Pseudonyms and the Online Writer

As I expand my online writing to sites like Xomba, I've noticed lately that many online writers use pseudonyms. I've recently made it to the first page of the Xomba Users By Points, and as I glance at the list of Xombies, I feel a bit naked as my own real name leaps out at me among all the cute and catchy pseudonyms chosen by other writers.

Today I noticed yet another writer from Associated Content, turning up on Xomba but using a pseudonym. When I first started writing on Associated Content about a year and a half ago, some people used pseudonyms in their profiles, but lots of writers did use their real names. As I began writing for Triond, I saw more and more writers using unique sounding pseudonyms. It was even more confusing when I realized that a Triond writer I really respect was using a pseudonym that only sounded like an actual name.

When I signed up for Xomba, I really experienced this phenomenon of online writers using funny, bizarre, or unusual pen names instead of their actual names. It seems that there are more and more online writers using pseudonyms these days, instead of putting their real names on their work.

I began to wonder why more online writers don't use names in their member profiles. I can understand the need for privacy, because the internet is so vast and it can feel a bit vulnerable to put your real name out there in cyberspace. There are issues of harassment and stalking and all sorts of unpleasantness that can occur when you reveal your real identity online.

However, even though we are writing online, publishing our work on the internet offers a real byline and a chance to acquire some clips. When I set up a profile page for sites like Associated Content, I generally use my real name and put some biographical information there (anything from some basic stats about me, to a fully written profile). You never know when some editor will come by, interested in hiring you for more work based on your current portfolio of articles. I think this definitely influenced me not to be too outrageous or bizarre in my profile information at any of the websites I currently write for.

So it never even occurred to me to give myself an internet handle like "latenightlasagna" or "IAmMyCatsMom" or anything cute, provocative or bizarre that I could invent for my online name. I just use my own name and location, and that sometimes makes me feel a little quaint because so many writers are being quite imaginative with their online names and profile information these days.

One of the other pluses of using a real name instead of a pseudonym is the opportunity to brand myself as a writer. If someone likes my work on Associated Content, and then finds me on Xomba under the same name, I become a recognizable entity. This is one good way to start building a solid reputation as a writer, by consistently putting your name on your work. Also, since I put my real name on my work, I always think hard about what I am publishing, because my name is on everything that I write. Finally, by always using my real name, if I want to republish articles across a variety of websites, it's always very clear that the work I'm publishing is mine and I own the rights to it (because I use my own name).

The only time I ever considered a pseudonym is when I gave away exclusive rights to a bundle of articles I wrote last year at eHow. There you will find me as "AliTravelWriter" because the company has the right to use my articles however they wish, and since I'm not sure how they might change them, I didn't want to attach my byline to them. In all other cases, when I write online giving nonexclusive rights, I use my real name.

So, as I look at all the other Xombies on Xomba.com with the cool catchy names, I'm trying not to feel like a stick in the mud by being just plain old me, Allison West. So far, using my own name is helping me build an online identity as a writer, so I think I'll definitely be using my real name as a strategy to help my writing skills become better known, on and offline.