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February 27, 2007
Pseudonyms 101
Lesson Number One: Do not confuse your pen name with your porn star name.
Recently, I had to rename myself. I found it to be a very odd experience.
I’ve never had trouble naming my characters. I keep a few baby name books by my desk for reference, and usually it just takes a quick perusal through one to find the perfect name.
Naming babies is almost as easy. Or, at least, thinking up names for babies is easy. The task is only made difficult when your husband insists on having a say in the matter. Or, even worse, when relatives start to give their opinions.
When I was pregnant, I was in love with the name Harry. George was lukewarm on it . . . or he was, right up until his sister opined that it was a playground taunting trauma waiting to happen.
“Harry Gaskell sounds too much like Hairy Asshole,” she pronounced.
And after that, George put the nix on Harry, which made me seriously regret our decision to give each other absolute veto power over any names we didn’t care for. Especially since I was the one gaining five pounds a week, and getting up ten times a night to pee.
But baby names are a breeze when compared to coming up with a pen name.
I’m writing a new series of teen books about a math genius named Miranda Bloom who attends a high school for gifted students. The first book in the series is called Geek High, and it’s coming out this November from NAL.
My editor suggested I use a pseudonym for the series, so that my readers won't confuse the teen books with my adult books. This made a lot of sense to me, so I agreed to come up with a pen name for myself . . . and drew a complete blank. How on earth do you go about renaming yourself?
“Lulu Nipples,” George suggested, when I asked him for help.
“This is a pen name for a teen series. Not a porn star name,” I reminded him.
But he was no help. Once I finally got him off the idea of using Nipples as a last name, he went off on a bizarre Scots tangent.
“Mcpherson? Mcduff? McLaughlin?” he said.
“No, no, no!” I said.
I finally, after much thought, came up with the perfect name: Annabelle Swift.
There were just a few problems with it. First, if we ever have another child, and should that child be a girl-child, I have already decided we are going to name her Annabelle. (And I’m not giving George veto power next time around). Second, it turns out that there’s a designer named Annabelle Swift, and she owns the URL for the name. Third, Annabelle Swift was apparently the star of a children’s picture book.
Gah.
So I dropped the over-used Annabelle Swift. And after much more thought (using Winnie-the-Pooh's technique of tapping myself on the head, while muttering, "think, think, think"), I thought up another name:
Piper Banks.
And this one stuck. I really, really like it. It’s spunky, and preppy, and easy to remember. But it still feels a little odd to see my new book listed under her name, instead of mine. But then I remember: I am Piper Banks.
Weirdness.
Posted by Whitney at 6:00 AM | Comments (20)
Comments
I like it. Piper Banks. Good choice.
Posted by: Theresa N. at February 27, 2007 7:31 AM
Congrats on the new name and book.
I thought the rule of thumb for porn names was the name of your pet for the first name and your mother's maiden name for the last.
My husband would be: Moose Metz
Posted by: Terri at February 27, 2007 8:23 AM
Love the new name! Can't wait to read it. I really enjoy most YA even though I'm way past the age. On the other hand, it makes it easier to recommend books to my oldest. And to know what he's reading. Congratulations on the new series!
Posted by: heidi at February 27, 2007 10:06 AM
Ooh, Piper Banks sounds adorable!
LC Eileen
P.S. I thought the porn star name was the name of your first pet for the first name and the name of the street where you grew up for the second making me Nightingale Williams.
Posted by: The LC Eileen ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.literarychicks.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at February 27, 2007 10:42 AM
If I go with Eileen's porn star name requirements then my husband would be - Igor Wellesley. Sounds like a lawyer or a serial killer.
Posted by: Terri at February 27, 2007 11:12 AM
That would make me Steve Shorewood! I do not think I would ever be a porn star with that name!!! Well, at least not the gender they were expecting!!! Ha ha ha!!
Posted by: sal at February 27, 2007 2:08 PM
LOL. This is my literary porn, hands down...
Posted by: K at February 27, 2007 3:19 PM
You had a pet named Steve? That's hysterical. And no, Steve Shorewood doesn't sound particularly porn-y. Of course, neither does Igor Wellesley. Maybe I had the porn star thing mixed up with something else.
Posted by: The LC Eileen at February 27, 2007 4:25 PM
I love the name! And my oldest will be thrilled that another LC has written a book for her age group. She's a big Jax Abbott fan and hopes desperately that there will be a new book in that series soon (hint, hint Alesia!). First books I have ever known her to re-read--THAT'S huge!
Now I will add Piper Banks to the must-read authors on our list and get it for her for Christmas, since the release date will miss her birthday by a month. Of course, if you need any ARC readers, I am sure she would be THRILLED to read it for you! (And me too!) Great name--I have always liked that name, Piper. Sounds independent and sassy. Good choice.
Posted by: Sheri at February 27, 2007 5:45 PM
Okay, I'm obviously not destined for porn stardom. I'm either Amanda Doty (pet + mother's last name) or Amanda 24 (that street thing just doesn't work if you lived on a numbered street. Unless maybe the street was 69th).
I had always thought that naming a child would be easy. And it would have been, if kidlet had been a girl. But suddenly you realize that someone is going to have to live with that name for the rest of their life and it becomes much more difficult. A girlfriend of mine, way before she had kids, stated that she was going to name her son Titan. I told her that that was a *horrendous* idea because all the kids would call him Tit. Thankfully, when she finally did have kids, she used much more sensible names.
Posted by: Dia at February 27, 2007 8:42 PM
Our very first pet was a hamster named Steve. I think I was about 11. (My other porn name would be Steve Ziegenhagen...I don't think so!) We have always given our pets human names.
Naming our daughter was very easy. We adopted and kept her name. We just changed the spelling and her middle name.
When I was growing up, I wanted very unusual names for my kids. Olympia Ann for a girl and Truman Pierce for a boy...they were destined to be doomed. No wonder I never had any natural children!!!
Posted by: sal at February 27, 2007 9:56 PM
I've always had an obsession with names because I hated mine growing up. The lady on Romper Room NEVER saw Janina in her Magic Mirror. Bitch. Yeah, I'm bitter. My porn name? Choochi Sterling. Sounds a little country clubby n'est ce pas?
My friend Mark married a woman who had a little girl name picked out since she was a teenager. She refused to give it up despite the tragic pairing it made with Mark's last name. Poor Lacey Stocking never had a chance.
Posted by: Janina at February 28, 2007 12:42 AM
NOOOO! They didn't really name her Lacey Stocking, did they? You are totally making that up.
Although I did hear about a couple who named their daughter Lisa Mercedes.
Posted by: The LC Eileen at February 28, 2007 11:41 AM
I have a 13 y/o and she is a very avid reader (not just for school) and an almost straight A student. I'm looking forward to your series, sounds like a real esteem boost for young, smart girls, like mine.
"sal": She never saw Kylee in her mirror either. =)
Posted by: Kylee{CTmom} at February 28, 2007 12:09 PM
OMG!!! I love Piper Banks! That is SUCH a great name! And I can't wait for the book - it sounds great!
As for me... I would be Ginger Main. Sounds more librarian than porn star, no? But then, I've always been repressed.
And let's all have a moment of silence for poor, poor Lacey. Although it could be worse; her mother could have named her Fishnet. Which, now that I think about it, is probably what I should have named my kid. :)
Posted by: Lani at February 28, 2007 1:03 PM
"NOOOO! They didn't really name her Lacey Stocking, did they? You are totally making that up."
I am dead serious Eileen! Her full name is Lacey Rose Stocking. Poor Mark used to complain that folks would think his daughter was a stripper. All we could do was smile sympathetically.
Posted by: Janina at February 28, 2007 8:33 PM
My porn star name would be "Buffy Sheraton"
I love the name "Piper Banks"...
and poor Lacey Stocking. What was her mother THINKING?
Posted by: laurenjharwood at March 2, 2007 8:35 AM
I LOVE the name Piper Banks! I always liked the name Piper. Norm, however, vetoed Piper on my list of 30+ girl names. Gratefully, our daughter came perfectly named already when we got the referral. Yes, my dears, I'm the proud mother of a beautiful baby girl from Guatemala!!!! Her name is Carolina Valentina! Her birth name was Maria Valentina but I vetoed Maria as it was the name of my dad's mom who was a royal bee-yotch, so instead we went with our daughter's birth mom's name and kept Valentina. But I still adore Piper Banks. Does Piper Banks wear Spanx? hahahaha.....
Posted by: cameo at March 3, 2007 7:45 PM
Thanks everyone!
Cameo, congrats on your new baby girl! I love the name Carolina!
And, yes, this Piper definitely wears Spanx.
Posted by: Whitney at March 5, 2007 11:04 AM
Hey I never posted here before, btw I love "Piper Banks" it sound so...official. Um my porn star name would be "Cindy Liedna" or "Cindy Sacco". I prefer the first one.
I am a writer myself. Not yet an author but aiming somewhere there. I love the idea of Geek High. Sounds..geeky. In a good way.
Um, I am really looking for a new name for myself; you see I'm writing a book and I still haven't found a pen name yet. I love 2 names:
Emma lee and Jamey.
Surnames are a BIG problem. I can't decide on:
Anderson
Adamson
Parker
So what d'ya think?
Posted by: Jamie at March 19, 2007 12:51 AM
