Is there a reason for authors to use their real life names?

C

cinderscopia

New member
If an author's career suddenly launched into one of success, would that author almost regret having used his/her name? I can imagine handing one's credit card over to pay for a Big Mac only to have the acne-faced kid say he loved your last monster museum thriller and if you could sign the carton of fries.

I am speaking more of authors who are not Tom Clancy/Stephen King/Jo Rowling celebrities, but who aren't unknown either.

Are nom-de-plumes actually more frequently used than I am aware of? How come readers become obsessed with finding out who, e.g., Trevanian (The Eiger Sanction) is? In that case, shouldn't one choose a name that is marketable but less of an enigma?
 
Nice question! I guess some people just don't like the idea of hiding behind a pen-name. It's possible, but there could be many other reasons. I mean, especially because what if they want the recognition, but don't expect the fame? Like, me personally, I would love to be published at least once in my lifetime and I'm hardly expecting fame, but I would just love seeing a book with my name on it on my bookshelf... so I'd use my real name for that purpose. Who knows?
 
they don't care whether they are not known to people even they are very popular...
still they very good
 
i don't know about you but i'd rather use a pen name to make it sound more mysterious and i'm not the celebrity type. it's better to fit in than to stand out at some point. anyway, even if you do use your pen name or your own name, you'll still get paid - and that's what's more important.
 
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