• Skip to main content
  • Skip to after header navigation
  • Skip to site footer

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Interview with Steve Laube
    • Statement of Faith
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Guidelines
  • Authors
    • Who We Represent
    • Awards and Recognition
  • Resources
    • Recommended Reading
    • Christian Writers Market Guide Online
    • Christian Writers Institute
    • Writers Conferences
    • Freelance Editorial Services
    • Copyright Resources
    • Research Tools
    • Selling What You Write
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Twitter
  • FaceBook
  • RSS Feed
  • Get Published
  • Book Proposals
  • Book Business
  • Writing Craft
    • Conferences
    • Copyright
    • Craft
    • Creativity
    • Grammar
  • Fun Fridays
Home » Author Names

Author Names

When You Share a Name with Another Person

By Steve Laubeon November 2, 2015
Share19
Tweet
8

This was a great question that came our way:

Although I have been cultivating my online presence as a writer, I have found that someone who shares my name already has a significant online presence. This person does not live a Christian lifestyle: in fact, I would be terribly embarrassed and my professional integrity could be harmed if anyone mistook me for this individual. Perhaps other authors may face the same dilemma.

Are there any suggestions for a new author who has to overcome the presence of another online? Would it be necessary to write under a pseudonym?

That is a tough one.

Our own Karen Ball had someone by the same name who was a practicing psychic. So when she created her web site she used karenballbooks.com since karenball.com was taken at the time. (Recently Karen dropped that site and moved to her wonderful new site for writers called WriteFromTheDeep.com.)

But if the other person is well known, or their site is terribly “flagrant” (If you know what I mean) you could decide to use a pen name. But if you’ve already gone far down the path under your real name, then it’s too late.

If you only just started blogging or only have abandoned your online presence, website-wise, then you have an opportunity to reboot.

One caution about pen names and Facebook. They can be miserable with “fake IDs.” If they find out they will shut down your site in a heartbeat (read this article for an author’s horror story with Facebook). I would google something like “authors pen names Facebook” and read about how to handle that (Here is one article about “Pen Names and Social Media.”. They have good reasons because of predators who use Facebook for evil. But that security splashes over onto those who are trying to use a professional pen name.

I have a half dozen clients who write under their maiden name. One was because her married name is unspellable…. Another was for protection. Another because she published before she got married. They started their careers and social media presence under that name and have had no trouble since. One who got married set up a separate site for her family’s use under her real name…without trouble.

Ultimately it is your decision. But once you make it, stick with it.

And one little reminder to everyone? If you have a domain name make sure that the email associated with your registration is up to date. We had a client whose domain name was his real name (like stevelaube.com), but the registration expired. He had changed his email address a couple years earlier but did not update his domain registration. The registrar sent him a notice saying it was time to renew his site, but he never got it. The day his domain name became available a “Date Older Women” site took it and redirected all the traffic intended for his author website to something very unseemly. It took two years for him to get the domain name back again.

Don’t let that happen to you!

Leave a Comment
Category: Book Business, The Writing LifeTag: Author Names, The Writing Life

Sidebar

Get Blog Updates

Enter your email address to get new blog updates delivered via email. You can unsubscribe at any time.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Grow as a Writer


Find Out More →

Popular Posts

Top Posts on Book Proposals
  • Hints for a Great Cover Letter
  • The Keys to a Great Book Proposal
  • What Steve Laube is Looking For
  • Book Proposals I’d Love to See – Tamela Hancock Murray
  • What I’m Looking for – Bob Hostetler
  • What I’m Looking for – Dan Balow
  • What’s the Best Way to Submit My Self-Published Book?
  • What Is the Agent Doing While I Wait?
  • God Gave Me This Blog Post
Top Posts on The Business Side
  • When Your Book Becomes Personal
  • The Myth of the Unearned Advance
  • How Long Does it Take to Get Published?
  • What Are Average Book Sales?
  • Can You Plagiarize Yourself?
  • Never Burn a Bridge
  • Who Decides to Publish Your Book?
  • That Conference Appointment
  • Goodbye to Traditional Publishing?
  • Who Owns Whom in Publishing?
  • Ten Commandments for Working with Your Agent
  • Writers Beware! Protect Yourself
Top Series
  • Book Proposal Basics
  • Publishing A-Z
  • A Defense of Traditional Publishing
Top Posts on Rejection
  • The Slush Pile: Enter at Your Own Risk
  • Even the Best Get Rejected
  • Five Reasons Why You May Never Get Published
  • The Unhelpful Rejection Letter
  • Writers Learn to Wait

Blog Post Archives by Month

  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Interview with Steve Laube
    • Statement of Faith
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Guidelines
  • Authors
    • Who We Represent
    • Awards and Recognition
  • Resources
    • Recommended Reading
    • Christian Writers Market Guide Online
    • Christian Writers Institute
    • Writers Conferences
    • Freelance Editorial Services
    • Copyright Resources
    • Research Tools
    • Selling What You Write
  • Blog
  • Contact

Copyright © 2023 · The Steve Laube Agency · All Rights Reserved · Website by Stormhill Media