I understand some authors for whatever reason change their names. Low sales, a fuck up labeled your book a romance (and it wasn’t) and your old name pissed off fans by killing off the hero or heroine and they will no longer buy your shit, you are no longer into us and want to write something different from romance and cast off that name or maybe you are just branching out…
Honestly I don’t like it but as long as you aren’t calling yourself a ‘debut’ author, I am not gonna cry foul – much.
But can you do me a favor – STOP TELLING ME ABOUT IT. Don’t put in your author info:
author was a best seller under another name
has two historicals novels under another name
bestselling author who doesn’t want people to know she is really a dirrty girl writing erotic
so forth and so on…
Why do you do this? This annoys. This makes me want to find out who you are. If I am not suppose to know, guess what, I wouldn’t have if you hadn’t of just teased me! This makes me hate you and that makes baby jesus cry.Just thought you should know…
Ok, e-mail me the details, cuz I wanna know who you speak of!
There have been two recently. I can’t remember off the top of my head who the first was but I can check. The most recent was Melina Morel. Has an interesting book that is coming next month… Devour.
But I was annoyed so I put it in Gwen’s box.
ohhh the drama!
I know of an author who has done the same thing or at least their publisher wanted to increase their sales. And up to the point I had no clue who they were till the big ass blurb on the book said So and so also known as…
Melina Morel writes as someone else? Had no idea. Saw the “debut author” tag and assumed that meant she was a newbie. I’m thinking maybe the publishers should refrain from saying “debut” when, you know, it’s not really a debut.
Made baby Jesus cry? That’s not good.
I think I saw ‘debut paranormal thriller’ on the amazon page..
back of book sez:
Before writing Devour, Melina Morel wrote two historical novels under a different name. She lives in the New York Metro area and spends time at the Jersey shore in the summer.
Well, sometimes it’s a choice between a new name and a new career. Or so I have heard. (Please, baby jesus, let it not happen to me!)
Caroline, I feel the same way. Frankly, I am not above engaging in editor bribery to make sure this never happens to me. Liquor ’em up at RWA and…well, you get the idea.
There are a few authors I know who did not have any choice but to change names. The publishers insisted. Bad sales, couldn’t build a following or whatever. One in particular is writing about the same thing and changed names at the publisher’s insistence due to disappointing sales. After the change she saw her sales go through the roof. Probably helps that she stopped getting lame covers and started getting a bit more of a publisher push.
I do understand Lori Foster using LL Foster with her urban fantasy novels and Sylvia Day using SJ Day with hers. That’s to clue in the romance readers they’re not getting romance with a new book. The difference there is that the name is close and not a secret. Makes sense to me.
I was checking out Devour last month and saw “debut paranormal from best selling historical author” and wondered who she was (email me please, Sybil). It is a bit misleading, and if such a best seller in that other genre, why not just tell us.
uh huh
but helenkay how come LL Foster’s urban fantasy novel is labeled ‘paranormal romance’?
hmmmm… odd that cuz I read the last few pages
I don’t mind when the author is open about their pen names. Sheila Kelly (Paperback Writer) is probably the most prominent I know of, who has written under five different names at this point (I believe two names changes were by publisher suggestion/insistence). Or J. R. Ward / Jessica Bird. Etc.
It annoys me to no end when an author drops that they wrote under another name but don’t say what. Y’know, I might actually like their other work? *sigh*
Sybil, are you upset when you’re not told the other name the author writes under, or just that there has to be a name change in general?
Just a clue-in from an editor’s perspective: If an author’s name has to change due to poor sales, we probably won’t mention anything about the other name or previous books on sales information (cover flats, etc.). That way, accounts can’t look back and say “Well, this author tanked as xx, why would we want to buy more?” But in materials to readers and on the author’s website, etc., we try to make sure they know all the books that are available.
I am very annoyed when I am told there is ‘another name’ but NOT giving the other name.
To me if you don’t want me to know – don’t make me wonder. The ‘was a best seller historical author’ stuff with no mention anywhere about who it trips my OCD. And then I find myself LOOKING for it.
And then if the author tell us nah nah nah, “I was once someone but not telling”… there is no crying allowed when they get ‘outted’. Cuz that is wrong. If they hadn’t of teased, we wouldn’t have looked. No?
Other than that I am cool as long as they aren’t “debut” authors or win awards for their “first” book. Cuz that is lying and bad and just plain dirty pool.
sez I 🙂
Of course I am a nosy shit so really I would rather know who EVERYONE is! But I can respect the reasons for doing it as long as it is on the up and up. At least to the readers… I know self interest and all that… I suck and should be ashamed.
Frankly, I am not above engaging in editor bribery to make sure this never happens to me. Liquor “em up at RWA and”well, you get the idea.
HelenKay, you may be my new personal hero for suggesting bribing the editors with booze.
I have to admit, I can’t really throw stones at any author who does what she thinks she needs to do for her career (unless it’s blindingly stupid–that’s another case). Those sales numbers are really important, for new authors especially.
Sometimes you want to change your name if you’re doing something different — for example, my agent and I have been discussing whether or not my urban fantasy should have a different name on it — maybe something like Kate Smith rather than Kathryn. Why? Because the covers of my historicals don’t look like historicals and there may be some confusion with readers who grab the book in the store expecting another Victorian Vampire. But, I don’t know. Regardless, I’ll very loudly let everyone know it’s me! lol.
Sybil – I’m actually not sure what genre the LL Foster book fits in. Lori called it horror. She said her editor initially read it and described it as urban fantasy. Now you’re saying it’s marketed as pararnomal romance. That last one seems the most wrong. The only thing clear here is that the urban fantasy/paranormal romance line keeps getting fuzzier.
Caroline – Oh, I’ve tried it. Sybil is my witness. We’ll find each other at the next big writers conference and work out an editor bribery plan. We can do it.