Pseudonym, Pen Name or Nom de Plume

People often wonder why authors write under different names. There are a variety of reasons to write under a pseudonym or pen name. Maybe you have a very common first and last name and you want your name to stand out more. You may be well known in a specific genre and you are starting to write in a new genre. Or maybe you just like being mysterious. You can have many reasons or no specific reason to choose a different name when you are publishing your work.

Here are a few well known authors who write under multiple names;

• Stacey Abrams as Selena Montgomery

• Stephen King as Richard Bachman

• Agatha Christie as Mary Westmacott

• Nora Roberts as JD Robb

• Joyce Ritacco as AJ Questenberg

• Dean Koontz as Deanna Dwyer, Owen West, Aaron Wolfe and David Axton

Stephan King mentions he wrote books under Richard Bachman to measure his success. He was curious if he was truly a talented writer or if he was just lucky.

AJ Questenberg began writing during a time where women writers were not given the same amount of credit or exposure as male writers. She transposed the initials of her first and middle name and took that last name of one of the ancestors she traced back to about 1300 Germany.

Having a pseudonym, pen name or nom de plume is a personal choice and you, the author, have sole discretion on what name you wish to use when you publish.

What name do you use when you write?