel like I’m finally comfortable with my own name so I’d be tempted to be dull and stick with that.
Also interesting that you could hide yourself as a character if you had a different name - I like the references in Lunar Park and J-Pod to the authors.
Yes I feel sad sometimes that my maiden name will never get any credit as a writer.
I sincerely do love "Cheap crass devil worshiper.' I feel like the readers would know exactly what they were getting and would love it. Lol
Sometimes, I think it's better to treat pennames like a very strong password; something complicated, hard to correlate. But then, it's no fun if people can't figure it out. If it were up to me, I'd probably just go with two initials and a cool-sounding surname. (Note: I have written under pseudonyms before, but not for original fiction.)
Paul Eszterhaz - that's my writing name, hopefully obscure enough that no one where I work will ever discover my fiction. I have this fear that if management were ever to discover my work and what I do for a hobby, I'd get a tap on the shoulder and asked to come into the conference room for a 'chat'...
Jay McShady. I’ve been told by friends that I have face that people shouldn’t trust. Figure I’ll lean into it now. If ever I was asked by a reader, “ is that your real name?” My response would be “No. I was born Derrick McShady, but who would ever read shit by that name. Derrick sounds like a guy who does your taxes. Jay McShady spills your secrets. Thanks for reading!”
Walter Ego.
Why do I find that so compelling? Because it sounds like Alter Ego?
Or maybe Anne Ominous?
Gonzo Gidget
I always wanted to be a micro dosed reporter from the seaweed laden ocean shore in Ca.
Probably its little too much for a pen name, but I have gone by Sepia Apocalypse before 😁
Oooohh
Seriously though, maybe not change the name but the spelling of name. Then I'd start a war with the other Carrie Ann about using my name even tho it's spelled differently just cuz I know the controversy will sell books. Winner winner chicken dinner for everyone.........
Lol I actually love that more.......maybe I'll write under 2 fake names and one is friend one for until the friend stabs me in the back cuz I get to be the most famous of the 3......
I can make the Amber Heard/Johnny Depp defamation case look like child's play........
Lol.......I'm laughing too hard to be quick witted right now......
My middle name is Jay and the surname on my mother’s side of the family is Baird. My nom de plume was thus -- Jay Baird; a crumb trail of a nom de plume.
Barry King. A Parisian world traveler, in his late 50s. He studied in Europe and moved to the states to learn under the tutelage of the best American writers
Warren Jebediah DeFo
I’ve always loved the sound of Virgil West. A combination of a long-dead familial patriarch, and my mother’s maiden name. With a name like that I’d have to leave behind a few westerns though. Yeehaw.
I’m gonna start something -- is Thomas Pynchon a nom de plume? Is it one person? Is it even a person?
He's the zodiac killer
I can see this. The maniac probably left some clues to the zodiac ciphers in his books.