How I chose my pen name – Miss Write

A friend of mine is running an anthology submission competition and she asked me to contribute. It was on a subject I’d not normally write about – sex – and, being a personal story, I chose to write in disguise under a different name. Initial feedback on my honest piece is more than encouraging, so I hope it makes the final cut of the book. 

​How did I choose my (secret!) pen name? I could have used a pen name generator, but that’s so impersonal, I think. I still wanted to hang onto a bit of me, even if I was in disguise.

There is a former footballer with a sexy, strong sounding last name, so I pinched that. I think my married and maiden names were both strong, so that was pretty important to me. I always thought Louise XXXX sounded good, so I’ve kept my first name featured in my pen name, just changing the surname. It still feels a bit like me that way.  

Other ideas I had: 

1. Something inspired by a favourite film or actor of mine… Perhaps Louise Trinity (The Matrix), L Miller (We’re The Millers), Louise Everdeen in homage to the awesome Jennifer Lawrence in Hunger Games…

2. I’m a country music fan so Louise Cash, Osbourne, Rogers or Swift? 

3. My favourite book for a long time was Rebecca ~ Daphne Du Maurier – I’m not so keen on Daphne but Rebecca  could have worked as a first name. 

4. Maps have always been fascinating to me – a true geographer! – so I considered incorporating something from my local area. The area of Bristol I’m currently living in is called Lawrence Weston, but that would make me a man. A step too far for a disguise??

5. Wildlife inspired – how about using Lark, Wren, Daisy, or Poppy as a first name? I did quite warm to Lark, being another strong sounding name, but I’m not sure how plausible that is, not having known of anyone named that. 

How would you go about choosing a pen name?

Lou x

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