Should You Use a Pen Name?
The answer is yes, and also no
Up until I met my writing friend, Nicole, the thought of using a pen name literally never crossed my mind. I like my actual name and don’t plan on writing anything scandalous during my writing career, and those are the two main reasons I used to think writers use pen names. As I learned from Nicole, and from chatting about the idea of pen names in an episode of borrowed solace: the podcast there are many more reasons, and a lot more nuance, as to why a writer chooses to use a pen name.
If you’re thinking about using a pen name, you may have similar misconceptions about the why and the how as I had, or maybe you have entirely different concerns. One thing’s for certain — if you’re a writer now, or plan on becoming one in the future, thoughts about a pen name have likely crossed your mind. So if you have, indeed, thought about using a pen name but still aren’t sure whether you should or not, here’s some advice to help you make your decision.
What is a pen name
First of all, we should probably establish what exactly a pen name is before going any further. A pen name is a pseudonym that an author chooses to publish under rather than his or her real name. Pen names are one of those topics that are talked about quite often in the writing world but would be of…
