Monday, June 20, 2011

The Pseudonym

Carmela Ciuraru has a small photo-essay in the Huffington post about writers and their pseudonyms -- and the reasons behind the pseudonyms.  Her tone is a little snarky for my taste, but the mini-biographies are interesting.

Perhaps the first character we invent, as writers, is ourselves.

"EM Lewis" isn't really a nom d'plume -- it's just my initials and last name.  And I didn't decide to use it to hide my gender, or because I am a convicted felon (as one of Ciuraru's writers did).  But I do like having my own alternate self.  Somewhere between me and her and all of my characters lies the real me.

And... that's enough psychoanalysis for now.

1 comment:

Mary Aalgaard said...

It sounds very literary to use your initials and last name: ee cummings, JK Rowling. You're in good company. When I was fist published, I made the conscious decision to use my maiden name. When I got divorced, I dropped my married name, took back my maiden name, and better defined myself. So, yes, I agree, that the first character we invent is ourselves.