IWSG & Blogging News
3 weeks ago
Names And The Sort-Of-Big Reveal
You all know me as Cherie.
Writer Cherie, Cher-Bear, Cherie Larkins... (I also got dubbed other, uh, unusual nicknames such as Sparkly Pants, Bumpit Goddess, Sparkles, Vampy, but we won't focus on those names for now. Alright?)
Cherie is my childhood nickname. It's what my family and old friends call me. There's always been a sense of comfort with the use of this name because it's reminiscent of my days as a kid, running around barefoot while I play tag with my childhood friends. It's also easy to say and spell.
But even this kid has to grow up some time. And that time has come.
When I was asked to write an author bio, it suddenly dawned on me that I needed to decide which name to use. Should I stick to the name I've branded my online persona with, or should I go with my real name? I didn't really view Cherie as a pseudonym; after all, it was my name, albeit not the one my mother gave me after I was born. It was the name my friends shouted when they wanted me to come out and go climb trees with them. It was the name my cousins used to greet me at every family gathering. The name my mom would yell if I forgot to do my chores. But everywhere else--school, church, government forms and IDs--I wasn't Cherie. I was someone else. Someone who was more intricately me.
And so it is that I've decided to reveal the real me for all the world to see.
Hello!
My name is PRECY.
It's nice to meet you.
I've shied away from using my real name because:
~people mispronounce it all the time. Even after I correct them. It's pronounced 'Preh-see', or 'Press-see'. Not Percy, not Priestly, not Prissy. :D
~it gets misspelled all the time, too.
~it's unusual.
BUT it's time to embrace it. It's time to grow up and own it. It's a beautiful name, after all. And I dearly hope that someday, when my book gets published, I wish to see that name on the shelves at the bookstore. Because while Cherie is part of me, Precy embodies who I am.
So, I'll be working on making the transition painless on my social media sites. You can still call me Cherie, or Cher-Bear, or Writer Cherie. We're friends, you know. ;)
What about you? Do you use pseudonyms, or plan to use one? Do you use your real name? Do you also worry about what name to use professionally? Or which name do you wish to see on your book covers someday?
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- Precy Larkins
- I'm a YA writer who loves to read. Also a mom of 3. My life is crazy but always fun. :) I'm a member of The YA Club, a group blog about YA books. You can also find me blogging at: http://precylarkins.wordpress.com Represented by the lovely Julia A. Weber of J. A. Weber Literaturagentur GmbH. Thanks for stopping by! Email me: writercherie@gmail.com
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37 comments:
That's a fantastic name! Unique and lovely! And I'm glad I know how to pronounce it now.
Names are interesting, right? When I went to a writing conference last month, I discussed names quite a bit. Do you use initials, a pen name, a different last name, etc. etc.
The advice I got that seemed to be consistently given was first to choose what name you eventually want to see on your books (if you are aiming to be published one day) and use that name in every social media venue you use, whenever you email, etc. It will be your brand name essentially.
So I had a tough time because I wondered if I choose now, am I going to wish I had chosen differently later. But I went with my gut feeling and my real name.
Wow - there's my word count for the day, lol.
Thanks, Leslie! I should have done the name change early on, but I didn't really think I'd get this far. All too sudden, it's becoming real, and I knew I needed to make a decision--I had to get serious with making writing a career. :)
How lucky is that - to have two wonderful names?
I understand your problem with people misspelling your name. It does get irritating. But I think it will look great on your books, and it isn't a name one will forget!
Your name is beautiful. I do use a pen name, but it has personal meaning to me.
Congrats on the agent. That's fabulous news.
what a pretty name.
I'd always assumed your name was Cherie for real :)
Precy is a beautiful name! I'm sticking with my real name for everything because I've always liked it. It's been mispronounced, mispelled (even by friends and relatives), and I've had nicknames, but I like my real name best.
Precy is a beautiful name! I'm sticking with my real name for everything because I've always liked it. It's been mispronounced, mispelled (even by friends and relatives), and I've had nicknames, but I like my real name best.
It IS a beautiful name! I love it. But I also loved Cherie b/c it means "love." I saw you're on Pinterest... *runs off to follow* ;p <3
Where does the name come from? Is it Hawaiian? I've never heard of it before. Well, I think you are beautiful, whatever name you use! :)
I love your name and hey, I said it right before you said how to pronounce it! YAY! Lol.
I'm still SO excited for you. I gave you a little shout out on my blog so more people can be excited with me :D
Hope you have a wonderful day and I saw you posted on my blog about being in your third trimester-eeeep- how do you get anything done? I was so tired all the time, it took force to make myself do anything, lol.
What a lovely name! :D Totally understand the frustration of people chronically mispronouncing it. Happens all the time to me too!
Hehe! And "Cherie" isn't hard to pronounce and spell? You should see the pronunciations and misspellings I've gotten over the years.
Although I agree Precy isn't an easy name to spell or pronounce without hearing/seeing it, but it is a lovely name. :)
Your name is beautiful, and so unique!
I toyed with the idea of a pen name when I started writing. Out of bad planning, I chose my blog to reflect my name, and then it was just too late. I am who I am, no pen names. Glad you're getting comfortable with your decision!
Its a unusual, unique and a beautiful name. Yes, people can mispronounce it. All you can do is to keep correcting them.
Your name is lovely. And when your book is pubbed and you become famous, then everyone will know how to pronounce your name. :)
So glad you told us how to say it! I would have said Pree-sy!
I like it. And it'll make it a lot easier for fans to remember your name!
I love the name Percy. And ya know what? It suits you. :)
I think it's unusual and beautiful! Use your real name. Me? I use a pen name because my name is unusual too and most people don't know how to pronounce it. Also, no one in my family knows I write and I want to keep it that way.
This is extremely interesting. I really enjoyed reading this.
www.modernworld4.blogspot.com
I love your name. It's fantastic. I might have to name a character after you, I like it so well. :D
I use my maiden name. So sort of a pen name, but not really. My family can't leave reviews because they have the same last name. I wish I had thought of that ...
That's a wonderful name! :)
I use a pseudonym on Blogger (obviously) but I'm not sure what name I'd use if I ever published a book--probably not Golden Eagle, though.
You have a fun name. =) I kind of sort of have a pseudonym. Since I knew I was getting married when I started writing, I opted to use my first and middle name as my author name. They wouldn't change so there would be no confusion when I changed my last name. (although, I have resisted changing it on FB just to be annoying xD)
What a beautiful name! It's unique and truly lovely :)
I use a pen name because I write romance and teach elementary school :P
Oh my gosh --- when I first came here I wondered how I was already following you and didn't know it! Now I know! I was following Cherie! I am proud to say that I pronounced you name perfectly (in my head!) I love it! And its so fun to get to know more about you! Fabulous!
Hi guys! Thanks so much for your wonderful and sweet comments. I'm glad you guys don't think I'm weird for changing my name. I really thought long and hard about it. Kinda made me wish I figured it out before I even started blogging. Better late than never, I guess. :)
You're all awesome! I feel so blessed and grateful to have such great blogging friends. Much love to all of you! <3 <3 <3
Precy is a beautiful and unique name... it's funny how the variations of our names crop up in different environments, and change not only how we are perceived, but how we perceive ourselves...
It's wonderful to meet you, Precy. I know your pain with misspellings. My name is always being misspelled and it's not even that unusual of a name. Sigh... ;)
beautiful name! and unique! so glad you brought it to us!
and i gave you an award =)
Hey, dahling! How amazing to read this! congrats on the big reveal! (Luckily for me… I think I would have pronounced your name right! Woot!)
Congrats!
Thanks for the big reveal! I LIKE the name "Precy!" It's cool and unique. Just what a writer needs. Very "im-precy-ive" name I think! ;^)
I've thought about using a pseudonym, simply to try and stand out a bit -- there are a gazillion other writers named "Chris". But in the end, it's more natural (and easier) to just be me, ya know?
E.B. Black is my pain name. My last name is a strange one and not spelled phonetically, so no one will ever be able to pronounce it. E and B are my first and last initials and Black is because I write dark stories.
Also, I'm glad I've been pronouncing your name correctly in my head. I was worried that I was pronouncing it wrong.
I love your name, Precy.
Before my debut, on many sites I used my initial M. It felt strange for me to put my full name out there when I'm a private person.
I think your real name is wonderful and unique! And, for the record, I pronounced it right when I read it, so it can't be that hard. Then again, I get called Sharon all the time (and my name is Shannon).
I often wonder if my name is too normal. Too unremarkable. I've considered using a pen name, but when I went and searched for books under my name, there weren't any (shockingly). So, for now, I'm sticking with my real name, unremarkable as it may be.
I think it's a gorgeous name! :)
Wow, I'm sure this was a big step for you! I actually really relate to this... until recently, most of my readers knew me as The Red Angel, or TRA. But I also decided to start signing with my real name because I felt comfortable enough to do so, and it was time. Anyhow, I think your name is lovely!
But to me, you'll always be Cher-Bear. lol :)
~Wendy Lu
The Red Angel Blog
Hi, Precy! Great stuff. And if that is an unusual name, then that's good, I guess. Makes it memorable. I've never used a pseudonym myself, although there have been a few times (bad reviews, say) I wish I had!
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