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Tuesday, April 03, 2007


Alter Ego

Something funny happened yesterday and I thought I'd share. I was reading last month's Desert Rose RWA newsletter and saw this name in there... for the briefest flash of a second, I thought, "that name looks familiar" (and you know where this is going, right?) - and yes, it was my own. But it wasn't "Kate Sterling" -- it was my "real" name I didn't recognize.

I'm not sure when this happened; when I embraced "Kate" so fully. In the beginning, it was awkward for me to see the name Kate in emails and blog posts. I felt like a fraud. Now, it seems the most natural thing in the world. The "other me" thinks being a writer named Kate Sterling is pretty cool. ;)

The framed tag you see in this picture came from the rose they hand out at the meeting (the rose is surrounding the frame) whenever someone makes a first sale. I keep it on my desk next to my computer. A rose by any other name...

If you write under a pseudonym, do you find it odd to hear it, or to see that name in print? Did you get used to it after a while? Did you, like me, forgot what your co-workers actually call you?

Now, this post is about to become a "two-in-one". Since it's Tuesday, and I missed another Magical Monday, I thought I'd post a list of some of the "magical" books I've read lately. I've had an interesting and unexpected side effect to a new medication I've been taking: it seems to have increased my concentration slightly. Go figure. But I'm all for it. Because of that, I've been reading up a storm the last few days so I'll share some of the magic. :)

Non-fiction:
"The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire" by Deepak Chopra (Edie, Ladonna & Michelle, if you're out there - you might like this one.)
"A Long Way Gone" by Ishmael Beah (I just started this one)

Fiction, Terry Pratchett
"Witches Abroad"
"Hogfather"
"Carpe Jugulum"
"Good Omens"
(Edie, you said you hadn't been able to get into his books, and there were others of his that I had taken out from the library apart from these that didn't "grab" me either. However, I loved these four as well as The Wee Free Men, A Hat Full of Sky, and Wintersmith - I think you might like those and the ones listed here. Of course, you never know.)

Fiction, other authors :)
"Fear No Evil" by Allison Brennan
"Storm Front" by Jim Butcher
"Possession" by Jennifer Armintrout
"Silverlock" by John Myers Myers (working on it now - I'm reading it and A Long Way Gone concurrently. The non-fiction is sad so far, so I need Silverlock to lift my spirits after - so far it's working.)

I also have a couple more that I bought at the same time in the "waiting to be read" pile. One is by a young local author, so I'm going to read it next when I'm done with the Silverlock and A Long Way Gone.

I also started writing again, and have to admit, I see the influence of Pratchett in the new stuff. But that's ok, because it feels very natural to me. I'd written other things that were similar before I ever read his work, so I'm telling myself it's not all a rip off. :)

15 comments:

  1. I'll definitely read Chopra's book. I've read many of his other books. I wrote down all 7 of the Pratchett titles you mentioned. Michelle quoted lines from one of his books in her blog today. Obviously this is a sign that I should give him another try. *g*

    I read all Allison's books. I'll be cheering for her in Dallas at the Rita ceremony. :)

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  2. We're out there ;)

    I've heard of Deepak Chopra, so I'll check it out, thanks Kate.

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  3. Good to see you Edie and Michelle. :) Thanks for checking in.

    Edie - it was a sign. ;)

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  4. If I'm at a conference or a workshop and someone calls me by my pseudonym, it takes me a minute to respond--I'm just not used to someone actually saying that name to me...

    And I'm glad to know you've started writing again! Good luck with your story!

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  5. So far, I only seen "Kate" in print, so it would probably catch me by surprise too, Cynthia, if someone called me that.

    Thanks for stopping by and the good wishes. :)

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  6. Multiple names for multiple personalities -- what, that's not normal? And here I thought everyone stood in front of the name tag table and fought to remember who they were on that particular day.

    Glad to see you out and about.

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  7. LOL, Avery. Thanks for stopping by. I think the worst is when I stand in front of the mirror and try to remember, but see my mother's face staring back at me. :)

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  8. Well, I'm really used to seeing both in print, but what was weird was seeing my editor this summer. She called me by my pseudonym! It was SO weird to hear! Especially after ... six, seven years?

    I can't wait to have something published under my "real" name. I don't know why, but even this little essay in this anthology got me SO excited, because it's finally my "real" name!

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  9. Oh! And I meant to say, that little butterfly picture frame thing is SO cool! Congratulations!

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  10. Thanks, Spy. Are you going to write the "Big N" under your real name?

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  11. Why don't you start a special bloo for your book list? I did.

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  12. Not a bad idea, seventh sister. Thanks for dropping by. :)

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  13. I recently signed a bunch of one of my old romances, published under my real name. I'm so used to signing my pseudonym in books now that it was really hard to sign my own name! It felt weird.

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  14. How funny, C. I haven't had to sign anything yet, but I can see myself using the wrong name. :)

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