Previously Published Author Changes Name to Sell

boswellbaxter · Post by **boswellbaxter** » Thu February 23rd, 2012, 9:05 pm

Here's a piece about Patricia O'Brien, who had to change her name to Kate Alcott in order to get her latest novel sold:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/23/books ... .html?_r=2

LoveHistory · Post by **LoveHistory** » Fri February 24th, 2012, 12:43 am

Interesting. I've considered using different pen names for different genres. Had a lot of fun thinking up names for my bad romance novels series.

bevgray · Post by **bevgray** » Fri February 24th, 2012, 12:22 pm

I wonder if part of the trouble for her may have been the closeness between Patricia O'Brien and Patrick O'Brien. I know in theater and film, actors and actresses are often advised to change their names if it is too close to someone else.

I think Pen Names make a lot of sense if a writer is working in different genres; particularly if one set of readers is unlikely to cross over.

EC2 · Post by **EC2** » Fri February 24th, 2012, 2:06 pm

It happens all the time, but usually it flies under the radar. I have several well known author friends who have gone this route and I know of others. Some have 'come out' but there are many out there that readers just don't know about and may never do until the author shuffles off the mortal coil.

fljustice · Post by **fljustice** » Fri February 24th, 2012, 4:31 pm

A lot of prolific genre writers use multiple pen names so as not to confuse their different audiences. I know one author who has a different name for romance, SF, fantasy, mystery and just came out with a new one for use with a particular publisher! It's obvious from her website that she writes under these various names and doesn't hide. She does it for her readers.

Re Ms. O'Brien/Alcott, her subterfuge is a comment on the nature of today's publishing. It's just too bad she had to do this to sell a perfectly wonderful book. Her publisher turned it down because he was looking at how many books can I sell in the first x-weeks, rather than developing a writer's career over time. They need instant bestsellers to make money on books, sold in bookstores, before the book is shoved off the shelf by newer and fresher "produce." Their business model is significantly flawed and they're struggling to figure out how to fix it. The publishers are making higher profits then in years past by treating authors poorly by offering lower advances, rotten percentages on ebooks, rights grabs, etc. Given that Ms. O'Brien has an established career and fan base, she might have done better going Indie, but that's for every author to decide based on their own circumstances.

EC2 · Post by **EC2** » Fri February 24th, 2012, 8:57 pm

One of my author friends brought out books with a mainstream publisher that didn't sell enough copies and is now being relaunched by a different publisher under a new name. The agent didn't tell the new publisher until the deal was on the table.
Same scenario with a male writer who changed his name specifically to shake the dust off bad previous sales. He's doing very well now mainstream in his new incarnation.
It really does happen a lot more than people realise, but it's generally kept shtum.

SarahWoodbury · Post by **SarahWoodbury** » Mon February 27th, 2012, 6:16 pm

A good friend of mine has had this exact experience--where she had a trilogy that didn't sell as well as the publisher wanted. Of course, they fired her editor, and the next two had never read her books, and when they came out, the publisher did nothing for them so they were spine out in the stacks. It's hard to see how this is her fault. Anyway, she was told her name was 'tarnished' and if she wanted another contract, she had to have a new pen name. She's indie publishing now.